Prophet Isaiah biography. Orthodoxy

600 years before the birth of Jesus, all the events that happened to Him from birth to crucifixion were described in the book of the prophet Isaiah in the Old Testament.

The life of the Holy Prophet Isaiah is filled with service to the Jewish people, who were given the promise of the coming of the Messiah.

Who is Isaiah and how did he deserve the gift of prophecy

700 years before the new era, the birth of Jesus Christ into the royal family, a boy, Isaiah, appeared in the Amos family, who was raised according to the laws of the Creator and in the fear of God. The book of the prophet himself says that upon reaching maturity, Isaiah married a girl who had the gift of prophecy, and they had a son, Jasub.

Holy Prophet Isaiah

According to God's calling, the prophet served in the courts of several kings:

• Uzziah;
• Jatham;
• Ahaz;
• Hezekiah;
• Manasseh.

The Jewish people were created by the grace of God, and the Creator, as a loving Father, always protected them, but also punished them. To stop the wicked actions of the Jews, God sent prophets to them with His messages, the central place of which was the promise of the coming of the Messiah.

In the days when the Jews embarked on the path of wickedness, Isaiah saw the Most High, who sat on the royal magnificent throne in the throne room of the majestic heavenly temple, surrounded by six-winged Seraphim.

The seraphim, flying on two wings, with two covering their eyes, with two covering their legs, constantly shook the pillars of the temple with exclamations about how holy the Lord of hosts is.

The God-fearing prophet knew that all earthly people have unclean lips and their surroundings are unclean, a feeling of fear paralyzed him. After admitting his sinfulness, Seraphim was sent to Isaiah, holding a burning coal from the altar of God with tongs. He put coal to the sinner’s mouth and thereby cleansed him, according to the will of the Lord, from all sins.

Suddenly the Lord’s voice was heard asking whom God should send to the Jews in order to turn them to the true path, abandoning the worship of idols. Isaiah volunteered. The Creator Himself promised to forgive and have mercy on those who come to Him with repentance. The stubborn and stubborn will face the punishment of the Lord and God's execution.

The Creator informed the prophet that this generation of the Jewish people would be destroyed, but from it a new tribe would be born that would live in holiness.

Note! In his prophetic books, Isaiah described the further fate of the Jews, their captivity and liberation, the construction of a new Jerusalem, he prophesies about the Mission.

Miracles performed by the famous prophet

Having the gift of performing miracles, Saint Isaiah, filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit, saved the city from thirst during the siege of its enemies. The Prophet prayed at the foot of Zion, and at his request the Lord opened the bowels of the earth, from where a source of spring water gushed out. This spring was called Siloam, which means sent by the Most High. It was with water from this spring that Jesus ordered the young man born blind to wash himself, after which he received his sight.

King Hezekiah fell ill and was very afraid to die, Isaiah prayed for him before God. The Creator, at the request of the prophet, granted the king another 15 years.

Isaiah served the people and kings for 60 years, remaining in communion with God. It was through this saint that the Jews learned about the coming of the Messiah, God and man in one guise. He calls Jesus a sprout from dry ground, a new tribe of the Jewish people, as the Lord spoke about Him. The Savior in the prophecies did not stand out among people in any way, and was sometimes despised by society.

The prophet Isaiah recorded prophecies about the coming of the Messiah

According to the righteous man, the Teacher of Nations, the Founder of the Kingdom on earth, filled with peace and love, will be born of an immaculate Virgin, but will be crucified for the sins of the world, like a sheep, silently went to the cross.

The prophet described step by step the suffering of Christ, the mockery of him by the soldiers, and did not even miss the story of the division of clothes.

Important! Historians call the prophet an evangelist of the Old Testament, who, 6 centuries before the resurrection of the Savior, wrote that only by His wounds can we, the current generation, be healed.

The end of the earthly journey

Having entrusted a message from the Almighty to return the Jews to the path of serving the one God, Isaiah continuously denounced the people for idolatry, hypocrisy, and false worship of the True Creator. In his denunciations, King Manasseh and the rich especially suffered, who for the sake of appearance observed religious rituals that had long lost their spiritual power, oppressed the poor, orphans and widows.

Calls to repentance did not reach the ears of a people blinded by sins.

The enraged King Manasseh ordered the execution of the rebellious prophet by sawing him in half with a wooden saw. The body of Saint Isaiah was buried not far from the miraculously created spring of Siloam. Subsequently, Tsar Theodosius the Younger transferred the relics of the prophet to Constantinople and placed them in the church of St. Lawrence.

A piece of the prophet’s head is now preserved by the Hilendar monastery of Athos.

[Heb. , ], Old Testament prophet (comm. May 9), according to tradition, the author of the book named after him (see Isaiah the prophet book). Genus. in Jerusalem approx. 765 BC

Biblical and apocryphal legends about I.

Service time

I.'s vision in the temple, when the Lord called him to serve, according to the prophet himself, occurred in the year of the death of King Uzziah (Isa. 6. 1). I. preached, as follows from the testimony of the Book of Prophets. Isaiah (Isaiah 6.1; 7.1-9; 14.28; 20.1; 36-39), during the reign of the Judah kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah (Isaiah 1.1). When translating the 1st year of Uzziah's death (the year of the prophet's calling) indicated in Isaiah 6. into modern chronology, the time of the prophet's ministry (due to discrepancies in the data on the reign of the kings of Israel and Judah in the 3rd and 4th books of Kings) falls on the period from 747/6 to 735/4 BC (more likely between 740/39 and 735/4) (Kaiser O. Jesaja/Jesajabuch // TRE. 1987. Bd. 16. S. 636-658).

In the 7th chapter. The book says that the prophet came out to preach during the so-called. Syrian-Ephraimite war. The course and goals of this war remain largely unknown, since reports about it mainly reflect the theological understanding of these events (2 Kings 15.37; Isa 7; 2 Kings 16; 2 Chr. 28; Isa 8; Hos. 5.8 - 7. 16). Assyrian the power in these years strived for world domination. Egypt, trying to stop its advance, drew the states of Syria and Palestine into the fight against it. I. was a consistent opponent of Judea's participation in this struggle and called on the kings to focus on religious and social transformations. When Damascus and Samaria went to war against Jerusalem to force it to join the Anti-Assir. coalition, I. spoke before King Ahaz (735-715) the 1st messianic prophecy (Is 7; c. 734). But Ahaz, instead of relying on God's help, as the prophet advised, entered into an alliance with the Assyrians, who besieged Damascus and invaded Galilee. After the war, the Kingdom of Judah fell under the rule of Assyria, the Northern Kingdom lost a significant part of its territory, was reduced to the borders of the tribe of Ephraim, Damascus was also destroyed. The war did not end until the conquest of Damascus by Tiglath-pileser III in 732 (see also in Art. Israel Ancient). Around this time, I. wrote down the 2nd messianic prophecy - about a miraculous Child who will bring peace to earth (Is 9. 2-7). Since in Isaiah 28.1-4 the conquest of Samaria was predicted, which fell after a 4-year siege by the soldiers of Shalmaneser V (723/2), I. had to continue serving from 732 to 722. In Isaiah 20.1 -6 refers to the word of the Lord to I. in connection with the anti-Assyrian uprising in Ashdod against Sargon II, who sent a military leader to suppress the rebellion in 713-711.

After the fall of Samaria, the tribe of Ephraim ceased to exist as an independent kingdom; the events of sacred history are concentrated in Judea, which is under the control of Assyria. At the court of the pious king Hezekiah (715-687), I.'s influence increased.

In 705, the Assyrian king Sargon II died and power passed to Sennacherib (705-681). Sennacherib's campaign against Judah, predicted in Isaiah 36-37, deprived Hezekiah of the opportunity to support the South Syrian uprising of 703-701. against Assyria. The embassy of the Babylonian king Merodach Baladan mentioned in Is 39. 1-8 is dated either 713-711, or, less likely, 703 (Kaiser. Jesaja/Jesajabuch // TRE. 1987. Bd. 16. S. 636) .

The party of “princes”, led by the courtier Sevna, sought to weaken I.’s influence at court. Ethiopian. King Shabaka, who ruled in Egypt (XXV (Nubian) dynasty), was alarmed by Hezekiah’s peaceful policy and managed to incite the “princes” to war against Assyria. Having learned about this, I. went out into the street, pretending to be a captive slave. He predicted the inevitable collapse of all political conspiracies. But in the end Sevna managed to achieve his goal.

Sennacherib easily dealt with his opponents and besieged Jerusalem (701). Hezekiah was able to escape only by paying a huge indemnity. Perhaps at this time the prophet delivered the famous accusatory speech that opens his book (Isa. 1. 2-3). The repentant Hezekiah fell seriously ill, but was healed through the prayer of the prophet.

