I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

I will open rivers in the high bills, and fountains in the midst of the plains: I will turn the desert into pools of waters, and the impassable land into streams of waters.

I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness into a pool of water, and the dry land into water-springs.

I open on high places rivers, And in midst of valleys fountains, I make a wilderness become a pond of water, And a dry land become springs of water.

I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the middle of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

I will make rivers on the dry mountain-tops, and fountains in the valleys: I will make the waste land a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

I will open rivers on the high hills, And fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, And the dry land springs of water.

I will open rivers in the high hills, and fountains in the midst of the plains. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the impassable land into streams of water.

Aperiam in editis cacuminibus flumina, et fontes in media planitie; desertum ponam in stagna aquarum, et terram vastam in scaturigines aquarum.

I will open rivers. He illustrates the former doctrine in a different manner, namely, that God has no need of outward and natural means for aiding his Church, but has at his command secret, and wonderful methods, by which he can relieve their necessities, contrary to all hope and outward appearance. When no means of relief are seen, we quickly fall into despair, and scarcely venture to entertain any hope, but so far as outward aids are presented to our eyes. Deprived of these, we cannot rest on the Lord. But the Prophet states that at that time especially they ought to trust, because at that time the Lord has more abundant opportunities of displaying his power, when men perceive no ways or methods, and everything appears to be utterly desperate. Contrary, then, to the hope and belief of all men, the Lord will assist his people, that we may not suffer ourselves to be driven hither and thither by doubt and hesitation. On lofty mountain tops. In order to confirm his statement more fully, he promises that he will perform miracles contrary to the nature and order of things, that we may not imagine that we should think and judge of these things according to human capacity, or limit the power and promises of God to these inferior means. [1] The Lord has sufficient power in himself, and needs not to borrow from any other, and is not confined to the order of nature, which he can easily change, whenever he thinks fit; for when he says that he will make waters to flow on the tops of mountains, and fountains in valleys, and pools in deserts, we know that all this is contrary to the order of nature. The reason why he promised these things is abundantly evident. It was that the Jews might not think that they were prevented from returning to Judea by that vast desert in which travelers are scorched by the heat of the sun, and deprived of all the necessaries of life. The Lord therefore promises that he will supply them with water, and with everything else that is necessary for the journey. Now, these things were fulfilled when the Lord brought his people out of Babylon, but much more abundantly when he converted the whole world to himself by Christ the Redeemer, from whom flow in great abundance throughout the whole world waters to quench the thirst of poor sinners. [2] At that time such a change took place as could never have entered into the imaginations of men.

Footnotes

1 - "Aux causes secondes." "To second causes."

2 - "Des poures pecheurs."

I will open rivers - That is, I will cause rivers to flow (see the note at Isaiah 35:7). The allusion here is doubtless to the miraculous supply of water in the desert when the Israelites had come out of Egypt. God then supplied their needs; and in a similar manner he would always meet his people, and would supply their needs as if rivers of pure water were made to flow from dry and barren hills.
In high places - The word used here denotes properly barrenness or nakedness Job 33:21; and then a hill that is bare, or destitute of trees. It is applied usually to hills in a desert Jeremiah 3:2, Jeremiah 3:21; Jeremiah 4:11; Jeremiah 7:29; Jeremiah 14:6. Such hills, without trees, and in a dry and lonely desert, were of course usually without water. The idea is, that God would refresh them as if rivers were made to flow from such hills; and it may not improperly be regarded as a promise that God would meet and bless his people in situations, and from sources where they least expected refreshment and comfort.
And fountains in the midst of the valleys - (See Isaiah 30:25, note; Isaiah 35:6, note).
I will make the wilderness - (See the note at Isaiah 35:7).

I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry (p) land springs of water.
(p) God would rather change the order of nature than that they should want anything, who cry to him by true faith in their miseries: declaring to them by this that they will lack nothing by the way, when they return from Babylon.

I will open rivers in high places,.... Which is not usual; but God will change the course of nature, and work miracles, rather than his people shall want what is necessary for them; thus he opens to them his everlasting and unchangeable love, and makes it manifest, and shows it to them, and their interest in it, which is a broad river, that cannot be passed over; this is in high places, it flows from the throne of God, and of the Lamb; and of this river of pleasure he makes his people to drink, the streams whereof make glad the city of our God; likewise the fulness of grace in his Son, whose grace is as rivers of water in a dry land, exceeding abundant, and very refreshing; also the graces of his Spirit, which he gives in great abundance, and are those rivers of water he causes to flow forth from them that believe in Christ, in the comfortable exercise of them; see Psalm 36:8,
and fountains in the midst of the valleys; God himself is the fountain of life, and of living waters; Christ is the fountain of gardens, and in him are wells of salvation; the grace of the Spirit is a well of living water, springing up unto eternal life; and of these, humble souls, comparable to the lowly valleys, are partakers, Psalm 36:9,
I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water; respecting either the Gentile world, which was like a wilderness and dry land before the Gospel came into it, but by that was watered and made fruitful; or the state and case of the people of God being in a wilderness condition, when the Lord takes notice of them, and supplies them with everything necessary, so that they are like a watered garden, whose springs fail not, Revelation 12:14. This passage is applied by the Jews to the times of the Messiah (w).
(w) Bemidbar Rabba, sect. 1. 4. fol. 212. 3.

Alluding to the waters with which Israel was miraculously supplied in the desert after having come out of Egypt.
high places--bare of trees, barren, and unwatered (Jeremiah 4:11; Jeremiah 14:6). "High places . . . valleys" spiritually express that in all circumstances, whether elevated or depressed, God's people will have refreshment for their souls, however little to be expected it might seem.

In high places - Upon the mountains where by the course of nature there are no rivers. The dry land - Their people who are like a dry and barren wilderness. I will abundantly water with my blessings.