In the 2nd siege of Jerusalem by the Assyrians (2 Kings 18.17; Isaiah 36.1-2), Hezekiah was innocent, so I. did not denounce him, but predicted defeat for the conquerors. This happened approx. 690 Only a miracle saved the city. The king and the prophet died after these events. Tradition claims that I. lived to see the reign of the wicked Manasseh (696-641) and suffered martyrdom. I. probably wrote down the 3rd messianic prophecy (Isaiah 11:1-9) shortly before his death.

About the life of the prophet

Very little is known from his book. It has become commonplace in tradition to identify his father with the prophet. Amos, but modern. Most researchers see no reason for this. From the fact that the Jerusalem high priest Uriah could have been a witness to I.’s symbolic action (Isa. 8.2; 4 Kings 16.10), they conclude that I. belonged to the Jerusalem aristocracy. According to Isaiah 7.1-9, I. had access to the king, Hezekiah turned to him at the dangerous moment of the siege of Jerusalem in 701 (2 Kings 19.1-5; cf. Isa. 37.1-4) and was healed through the prayer of the prophet (2 Kings 20.7; Isa. 38.21). Some researchers draw a conclusion about the very close connection of the prophet with the royal court on the basis of indications about the presence of the Philistines (Isa. 14.32a) and Ethiopians. traders (Isa. 18.2) in Jerusalem, as well as about the Jewish embassy to Egypt (Is. 30.1-2, 7; 31.1).

Before 732, I. had two sons, to whom the prophet gave the symbolic names Shear-yasuv (“the remnant that will return” - Isaiah 7.3) and Mager-shelal-khash-baz (“the robbery hastens, the spoils hasten” - Isaiah 8.3), apparently predicting the decline of the power of the Jewish people with the first name, and the conquest of Damascus and Israel by the Assyrian king with the second. Mother Mager-shelal-hash-baza in Isaiah 8.3 is also called a prophetess.

According to Isaiah 8.1-2 and 30.8, Isa knew how to write, which presupposes receiving appropriate education (“wisdom”; cf. Isaiah 14.24-27; 17.12-17; 28.23-29). The text of Isaiah 18.1-2 and 30.4 testifies to the prophet’s knowledge of other peoples and their lands.

Martyrdom

After completing Assyrian. crisis of 701, the book of the prophet says nothing more about his ministry. A later legend reports that I. suffered martyrdom under King Manasseh, who ascended the throne in 696.

The Christian apocrypha “The Ascension of Isaiah” (see “Isaiah the Prophet Ascension”) contains a short story about the persecution and execution of Isaiah by King Manasseh. After the works of C. F. A. Dillmann (Dillmann A., ed. Ascensio Isaiae, aethiopice et latine. Lipsiae, 1877) and R. Charles (Charles R. H., ed. The Ascension of Isaiah: Transl. from the Ethiopic Version, which , together with the New Greek Fragment, the Latin Versions and the Latin Transl. of the Slavonic, is here Published in Full., 1900 (cf. also: Knibb M. A. Martyrdom and Ascension of Isaiah // The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha / Ed. J. H. Charlesworth. Garden City (N.Y.), 1985. Vol. 2. P. 143-149) researchers consider this story as an original Jewish document, easily distinguished from its modern one. context (cf.: Charles R. H. The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the OT in English. Oxf., 1913. Vol. 2. P. 155-162; Caquot A. Martyre d "Isaïe // La Bible: Écrits intertestamentaires / Éd. A . Dupont-Sommer, M. Philonenko P., 1987. P. 1017-1033).

The apocrypha says how, in the presence of King Hezekiah and young Manasseh, I. predicts his martyrdom during the reign of the latter. When Manasseh comes to power, the prophet flees to Bethlehem and then to a mountain in the desert. The place where he was hiding is revealed to the king by the false prophet Belkira (sometimes in tradition the name is conveyed differently: Belial, Belkhira, etc. - see the article “Isaiah the Prophet Ascension”), who accuses I. of treason (the prophet predicted troubles for Jerusalem , comparing it with Sodom (cf.: Isa. 1. 7-10)) and in blasphemy (contradicted Moses himself, claiming that he saw God, but remained alive (cf.: Ex. 33. 20; Is. 6. 5)). Manasseh ordered I. to be put in prison and sawed through with a wooden saw. I. accepts martyrdom. In addition to setting out the circumstances of the prophet’s death, the apocrypha tells of I.’s ascension to heaven and his receipt of revelation (see “Isaiah the Prophet’s Ascension”). The martyrdom of I. is also known from the apocrypha “Biographies of the Prophets” (Vitae prophetarum. 1. 1).

Early Christ. the authors were familiar with this tradition. In the NT it is perhaps reflected already in Hebrews 11. 37. The martyr speaks about the death of I. Justin Philosopher (Iust. Martyr. Dial. 120. 5), mentions Tertullian (Tertull. Adv. gnost. 8. 3), who sees in the prophet, who did not stop preaching even during a terrible execution, an example of patience (Idem. De patient. 14. 1; cf.: Asc. 5. 14). According to Origen (Orig. In Is. 1.5), the Jews put I. to a terrible execution because, in their opinion, he had deviated from the law. Commodian (III century) believes that King Manasseh or the Jewish people are to blame for the death of the prophet (Commod. Carmen apol. 221. 513-514) (Lactantius also believes - Lact. Div. inst. IV 11. 12). Potamy, ep. Lisbon (IV century AD), compiled, based on the apocrypha, “Treatise on the Martyrdom of the Prophet. Isaiah" (PL. 8. Col. 1415-1416; CCSL. 69. P. 197-203). Prudentius emphasizes that the life and martyrdom of the prophet is an example for Christians (Prudent. Perist. 5.524, 529). For St. Hilary of Pictavia (Hilar. Pict. Contr. Const. 4 // SC. 334. P. 174) and St. Ambrose of Milan (Ambros. Mediol. In Luc. 9. 25; cf.: Idem. In Ps. 118. 3) is an example of courage. Blzh. Jerome, who apparently knew the apocrypha, trusts the Jewish tradition (traditio certissima; cf.: Hieron. In Is. XV 57. 1-2): I. predicted his martyrdom from Manasseh (Ibidem) and was executed, because that he compared the Jews with the princes of Sodom and the people of Gomorrah and claimed that he saw God (Ibid. I 1. 10; Idem. Ep. 18A, 13; cf.: Asc. Is. 1. 9; 3. 8-10). The blessed one also speaks about I.’s martyrdom under Manasseh. Theodoret of Cyrus (Theodoret. Quaest. in Regn. IV. 54).

K. V. Neklyudov

Veneration I.

In the Christian tradition

The oldest mention of the burial place of I. is contained in the Burdigal itinerary of 333, according to which the tomb of the prophet was located in the Jehoshaphat (Kedron) Valley: “Not far from here, as if by throwing a stone, there are two monuments of wondrous beauty, in one, which is actually hewn from of one stone, Isaiah the prophet was laid, in the other Hezekiah, king of the Jews" (Itinerarium Burdigalense // CCSL. 175. P. 17-18 (Russian translation: Bordeaux Traveler 333 // PPS. 1882. Vol. 1. Issue 2(2). P. 30). Currently, these tombs are associated with the names of the prophet. Zechariah and Absalom. This news complements the information contained in the writings about the Old Testament prophets, which are attributed to St. Epiphanius of Cyprus and smch. Dorotheus of Tyre, - “On the life and death of the prophets” (De prophetarum vita et obitu - CPG, N 3777-3778; in 2 editions) and “The Lives of the Prophets” (Prophetarum vitae - BHG, N 1586), which says that I. , sawn into 2 parts by King Manasseh, was buried under an oak tree at the source of En-Rogel (on the southeastern outskirts of Jerusalem, slightly south of the junction of the Valley of Hinnom with Kidron), and then his body was reburied in gratitude for the miracle of the prophet bringing water to Siloam not far from this source, near the royal tombs and behind the graves of the clergy (south of Jerusalem) (Vitae prophetarum. Lpz., 1907. R. 8-9, 40-43, 60-61). This information was included in the “Easter Chronicle” (Chron. Pasch. Vol. 1. P. 290-292), in Byzantium. Synaksari (Synaxarion of the K-Polish ts., late 10th century - SynCP. Col. 665-667; Minology of Emperor Vasily II, late 10th - early 11th century - PG. 117. Col. 444) and in the secondary version of the “Greek Legend” by I. (Paris. gr. 1534, XI-XII centuries), where they follow the main part, which is an abbreviated reworking of the apocryphal “Ascension of the Prophet Isaiah” (BHG, N 958).

Arm. author VII - beginning VIII century Anastas Vardapet mentions the Noravank monastery, which “is located near the tomb of the prophet Isaiah, in the same direction as the Mount of Olives” ( Ter-Mkrtichyan L. Kh. Armenian sources about Palestine V-XVIII centuries. M., 1991. P. 94).

Nevertheless, there were other legends about I.’s grave, recorded by pilgrims. Thus, Antoninus from Placentia (70s of the 6th century) indicates “the place where Isaiah was cut with a saw and rests” near Eleutheropolis (Anon. Placent. Itinerarium. 32 // CCSL; 175. P. 145 (Russian translation. : Anonymous traveler from the end of the 6th century / Ed., translated by: I. V. Pomyalovsky // PPS. 13. Issue 3 (39)). It is not known at what time and under what circumstances the relics of I. ended up in Paneas (Caesarea Philippi), from where they came to the middle. V century were moved to K-pol, to the center. St. Lawrence. The transfer of I.’s relics to K-pol took place, according to the “Historical Synopsis” of Georgy Kedrin, in the 35th year of the reign of the emperor. Theodosius II the Younger (Cedrenus. Сomp. hist. Vol. 1. P. 600), i.e. in 442/3. In the “Chronicle” of George Amartol, this event refers to the reign of the emperor. Marcian (Georg. Mon. Chron. // PG. 110. Col. 756). In contrast to the chronicles, “Description of Constantinople” by Pseudo-Codinus reports the transfer of relics not from Paneada, but from Jerusalem (Patria CP. T. 2. R. 241). This source attributes the construction of Polish churches to St. Lawrence and prophet Isaiah to the spouses Marcian (450-457) and Pulcheria (450-453) (Ibid. R. 241). “Anonymous Mercati” calls these churches standing together and says that in the church. prophet Isaiah “within the altar lies half of his body” (Description of the shrines of the K-field in a lat. manuscript of the 12th century / Trans.: L. K. Maciel Sanchez // The miraculous icon in Byzantium and Other Rus'. M., 1996. P. 451). Anthony of Novgorod c. 1200 reports that the relics of the prophet were in the church dedicated to him under the throne (“it lies under the table” - Book of the Pilgrim. P. 28). Here miracles occurred from the relics of I. (BHG, N 958f). As Byzantinists noted, this shrine was revered in various strata of society (K A. e. a. Isaiah // ODB. Vol. 2. P. 1013): among those healed the protospafarians Michael and Constantine, the noble lady Eupraxia, mon. George, the money changer Nikolai, the winegrower Konstantin, the fisherman John. Descriptions of 19 healings are included in the Minology for May Bodl. Baroc. 240, XII century. (Delehaye H. Synaxarium et Miracula S. Isaiae prophetae // AnBoll. 1924. Vol. 42. P. 257-265). People came to the relics of I. from the provinces (for example, from Thrace and Paphlagonia). A feature of the short synaxaric lives is the erroneous name of I. uncle of King Manasseh (SynCP. Col. 665; PG. 117. Col. 444). The Imperial Minology contains Praise of I., attributed to St. John Chrysostom (BHG, N 958g). The oldest of the hagiographical works in Latin. language dedicated to I. , is compiled by Potamius, ep. Lisbon, in mid. IV century based on the apocryphal “Ascension of the Prophet Isaiah” “Treatise on the Martyrdom of the Prophet Isaiah” (PL. 8. Col. 1415-1416; CCSL. 69. P. 197-203).

Part of the honest chapter of I. is kept in the Hilandar monastery on Mount Athos; According to information collected by Bollandists, particles of I.’s relics were in the cathedral in Brindisi, in the c. St. Gereon in Cologne, in the monastery of Santo Stefano and c. San Giovanni in Monte in Bologna.

I.'s memory was celebrated in Byzantium on May 9. On this day, according to the Typicon of the Great Church. (Mateos. Typicon. T. 1. P. 284) and the Synaxarion of the K-Polish ts. (SynCP. Col. 667), a solemn service in honor of the prophet was performed in the church. St. Lawrence. In Greek In the verse Synaxarion the memory of I. is also celebrated on January 25. indicating the location of his relics - “near St. Lawrence" (SynCP. Col. 423). Apparently, this date is associated either with the transfer of I.’s relics from the Holy Land to K-pol, or with the day of the consecration of the church built in the capital in honor of the prophet. In cargo. calendars of the 5th-8th centuries, focused on the ancient Jerusalem Typikon of the Holy Sepulchre, celebrations in honor of I. are much more common. They took place in different churches of Jerusalem: May 5 - the memory of I. together with Saints Mina and Foka in the church. Vmch. Mine built by Vassa, close to the emperor. Evdokia (after 444) (Kekelidze. Canonar. P. 112; Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. P. 64; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 8); May 9 - memory of I. together with St. John the Baptist, with the apostles Peter, Paul, John the Theologian, Philip, Thomas and other saints in the church. Disciples on the Mount of Olives, built by the Equals. Elena (Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. R. 65; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 10); June 3 - memory of St. John the Baptist, I., martyrs Julian, Timothy, Maurus (Mauriana) and others in the c. martyr Juliana on Olivet, built by Flavia c. 454/5 (Kekelidze. Canonar. P. 115; Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. P. 70; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 13); June 16 - discovery or position of I.’s relics in the c. Vmch. Mines (Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. P. 73; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 16); June 17 - the memory of the prophets I. and Amos in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. R. 73); July 6 - memory of I. in one of the churches built by Melania (the Elder or the Younger) on Olivet (Kekelidze. Canonary. P. 119; Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. R. 77; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P .20); July 21 - the memory of the prophets Jeremiah and I. in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. R. 80); August 25 - position of the relics of I., the memory of the prophets Zechariah, Daniel and the 3 Babylonian youths in the temple built by the Jerusalem Patriarch St. Juvenal (422-458) (Ibid. P. 86; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 30); September 22 - position of the relics of the apostles Peter, Paul, I., memory of saints George, Thirs, Phocas in the c. St. Hesychia, Rev. Jerusalem (5th century) (Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. R. 91); October 2 - memory of the apostles Peter, Paul, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, prophets I., Zechariah, martyr. Panteleimon and other martyrs in the church. Vmch. Procopius, apparently built in the 6th century. south of Jerusalem (Ibid. P. 94; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 41); October 15 - memory of St. John the Baptist, prophets I., Ezekiel and Daniel, 3 Babylonian youths, Joseph the Beautiful in c. martyr Juliana, built by Flavia (Kekelidze. Canonar. P. 138; Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. P. 97; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 44); October 30 or 31 - memory of I. and Saints Mina and Phocas in c. Vmch. Mina built by Vassa (Kekelidze. Canonar. P. 141; Garitte. Calendrier Palestino-Georgien. P. 101; Tarchnischvili. Grande Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 48); November 14 - memory of St. John the Baptist, I., martyr. Bacchus, the archangels Michael and Gabriel in a church built by a certain Affonius near Gethsemane (Kekelidze. Canonary. P. 142).

I. Lat. is commemorated on one of the above dates - July 6th. Martyrology of Bede the Venerable 8th century. (PL. 94. Col. 967) and after it the Roman Martyrology of the 16th century. (MartRom. Comment. P. 272), as well as Armenian. Synaxarion IX-X centuries. (Conybeare F. C. Rituale Armenorum. Oxf., 1905. P. 526). In Armenian Synaxaire Ter-Israel commemorates I. under 2 dates: May 9 and July 6 (Le Synaxaire arménien de Ter Israël / Éd. G. Bayan. P., 1930. P. 427. (PO; T. 21. Fasc. 4 ); Ibid. R., 1929. P. 674-675 (PO; T. 21. Fasc. 5)). In modern Arm. calendar, the main celebration in honor of I. takes place on Thursday after the Transfiguration of the Lord (movable holiday).

In the Orthodox calendar. communities of Khorezm at the turn of the 10th and 11th centuries, preserved as part of the op. “Chronology of ancient peoples” (or “Monuments of past generations”) Muslims. encyclopedist al-Biruni (973-1048), the memory of I., in addition to May 9, is also indicated on August 16. together with the memory of the prophets Jeremiah, Zechariah and Ezekiel (Martyrologes et ménologes orientaux / Éd., trad. R. Griveau. P., 1914. P. 307, 310. (PO; T. 10. Fasc. 4)).

In Copto-Arab. Synaxar and Minology, the memory of I. is celebrated on Tut 6 (Sept. 3) (SynAlex. Vol. 1. P. 234-235; Les Ménologes des Évangéliaires coptes-arabes / Éd. F. Nau. P., 1913. P. 187. (PO; T. 10. Fasc. 2)), in Syro-Jacobite Minologies - September 3. and May 9 (Un Martyrologe et douze Ménologes syriaques / Éd. F. Nau. P., 1912. P. 85, 121. (PO; T. 10. Fasc. 1)). Among the Maronites in the handwritten calendar of the 17th century. joint memory of I. and the prophet. Ezekiel is listed under April 3. (Martyrologes et ménologes orientaux. P., 1914. P. 351. (PO; T. 10. Fasc. 4)).

Lit.: ActaSS. Iul. T. 2. P. 250-252; Sergius (Spassky). Monthsword. T. 2. P. 136; T. 3. P. 172-173; Spadafora F. Isaia, profeta: Culto // BiblSS. T. 7. Col. 939-940; Janin. Églises et monastères. P. 139-140; Meinardus O. F. A. A Study of the Relics of Saints of the Greek Orthodox Church // Oriens Chr. 1970. Bd. 54. S. 194; Conti M. The Life and Works of Potamius of Lisbon: A Biographical and Literary Study with English Transl. and a Complete Comment. on the Extant Works of Potamius. Turnhout, 1998; Adkin N. Potamius of Lisbon, “De Martyrio Isaiae Prophetae” 1: “Periugerum fidiculae” // Euphrosyne. N. S. Olisipone, 2000. Vol. 28. P. 369-373; idem. Potamius of Lisbon, “De Martyrio Isaiae Prophetae” Again // Helmantica. Salamanca, 2005. Vol. 56. P. 99-103; Verheyden J. The Greek Legend of the Ascension of Isaiah // Philomathestatos: Studies in Greek and Byzantine Texts Presented to J. Noret for his 65th Birthday / Ed. B. Janssens e. a. Leuven etc., 2004. P. 671-700. (OLA; 137).

O.V.L.

In the Slavic tradition

Slav. translation of what was partially lost into Greek. a version of the apocrypha, “The Vision of the Prophet Isaiah” was sometimes included in the collections of children on May 9 (the day of remembrance of the prophet), for example: in the Assumption collection of the 12th century. (GIM. Usp. No. 4), in Dragolov collection of con. XIII century (NBS. No. 651), in the polemical collection of the 14th century. (Ath. Chil. Slav. N 474. Fol. 380-384), in Serbian. Chet-Minea for Dec.-Jan. with additions from the 16th century. (GIM. Khlud. No. 195. L. 348-352; ed.: Ivanov J. Bogomilski books and legends. Sofia, 1925. P. 131-164), in Serbian. Chet-Minea on Dec.-Aug. XIV century (Zagreb. HAZU Archive. IIIc22. P. 257-260r), etc.

Based on the “Vision of the Prophet Isaiah”, “The Vision of the Prophet Daniel” and Pseudo-Methodius in Bulgaria, probably in the 70s. XI century an original historical-apocalyptic “Tale of the Prophet Isaiah” was compiled, the plot of which was based on a description of the battle between the Bulgarians and the Byzantines (Kaimakamova M. Bulgarskaya medieval historiography. Sofia, 1990. P. 27, 48-49; Tapkova-Zaimova V., Miltenova A. Historical-apocalyptic book of Byzantium and the Middle Ages. Bulgaria. Sofia, 1996. pp. 139-160). It has been preserved for several years. lists, eldest - 15th century. (Collection of the Nikolyats Monastery. No. 52). In the 2nd half. XIII century in Bulgaria the op. “The Vision of the Prophet Isaiah about the Last Times,” which reflects foreign policy events in the country in the 1st half. XIII century and a negative assessment of the rapprochement between Byzantium and Rus' (Nikolov A. From the Byzantine historical topic: “Bulgari - skiti”, “Slavs - skiti” // Bulgarian in the Northern Black Sea Coast: Research and materials. Vel. Tarnovo, 2000. Vol. 7 . P. 248. Bel. 74).

M. M. Rozinskaya

In Rabbinic Judaism

The Old Testament tradition connects I. with the family of King David: the father of I. Amos (Isa. 1. 1), identified here with the prophet, was the brother of King Amaziah (cf.: Babylonian Talmud. Sotah 10b; Megilla. 10b), and I. became father-in-law King Hezekiah (cf.: Babylonian Talmud. Berakhot. 10a). Compilers of midrashim often extol I.'s authority in relation to other prophets: he uttered more prophecies than other prophets (Pesikta Rabbati. 33.3); all the prophets received prophecies from other prophets (cf. Numbers 11.25; 2 Kings 2.15), only I. - from the “mouth of the Most High,” as stated in Isaiah 61.1 (Vayikra Rabba. 10.2). This superiority of I. is associated with the vision in the temple (the tradition is partially preserved by Blessed Jerome (Hieron. In Is. III 6. 5; cf.: Ginzberg L. Die Haggada bei den Kirchenvätern: Der Kommentar des Hieronymus zu Jesaja // Jewish Studies in Memory of G. A. Kohut. N. Y., 1935. P. 284).

In the Talmud and midrashim, I. is sometimes compared with Moses. Both are considered “the greatest prophets of Israel” (Midrash Devarim Rabbah. 2.4). Without rejecting the priority of the Sinai revelation and the Torah (cf., for example: Shemot Rabba. 42. 8; Devarim Rabba. 8), various traditions value I. so highly because they connect him precisely with this revelation. An example of I.'s preaching is sometimes used to substantiate the opinion that everything that the prophets once preached was already given at Sinai (Midrash Tanchum: Yitro. 11 with reference to Deut. 29. 15; cf.: Montefiore C. G., Loewe H. A Rabbinic Anthology. L., 1938. P. LXVIII). If in the apocrypha “The Ascension of the Prophet Isaiah” I.’s opponents reproach him for claiming greater authority than Moses (Asc. Is. 3.8-9), then one of the midrashim says that Manasseh ordered the execution of Isaiah ., because I. “spoke to God, like Moses, face to face” (Pesikta Rabbati. 4. 3; cf.: Jerusalem Talmud. Sanhedrin. X 2. 28c).

The tradition supporting information about the martyrdom of the prophet is also recorded in the Talmud. The Prophet was accused of contradicting the law of Moses (Babylonian Talmud. Yevamot. 49b). I. tried to hide. At the prayer of the prophet, the cedar miraculously hides him, but the tree is sawed down, and the prophet dies (cf. also: Babylonian Talmud. Sanhedrin. 103b). The Jerusalem Talmud talks about this in more detail. The treatise Sanhedrin (X 2.28c) clarifies that the words about Manasseh shedding “innocent blood” (2 Kings 21.16) are an indication of the martyrdom of I. The early stage of development of the tradition can be reflected in one of the glosses in the Targum of Jonathan to Isa 66. 1 (Grelot P. Deux tosephtas targoumiques inédites sur Is. 66 // RB. 1972. Vol. 79. P. 525-527, 532-535): Hidden in a tree, I. was sawn through with an iron saw.

K. V. Neklyudov

In the Muslim tradition

I. (Arabic: Shaya/Ashaya) is not mentioned in the Koran, however, when interpreting the 4th verse of the XVII sura of the Muslims. exegetes turned to his image. In the so-called the stories of the prophets, in particular those of at-Tabari (d. 923), set out the main stages of I.’s prophetic activity: the prediction of the death of King Zedekiah (biblical Hezekiah), the prophecy of the extension of the king’s life during the siege of Jerusalem by Sennacherib, a warning about the punishment of the Israelis, who retreated from God after the death of the king, and the subsequent murder of I. I.’s death is described in accordance with Jewish tradition: fleeing from his fellow tribesmen, I. hid inside a tree, but Shaitan (Satan) showed them the edge of his clothes, and they sawed I. along with the tree.

In Islam, I. acts as a prophet who foreshadowed the coming of Isa (Jesus) and Muhammad. This trend (while maintaining the historical framework of the narrative) is observed already in the 1st century. Hijra (a work probably belonging to Wahb ibn Munabbih from Yemen; D é clais J.-L. Un récit musulman sur Isaïe. P., 2001) and is preserved in modern times. polemical literature (for example, in the work of At-Tahavi Muhammad Izzat Ismail. “Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, in the Torah, Gospel and Koran.” [Cairo], 1972 (in Arabic)).

S. A. Moiseeva

Lit.: Bukharev A. M. Holy Prophet. Isaiah: A Sketch of His Time, Prophetic Ministry and Book. M., 1864; Yungerov P. A. Life of the Prophet. Isaiah and modern watered him. the state of the pagan and Jewish kingdoms // PS. 1885. Part 2. No. 7. P. 381-408; Vlastov G.K. Priest. chronicle of the first times of the world and humanity. St. Petersburg, 1898. T. 5: Prophet Isaiah: Introduction and interpretation. 2 hours; Mikhail (Luzin), bishop. Biblical Science. Tula, 1901. Book: Holy Prophet. Isaiah and the book of his prophecies; Leclercq H. Isaïe // DACL. 1926. Fasc. 74/75. Col. 1577-1582; Gaster M., Heller B. Beiträge zur vergleichenden Sagen- und Märchenkunde: Der Prophet Jesajas und der Baum // Monatsschrift f. Geschichte u. Wiss. d. Judentums. Breslau, 1936. Bd. 80. S. 32-52, 127-128; Hoenerbach W. Isaias bei Tabar // Alttestamentliche Studien: Fr. Notscher zum 60. Geburtstage / Hrsg. H. Junker, J. Botterweck. Bonn, 1950. S. 98-119; Rad G., von. Théologie des AT. Münch., 1960, 19848. Bd. 2: Die Theologie der prophetischen Überlieferungen Israels; Childs B. S. Isaiah and the Assyrian Crisis. L., 1967; Becker J. Isaias: Der Prophet u. sein Buch. Stuttg., 1968; Dietrich W. Jesaja u. die Politik. Münch., 1976; Spieckermann H. Juda unter Assur in der Sargonidenzeit. Gott., 1982; Bickert R. König Ahas u. der Prophet Jesaja: Ein Beitrag zum Problem des syr.-ephraimitischen Krieges // ZAW. 1987. Bd. 99. N 3. S. 361-384; Koch K. Die Profeten. Stuttg., 19872. Bd. 1: Assyrische Zeit; Rippin A. Sha(?)lsquo;ya // EI. Vol. 9. P. 382-383; idem. Isaiah // Encyclopaedia of the Qur'an. Leiden, 2002. Vol. 2. P. 562-563.

Hymnography

In the ancient Jerusalem Lectionary of the 5th-8th centuries, preserved in cargo. translation, I.’s memory is noted repeatedly. I. is mentioned independently on June 16 and July 6 (Tarchnischvili. Grand Lectionnaire. T. 2. P. 16, 20); The liturgical sequence includes the common prokeimenon and alleluia for the prophet, readings: Isa 6. 1-10, Rom 10. 1-13, Luke 4. 14-22 (on July 6 another Gospel is assigned - Matthew 23. 23-33). I.’s memory is also celebrated on May 5 and 9, June 3, Aug. 25, Oct. 2, 15, and 31. (Ibid. P. 8-10, 13, 30, 44, 48) together with the memories of the apostles, John the Baptist and other Old Testament prophets, martyr. Mines; these days, the reading of Isaiah 6.1-10 is assigned at the liturgy.

In the Typikon of the Great Church. IX-XI centuries (Mateos. Typicon. T. 1. P. 284) I.’s memory is celebrated on May 9 without a liturgical ceremony.

In the Studian-Alexievsky Typikon of 1034, the memory of I. is not noted, but in the handwritten glory. Menaiah of the studio tradition (for example, GIM Syn. No. 166, XI-XII centuries; see: Gorsky, Nevostruev. Description. Dept. 3. T. 2. P. 61) On May 9, the service of I. and martyr is contained. Christopher; a general canon is assigned to the saints, and 4 stichera, kontakion and sedalanov are also dedicated to saints. A similar liturgical sequence (with the exception of kontakion) is assigned to I. in the Evergetid Typikon of the 2nd half. XI century (Dmitrievsky. Description. T. 1. P. 453). The Messinian Typicon of 1131 (Arranz. Typicon. P. 151) indicates the dismissal troparion of I.

In one of the early surviving editions of the Jerusalem Charter (Sinait. gr. 1094, XII-XIII centuries (Lossky. Typicon. P. 214)) I. is assigned a dismissal troparion of the 4th tone ῾Η σεπτὴ τοῦ προφήτου σου πα νήγυρις̇ (). In the first printed Greek. The Typikon of 1545 indicates the same troparion of I. as in the Messinian Typikon, as well as the kontakion of I. Τῆς προφητείας τὸ χάρισμα̇ (). According to the first printed Moscow Typikon of 1610, on May 9 the service of I. and martyr. Christopher is sung at Compline, since on the same day an all-night vigil is celebrated in honor of the transfer of the relics of St. Nicholas of Myra; I. are assigned the same troparion and kontakion as in the first printed Greek. Typicone. Similar instructions are contained in the pre-Nikon printed Typicons of 1633 and 1641. In the revised edition of the Typicon of 1682 and subsequent editions on May 9, the service of I. and martyr. Christopher began to be placed “under the number”; the troparion and kontakion of I. remained unchanged.

The follow-up of I., contained in modern. liturgical books, includes: troparion of dismissal of the 2nd tone Τοῦ Προφήτου σου ῾Ησαΐου τὴν μνήμην Κύριε̇ (); kontakion of the 2nd voice: Τῆς προφητείας τὸ χάρισμα̇ () with ikos; canon (common to I. and martyr Christopher) by Theophan without the acrostic 4th tone, irmos: ῎Αισομαί σοι Κύριε̇ (), beginning: Θώτισόν με Κύριε (); stichera-podnov cycle; sedalens (different in Greek and Slavic Menaions).

According to manuscripts, I.’s chants have been preserved, but were not included in modern times. liturgical books: 2 stichera-similar (RNB. Sof. No. 202. L. 41 volume - 42 volume, 11th century - see: Novgorod service Menaion for May, 11th century: (Putyatin Menaion): Text, research ., indexes / Responsible editor: V. M. Izhevsk, 2003. P. 342), additional ikos (Amphilochius. Kondakariy. P. 183).

E. E. Makarov

Iconography

One of the earliest images of I. - on the mosaic c. San Vitale in Ravenna (546-547), where he is represented as an old man in white robes, with thick gray hair, long locks falling on his shoulders, with a scroll in his hands, with a golden halo. On the mosaic of the catholicon of the VMC monastery. Catherine on Sinai (550-565) I. is depicted in the medallion as a young prophet with a cap of short black curly hair and a bushy beard. Images of the prophets I. and David flank the scene “Healing of two blind men in Jericho” in the Sinope Gospel (Paris. Suppl. gr. 1286. Fol. 29, 6th century); the text on the scroll (Is 35.5), which I. is holding, comments on the scene from the NT. He is shown as young, beardless, wearing a white chiton with a clave on his sleeve and a yellowish-ochre himation. On the miniatures from the Rossano Codex (Archbishop's Museum in Rossano, 6th century), built according to a similar scheme (i.e. on them, as on the miniatures from the Sinope Gospel, the texts on the scrolls in the hands of the prophets are an allusion to the one presented on the same leaf of the New Testament scene), he is twice depicted as young, with brown hair and a very short beard (Fol. 1, 2) and twice as gray-haired, with curly hair and a short curly beard (Fol. 3v, 5).

In later monuments, I. is presented as an old man with long, usually wavy hair, hanging down to his shoulders in strands, with a wide beard tapering downward, wearing a chiton and himation. Often in Byzantine works. art, I.’s tunic has a clav sewn on it, which indicates his noble origin. In Russian In monuments I. was depicted with dark hair touched with gray. The right hand of the prophet is in front of the chest in a nominal blessing or raised upward, as on the mosaic of the dome of Emmanuel in the Cathedral of San Marco in Venice (late 12th century). The attribute of I., according to the iconographic originals, is a spoon, which is found quite rarely on icons (for example, on the icon “Our Lady with the Prophets” of the 1st half of the 15th century from the Accademia Gallery in Venice). However, its more popular attribute is tongs with burning coal, which is associated with the vision of I. Thus, on the icon “Our Lady of Kykkotissa, with the prophets and chosen saints” (1st half of the 12th century, monastery of the Great Martyr Catherine on Sinai) There is a large depiction of a seraph holding out pincers with burning coal to I. Dr. examples of this iconography are a miniature from the Christian topography of Cosmas Indikoplov (Vat. gr. 699. Fol. 72v, last quarter of the 9th century); icon "Prophet" Isaiah" from the prophetic row of the iconostasis of the Nativity Cathedral of the Novgorod Anthony Monastery (mid-16th century, NGOMZ); folding icon “Praise of the Mother of God” (c. 1471, GMMC).

In the temple decoration, the image of I. is placed among the images of other prophets in the upper zones of the temple: in the dome (in the painting of the church of the monastery of Our Lady of Periveleptus in Mystras, Greece, 2nd half of the 14th century), in the light drum (on the mosaics: Church of Santa Maria del Ammiraglio (Martorana) in Palermo, Sicily, 1146-1151, Church of Panagia Parigoritissa in Arta, c. frescoes: the church of the righteous Joachim and Anna (Kraleva) of the Studenica monastery, Serbia, 1314, the church of St. Nikita near Skopje (created before 1316 and renewed in 1483-1484), the church of Theodore Stratelates on the Stream in Vel. Novgorod, 1378), on girth arches (in the painting of the Church of the Nativity of Christ on the Red Field near Vel. Novgorod, 90s of the 14th century), in lunettes (on the mosaic of the Church of San Vitale in Ravenna, 546-547) . In the lower part of the nave wall - on the mosaic of the Cathedral of San Marco in Venice - together with the prophets David, Solomon and Ezekiel on the sides of the image of the Mother of God, 1st floor. XIII century I. is usually presented in pairs with the prophet. Jeremiah (for example, in the church of San Vitale).

Prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah. Mosaic c. Panagia Parigoritissa in Arta, Greece. OK. 1290

Full-figure images of I., as a rule, illustrate the Song of I. in the Psalms (for example, in the Paris Psalter of the ca. mid-10th century - Paris. gr. 139. Fol. 435v; in the Bristol Psalter of ca. 1000 - Lond. Brit. Lib. Add. 40731. Fol. 252; in the Psalter, created before 1074 or in the 80s of the 11th century. - RNL. No. 311 vol.; x years of the 14th century - G.M. No. 407. 504 vol.). Image of I. together with the prophet. David or prophet Ezekiel was included in compositions serving as illustrations to the introductory texts of the Gospels in such manuscripts as the Four Gospels from the Palatine Library in Parma (Parma. Palat. 5. Fol. 5, ca. 1100) and from the National Library of St. Mark in Venice (Marc. gr. Z 540 (=557). Fol. 11v, 2nd quarter of the 12th century). The miniature with the Ascension scene on the frontispiece of the Homilies of Jacob Kokkinovath (Vat. gr. 1162. Fol. 2v and Paris. gr. 1208. Fol. 3v, 2nd quarter of the 12th century) also contains images of the prophets David and I. with scrolls in his hands; text on the scroll I. - Isa 63. 1.

Prophet Isaiah in prayer, with the personifications of Night and Dawn. Miniature from the Paris Psalter. X century (Paris. gr. 139. Fol. 435v)

The image of I. appears in the earliest prophetic ranks of Russian high iconostases: for example, from the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery (“Prophets Solomon and Isaiah”, 1425-1427, SPGIACHMZ); from the Transfiguration Cathedral in Kashin (the so-called Kashin rite; “Prophecy Isaiah”, mid-15th century, Russian Museum); from the Assumption Cathedral of the Kirillov Belozersky Monastery (“Prophets Ezekiel, Isaiah, Jonah”, c. 1497, Russian Museum); from the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary of Ferapontov Monastery (“Prophets Daniel, Jeremiah, Isaiah”, ca. 1502, KBMZ); from St. Sophia Cathedral Vel. Novgorod (“Prophecy Isaiah”, 1509, NGOMZ); from c. in honor of the Miracle of Arch. Michael in the Khoneh Chudov Monastery of the Moscow Kremlin (“Prophecy Isaiah”, 1626-1628, GMMK). I. is always depicted close to the center.

I. is represented on icons of different iconography together with the Mother of God and Child and prophets, for example. on the icons “Praise of the Mother of God” (mid-16th century, State Russian Museum), “It is worthy to eat” (mid-16th century, State Historical Museum), etc.

Bolshakov. The original is iconographic. P. 11). In the original of G.D. Filimonov, on May 9, it is said about I.: “... in the likeness of old and gray-haired, with braid and hair like Elijah the prophet, prophetic vestments, outer sankir, azure underneath, a scroll in his hand, and in it is written: “Behold, The virgin will conceive in her womb and give birth to a Son, and they will call the name Emmanuel: as we say, God is with us” (Filimonov. Iconographic original. P. 339). In Greek iconographic original - Erminia by Hierom. Dionysius Furnoagrafiot (c. 1730-1733) - I. is mentioned several times. once. The part “How the Old Testament is Portrayed” describes the scenes “The Vision of the Prophet Isaiah” and “The Prophet Isaiah cut with a saw” (Herminia DF. Part 2. § 105-106. P. 549); in the paragraph about St. the prophets, about their appearance and about the prophecies, he is described as “an old man with a long beard, who says: hear the sky, and teach the earth what the Lord has spoken” (Ibid. § 132. No. 6. P. 562). In the part “How the New Testament is depicted” it is said about it in the chapters “How the feasts of the Theotokos are depicted”: “Isaiah holds a spoon and says on the charter: I have destined the coal-bearing spoon to be Thee, the Pure One, and the Throne of the King” (Ibid. Part 3. Chapter 5. No. 10. P. 557) - and “How the suffering of the martyrs is depicted every month of the whole year”: “The old man was sawed with a wooden saw” (Ibid. Chapter 22. P. 417).

Lit.: Mango C. Materials for the Study of the Mosaics of St. Sophia at Istanbul. Wash., 1962. P. 58-59. (DOS; 8); Gravgaard A.-M. Inscriptions of OT Prophecies in Byzant. Churches: A Cat. Copenhagen, 1979. P. 69-70; Lazarev V.N. About the painting of Sophia of Novgorod // He. Byzantine. and Old Russian art: Sat. Art. M., 1978. S. 142, 144; aka. History of Byzantium. painting. M., 1986. P. 161; Galavaris G. The Illustrations of the Prefaces in Byzantine Gospels. W., 1979; Malkov Yu. G. Frescoes c. Christmas “on the field” in Novgorod and their “prophetic order” // Ancient Novgorod. M., 1983. S. 271-294; Popovich L. D. Compositional and Theological Concepts in Four Prophets Cycles in Churches Selected from the Period of King Milutin (1282-1321) // Cyrillomethodianum. Thessal., 1984/1985. T. 8/9. P. 288; eadem. Hitherto Unidentified Prophets from Nova Pavlica // Ibid. P. 28-29; Lowden J. Illuminated Prophet Books: A Study of Byzant. Manuscripts of the Major and Minor Prophets. Univ. Park (Penn.); L., 1988; Lelekova O.V. Iconostasis of the Assumption Cathedral of the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery 1497: Research. and restoration. M., 1988; Pogrebnyak N., prot. Prophets: Iconography and hymnography // Moscow. EV. 2004. No. 11/12. pp. 116-134; Lifshits L. I., Sarabyanov V. D., Tsarevskaya T. Yu. Monumental painting of Novgorod: con. XI - 1st quarter XII century St. Petersburg, 2004. pp. 304-305.

I. A. Zhuravleva, I. A. Oretskaya

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Book of the prophet Yeshayahu (Isaiah)- part of the Bible written by the prophet Yeshayahu. In the canonical Bible this book is number 23.

The book covers time: approx. 778 - after 732 BC e. (the reign of kings Uzziah and Cyrus) and therefore its writing is dated to the period after 732 BC.

A complete manuscript (1st century BC) of the book of Isaiah and a manuscript (2nd century BC) containing the last third of the book were discovered in the caves of the Judean desert. These manuscripts are kept in the Temple of the Book of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.

Biography of the Prophet Yeshayahu

According to Jewish tradition, Isaiah's life ended as a martyr during the reign of King Manasseh of Judah, known for his lawlessness and persecution of the prophets.

Contents and main ideas of the book

Raphael, "Yeshayahu"

	in Wikisource?

Religious tradition views the book of Isaiah as a collection of prophecies and sermons by a single author, although some biblical commentators, such as Abraham Ibn Ezra (12th century) and Isaac Abravanel (15th century), doubted the correctness of this view. In modern biblical studies, it is customary to divide the book into “First Isaiah” (chap. 1-39, “accusations”) and “Second Isaiah” (Deuteroisaiah) (chap. 40-66, “consolation”); Some also divide Deuteronomy into two parts.

Isaiah develops and deepens the basic idea of ​​the prophet Amos about the primacy of morality over cult. The future of the people of Israel depends on its ability to put into practice the ideals of justice and justice, for morality is more pleasing to God than formal worship and abundant sacrifices: “Why do I need the multitude of your sacrifices? - says the Lord. - I am satisfied with the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fattened cattle... stop doing evil, learn to do good; seek truth: save the oppressed; protect the orphan; intercede for the widow” (Isa. 1:11, 16–17). From this angle, Isaiah castigates judges, courtiers and the powerful, the rich who exploit the poor, denounces their greed, corruption and cynicism and predicts inevitable punishment for them - their cities will be destroyed, houses abandoned and lands devastated (Is. 5: 8–30 ). The Lord will not leave even a tenth of the people of Israel mired in sin; those who remain will repent and turn to God and become the trunk of a tree from which a reborn people will grow and from where the reconstruction of the world, ordained by God, will begin.

Relevance of the Book of Isaiah

"Isaiah". Drawing by E. M. Lilien. Jewish Encyclopedia (1901–1912)

Isaiah's work took place during the years of the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel and the expulsion of its population to the deep provinces of the Assyrian Empire. Isaiah views this blow as a punishment sent by God on His people for their sins. Isaiah sees in Assyria nothing more than an instrument with the help of which the Lord carries out His providence: “O Ashur, the rod of My wrath! and the scourge in his hand is My indignation!” (Isa. 10:5). Fearing that the fate of the Northern Kingdom could befall Judah, Isaiah warns King Hezekiah and his courtiers (Isaiah himself belonged to the palace aristocracy) against military adventures that could entail the wrath of a formidable empire, absorbing neighboring countries one after another and expelling entire peoples from their homeland. Isaiah calls for humility before Assyria and resists joining the anti-Assyrian coalition led by Egypt (Isaiah 18–19).

However, when in 701 BC. e. Assyrian forces led by Sancherib defeated the Egyptian troops, invaded Judea and, having ravaged the country, besieged Jerusalem. Isaiah urged the king not to surrender the city to the enemy. The prophecy given by Isaiah in response to the king's request is one of the finest examples of prophetic literature. “This is the word that the Lord spoke about him: the virgin daughter of Zion will despise you, the virgin daughter of Zion will laugh at you, the daughter of Jerusalem will shake her head after you... Because of your insolence against Me and because your arrogance has reached My ears, I will put My ring in in your nostrils and My bit in your mouth, and I will bring you back by the same road by which you came... Therefore this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria: He will not enter this city, neither will he throw arrows there, nor will he build a rampart against it. ... I will guard this city to save it for My own sake and for the sake of David My servant” (Isa. 37:22, 29, 33, 35). According to the biblical account, Isaiah's prophecy came true (II C. 19:35–36). Apparently, an epidemic broke out in the camp of the besiegers, and they left the country. The unexpected lifting of the siege and the return of Sankheriv to Assyria is also attested in Assyrian sources. The majestic words of Isaiah about the invincibility of Jerusalem reflect the faith of all the prophets of the kingdom of Judah: God made a covenant with David, according to which the dynasty of David would forever rule the people of Israel in the eternal capital - Jerusalem, the only abode of God Himself.

However, Isaiah is the first prophet in whom this idea becomes an eschatological vision that transcends national boundaries and becomes a paradigm of messianism. Isaiah paints a picture of an ideal Jewish kingdom, headed by a descendant of David: “And the spirit of the Lord will rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and piety... Then the wolf will dwell with the lamb and the leopard will lie down with the kid; and the calf, and the young lion, and the ox will be together; and a little child will lead them... for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11:2, 6, 9). This ideal kingdom of goodness and justice, realized under the auspices of the God of Israel, who is the God of the Universe, will be realized at the “end of days,” that is, as the result of a historical process during which all peoples must believe in one God and, as a consequence, a universal world. For the first time in history, Isaiah put forward the idea of ​​​​universal peace - an ethical achievement that can only be appreciated against the background of Isaiah's contemporary ideals of military might and the brute force of vast empires. “And it shall come to pass in the last days: the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established at the head of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all the nations will flow to her and say, “Come and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, and He will teach us His ways.” and we will walk in His paths. For out of Zion will come the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And He will judge the nations and rebuke many nations; And they will beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (Isa. 2:2-4). Thus, the meaning and purpose of history is the implementation of the word of God and His commandments on a worldwide scale. To this day, this vision of Isaiah serves as an ideal for humanity.

Isaiah's prophecies about the indestructibility of Israel's eternal capital, Jerusalem, inspired the Israel Defense Forces during the danger looming over Jerusalem in the War of Independence, when the armies of six Arab countries invaded the borders of the revived Jewish state.

Second Isaiah

Second Isaiah is, first and foremost, a prophet of deliverance. Chapter 40 of the book of Isaiah, which opens the cycle of prophecies of Second Isaiah, begins with verses foreshadowing the return of the Jewish exiles from the Babylonian captivity. “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak to the heart of Jerusalem and tell her... that her guilt is forgiven, for she has received at the hand of the Lord double for all her sins” (Isaiah 40:1-2). The chapters of Deutero-Isaiah abound in such prophecies and consolations, who, apparently, was one of the Jewish exiles in Babylonia during the wars of conquest of the Persian king Cyrus, who captured Babylonia in 539 BC. e. Like Isaiah, who 200 years earlier saw in the king of Assyria the scourge of God to punish sinful Judah, Second Isaiah sees in Cyrus the messenger and anointed of God (Is. 45:1), serving as an instrument of vengeance against Babylon for the destruction of Judah and called upon to return the exiles to their homeland and restore the greatness of Jerusalem and its Temple. The God of Israel is not only the God of the universe, the creator of heaven and earth, light and darkness (Isa. 45:7), but also the supreme judge of proud empires, and it was He who granted Cyrus his victory, making him an instrument for the implementation of historical justice and retribution. Living in exile among pagan peoples, the prophet sees in contemporary historical events direct evidence of the omnipotence of the God of Israel. Second Isaiah does not attack idolaters with anger and indignation, but speaks with murderous sarcasm about those who consider as deities “an idol, which the master casts, and the smelter covers it with gold and attaches chains of silver” (Is. 40:19).

The caustic and ironic satire of Deuteronomy (44:9–20) became a model for imitation in the literatures of monotheistic peoples and is imitated in the apocrypha and pseudepigrapha. However, a time of great hope and enthusiasm was followed by a time of disappointment: the aspirations of majestic scenes of revival and grandiose events gave way to reality: the return to Zion was slow, many exiles settled down in a foreign land and did not intend to set off on the road to the ruins of Judea at all. The call to “prepare the way of the Lord,” the call to return turned out to be “the voice of one crying in the wilderness” (Is. 40:3). The restoration of the Temple was accompanied by strife, the struggle with the intrigues of the Samaritans, and was finally interrupted. Accordingly, the tone of the prophecy of Second Isaiah changes: the place of consolation prophecies is taken by reproaches of sinfulness, and deliverance is increasingly colored in eschatological tones. The style also changes, turning from enthusiastic to dejectedly pessimistic. On this basis, some scholars conclude that only 9 (40–48) or 16 chapters (40–55) belong to Deuteronomy, while all subsequent chapters belong to the pen of one or more of his followers.

A number of verses in Deuteronomy (42:1–4; 49:1–6; 50:4–9; 52:13–53:12) are known as the “Song of the Servant of God.” These verses depict the chosen one of the Lord, suffering persecution and humiliation from people, he is led to slaughter in front of a mocking crowd; however, the suffering of the servant of God is a necessary stage of deliverance, and the day will come when the servant of God, punished for the sins of others, will be exalted and become a torch for the nations of the world. A huge exegetical literature, both religious and scientific, is devoted to the interpretation of this image. Most researchers see here an allegory of the historical fate of the Jewish people. Others believe that this is the image of a misunderstood prophet. There is also an opinion that we are talking about the righteous who, for the sins of the entire people, were doomed to a suffering life in a foreign land until the coming deliverance reveals to the whole world the correctness of their faith. Christian exegesis sees in the image of God's servant a prophecy of the life and fate of Jesus.

The prophecies of Second Isaiah are one of the artistic peaks of biblical poetry. The play on words, the widespread use of synonymy and homonymy, a clear rhythm corresponding to the content, figurative pictures of the renewed homeland, the lyrical reproduction of the awe and jubilation of exiles in anticipation of their return, the enthusiastic elation of the style of verses about deliverance turned the poetry of Second Isaiah into an inexhaustible source of consolation and faith in the future of the Jewish people in throughout the two thousand years of dispersion and during the era of the national liberation movement in Eretz Israel, when many verses of Deuteronomy were perceived as completely relevant and inspired state builders.

Miracles of Yeshayahu

• According to legend, during the reign of Hezekiah, Judah was attacked by the Assyrian king Sennacherib. But through the prayer of Hezekiah, the enemy army was destroyed.
• However, Hezekiyahu himself became seriously ill and was cured through the prayer of the prophet Isaiah.

Yeshayahu's prophecies

• Isaiah’s famous phrase about the future society: “And nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they know war any more” Isaiah 2.4.
• Isaiah acts as a moral preacher and an opponent of formality in rituals. “Heaven is my throne, earth is my footstool - where will you build a house for me?” (66:1). “Whoever sacrifices a lamb is like one who strangles a dog” (66:3). “I will look upon him who is humble and contrite in spirit” (66:2).
• Isaiah denounces the hypocrisy of honoring God with the tongue but not with the heart (29:13)
• Isaiah denies the possibility of depicting God. “Who do you liken God to?” (40:18) and denies the possibility of comprehending God. “His understanding is unsearchable” (40:28)
• Isaiah advocates the idea of ​​monarchy by calling the Persian king Cyrus the Lord's anointed (45:1).
• Isaiah advocates the idea of ​​predestination. “The ancient decrees are true” (25:1)
• Isaiah condemned the Jews for their lawlessness and prophesied to them that the pagan peoples would believe in God: “The Egyptians, together with the Assyrians, will serve the Lord” (19:23).
• It is Isaiah who describes the vision of the New Jerusalem - a symbol of the coming Kingdom of God.

Yeshayahu in world culture. Images, parallels, allusions

The power and grace of Yeshayahu's poetic style, his moral pathos and colorful style inspired many poets of the new Hebrew literature, especially H. N. Bialik. The description of Yeshayahu’s dedication to the prophethood (chapter 6) inspired Pushkin to create the image of the prophet in the poem of the same name:

Michelangelo "Yeshayahu"

We are tormented by spiritual thirst, I dragged myself in the dark desert, and a six-winged seraphim appeared to me at a crossroads. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . And he came to my lips and tore out my sinful tongue, both idle and wicked, and put the sting of a wise snake into my frozen lips with his bloody right hand. And he cut my chest with a sword and took out my trembling heart, and pushed a coal, blazing with fire, into the open chest. Like a corpse, I lay in the desert, And God’s voice called to me: “Arise, prophet, and see, and heed, Be fulfilled by my will, And, going around the seas and lands, Burn the hearts of people with the verb.”

The title of Clifford Simak's famous book "All Flesh is Grass" is a direct quote from the 40th chapter of the book of Yeshayahu, verse 6.

Notes

Links

• Book text (Hebrew)

Notification: The preliminary basis for this article was the article by Isaiah in the EEE

Books of Tanakh (Hebrew Bible)
Pentateuch ( Torah)
Prophets ( Neviim)
Scriptures ( Ketuvim)

Biblical prophets
Prophets in the Pentateuch

Isaiah (Isaiah, Hebrew - Yeshayahu- “Salvation sent by (God) Yahweh,” Yeshayahu the son of Amotz) - one of the great biblical prophets, coming from a noble Jewish priestly family, was born in Jerusalem around 765 BC. e. He prophesied in Hebrew. Isaiah is notable primarily for its prophecies about the Messiah.

Biography

His prophetic ministry began at the age of 20 with a vision of God on a high and exalted throne; the edges of his robe filled the entire temple, angels flew around Him and cried to each other: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord of Hosts! The whole earth is full of His glory."

The prophet Isaiah began prophesying in 747 BC. e., during the time of King Uzziah. The beginning of Isaiah's prophecies occurred during the reign of kings Azariah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah.

Isaiah's life ended as a martyr during the reign of King Manasseh of Judah, known for his violations of the Torah and persecution of the prophets.

Biblical tradition says that the Jews departed from God when idolatry spread throughout the kingdom of Judah. The ancient Hebrews had to contend with constant raids and attacks from the neighboring Kingdom of Israel and Syria. In order to secure the kingdom of Judah from the invasion of the Syrians, the kings of Judah entered into an alliance with the Assyrian king, imposing a heavy tribute burden on the Jews.

Miracles

• According to legend, during the reign of Hezekiah, Judah was attacked by the Assyrian king Sennacherib. But through the prayer of Hezekiah, the enemy army was destroyed.
• However, Hezekiah himself became seriously ill and was healed by God through the prayer of the prophet Isaiah.
• He returned the shadow ten steps back, giving a sign to King Hezekiah that he would recover (2 Kings 20:8-11).

Prophecies

• Isaiah’s famous phrase about the Kingdom of Heaven: “They will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (Isa. 2:4).
• Isaiah denounces hypocrisy when a person honors God with his tongue but not with his heart (Isaiah 29:13).
• Isaiah speaks of the impossibility of replacing God with a man-made image of a deity (Isaiah 40:12-31):

• Denies the possibility of comprehending the mind of God: “His mind is unsearchable” (Is. 40:28).
• Isaiah defends the idea that every nation is worthy of the authority that is over it, calling the Persian king Cyrus the Lord's anointed (Isaiah 45:1).
• Isaiah advocates the idea of ​​predestination. “The ancient decrees are true” (Is. 25:1), but emphasizes that the fate of each person depends on himself and is determined by his actions: “If you want and obey, you will eat the blessings of the earth; But if you deny and persist, the sword will devour you: for the mouth of the Lord speaks” (Isaiah 1:19).
• Damascus will be destroyed (Isa. 17:1).
• The book of the prophet Isaiah contains one of the first descriptions of the Heavenly Jerusalem - a symbol of the coming Kingdom of God - shown to Isaiah in a vision.

Messianic prophecies

In the eyes of Christians, Isaiah's multiple prophecies about the coming Messiah are of particular value. The following prophecies are considered as prophecies about the Messiah:

• about the birth of the Messiah: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: behold, a virgin will be with child and give birth to a Son, and they will call His name Immanuel.” (Isa. 7:14), “for unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; the government will be upon His shoulder, and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6).
• about ministry: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, for the Lord has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor, He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach release to the captives and the opening of prison to the prisoners” (Isa. 61:1).

Prophecy about Egypt

"Prophecy about Egypt. - Behold, the Lord will sit on a light cloud and come to Egypt. And the idols of Egypt will shake at His presence, and the heart of Egypt will melt within him. I will arm the Egyptians against the Egyptians; and brother will fight against brother and against each other, city against city, kingdom against kingdom. And the spirit of Egypt will fail in it, and I will destroy its counsel, and they will resort to idols and to sorcerers, and to those who call forth the dead, and to fortune-tellers. “And I will deliver the Egyptians into the hands of a cruel ruler,” and a cruel king will rule over them. Says the Lord, the Lord of hosts” (Isa. 19:1-4).

Prophecy about Israel (Jewish people)

Isaiah condemned the Jews for their lawlessness and prophesied to them that most of them would be rejected by God, and their place would be taken by the believing pagan peoples of Egypt and Assyria (now Iraq). “The Egyptians will serve the Lord together with the Assyrians” (Isa. 19:23).

Part of the prophecy is seen as prophecy about the restoration of the state of Israel:

• “Fear not, for I am with you; From the east I will bring your descendants and from the west I will gather you. I will say to the North: “Give it back”; and to the south: “do not hold back”; bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth, everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, formed and formed” (Isaiah 43:5-7).
• “Who has heard such a thing? who has seen anything like this? did the country arise in one day? Was a people born at one time, like Zion, as soon as she began to suffer from childbirth, she gave birth to her sons? (Isa. 66:8)

In Islam

Although Isaiah is not mentioned by name in the Koran, Muslim sources call him a prophet.

Archpriest Seraphim Slobodskoy
God's law

Old Testament

Prophet Isaiah

Particularly famous among the Jewish prophets was the prophet Isaiah.

Isaiah was a descendant of King David, a relative of the kings of Judah. The Lord called him to prophetic service with a special appearance. Isaiah saw the Lord sitting on a high throne. Six-winged seraphim stood around Him and cried out: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts! The whole earth is full of His glory!” One of the seraphim took a burning coal from the heavenly altar with tongs, touched Isaiah's lips and said: “Behold, your sins are cleansed.” After this, the Lord commanded him to go and expose the unbelief and vices of the Jews.

The prophet Isaiah predicted that the kingdom of Judah would be destroyed by enemies, the Jews would be taken into captivity, and then return to their homeland again.

Isaiah especially clearly predicted about Christ the Savior that He would come from the line of David, that the Savior would be born of a Virgin and would not be an ordinary man, but also God: " behold, the Virgin will be with child and give birth to a Son, and they will call His name Immanuel, which means God is with us"(Isa. 7 , 14).

Isaiah's prophecy about the birth of the Savior from the Virgin

He predicted that the Savior would suffer and die for our sins: “He was wounded for our sins and tormented for our iniquities. By His stripes we were healed. He was tortured, but suffered voluntarily and did not open His mouth. He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb is silent before its shearers, so He opened not His mouth."

Isaiah also prophesied that the Savior, crucified with the villains, will be buried not with them, but in the coffin of a rich man: " He was assigned a coffin with the villains, but He was buried with a rich man".

Through faith in Christ the Savior, people will be saved from eternal destruction: " through the knowledge of Him, He, the Righteous, will justify many, and bear their sins on Himself".

For the clarity of his predictions about Christ the Savior, the prophet Isaiah is called Old Testament evangelist.

At the same time, Isaiah hotly denounced the contemporary Jewish king Manasseh, who, being wicked, erected altars to pagan idols in the Temple of Solomon. (However, at the end of his life, Manasseh, captured and imprisoned, repented and asked God for forgiveness). Under the influence of their wicked king, the Jewish people completely began to forget the true God. The Jews even stopped celebrating Passover and other holidays established by Moses.