Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable. ISA 40:28
John Gill
Have you not known? Have you not heard? From the history of the church in all ages; from the experience of all good men; from their own knowledge and observation; from the Scriptures, and the prophets, the interpreters of them; both that what is before suggested is wrong, and that what follows is true,
The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary—Or, “the God of the world”; that has made it, and upholds it, and governs it, and judges righteously in it; who is from everlasting to everlasting, unchangeably the same; whose name alone is Jehovah, the self-existent and all comprehending Being, the Maker and Former of all things; who has not only created the earth, and the foundations of it, as the Targum, or the continent, and the habitable part of the world, that is most known and dwelt in, but even the extremities of the earth; and therefore knows and will take care of his own people, let them be where they will: and though the work of creation, and of upholding creatures in their beings, and of governing the world, and providing for all in it, and of taking care of his church and people in particular, requires so much power, as well as wisdom, yet he never sinks under it, nor is weary of it; therefore they have no reason to give way to such unbelief and despondency, as above expressed:
His understanding is unsearchable—It is infinite, it reaches to all persons and things, and therefore he cannot be at a loss to provide for his people, or plead their cause; nor can their case be unknown to him, or he want either power or skill to help them.
Rashi
The Creator of the ends of the earth . . . his understanding is unsearchable—And One who has such strength and such wisdom—he knows the thoughts. Why does he delay your benefit, only to terminate the transgression and to expiate the sin through afflictions.
Taanit 2a:10
Rabba bar Sheila elaborates on this verbal analogy. It is written here: “Who does great things that are beyond comprehension,” and it is written there, with regard to the creation of the world: “Have you not known? Have you not heard that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, does not grow faint or weary; his understanding is beyond comprehension” (Isa 40:28). This shows that both creation and rainfall are beyond comprehension. And concerning the creation of the world, it is written elsewhere: “Who sets firm the mountains with your power; being girded with might” (Psa 65:7). From this verse it can be inferred that rainfall, like the creation of the world, reflects God’s might.
Taanit 9b:13
As it is stated, with regard to the creation of the world: “Who does great things past finding out” (Job 9:10), and as an example of this it is written: “He gives rain on the earth” (Job 5:9-10). And it is written below: “Have you not known? Have you not heard that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, does not faint and is not weary; his understanding is past finding out” (Isa 40:28). The repetition of “past finding out” indicates that rainfall is as wondrous as the creation of the world. The Gemara adds: And it is written in a psalm that deals with rainfall: “Who by your strength sets fast the mountains, being girded with might” (Psa 65:7).
Idols aren’t necessarily carven images or statues. They can be anything that takes the place of God in our lives. For the Israelites, they trusted in foreign military power, silver and gold, and their leaders. Unlike other things we may put our trust in, God is the greatest. There is no one above him or higher than him. He is uncreated; He doesn’t depend on others to exist. Because he is above all, he is the only one with the power and authority to bless us and provide for our every need. In God, we can be certain that he has the power over all things on earth. How can we respond to the truth that God has highest power and remains faithful to his covenant with us?
Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and called there on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God. GEN 21:33
John Gill
Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba—The Jewish writers are divided about the use of this tamarisk tree, as Jarchi relates; one says it was for a paradise or orchard, to produce fruits out of it for travellers and for entertainment; another says it was for an inn to entertain strangers in; it rather was for a shade, to shelter from the sun in those sultry and hot countries; and perhaps for a religious use, and to be an oratory, as the following words seem to suggest: in the midst of it very likely Abraham built an altar, and sacrificed to the Lord; hence might come the superstitious use of groves among the nations; and, when they came to be abused to idolatrous purposes, they were forbidden by the law of Moses, which before were lawful. And, though the name of Abraham is not in the text, there is no doubt but he is designed, and was the planter of the tamarisk tree, and which is expressed in the Septuagint version, as it is supplied by us. What sort of trees this grove consisted of cannot with certainty be said, very probably the oak. R. Jonah thinks it may be the tree which in Arabic they call “ethel,” and is a tree like that which is called tamarisk in general it signifies any tree, and especially large trees;
And called there on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God—Who, is from everlasting to everlasting, or “the God of the world,” the Creator and upholder of it, and the preserver of all creatures in it; him Abraham invoked in this place, prayed unto him, and gave him thanks for all the mercies he had received from him.
Rashi
A tamarisk tree—Heb. אֵשֶׁל Rav and Samuel differ as to what this was. One said it was an orchard from which to supply fruit for the guests at their meal. The other said it was an inn for lodging in which were all kinds of fruit (Sotah 10a). And we can speak of planting an inn for we find the expression planting used of tents, as it is said (Dan 11:45), “And he shall pitch his palatial tents.”
And called there etc.—Through this tamarisk tree the name of the Holy One, blessed be he, was called “God of the entire universe.” For after they had eaten and drunk he said to them, “Bless him of whose possessions you have eaten! Do you think that you have eaten of what is mine? You have eaten of that which belongs to him who spoke and the universe came into existence” (Sotah 10a).
The eternal God is your dwelling place,
and underneath are the everlasting arms.
And he thrust out the enemy before you
and said, “Destroy.” DEU 33:27
John Gill
The eternal God is your dwelling place—God is eternal, from everlasting to everlasting; the Ancient of Days, before all things, and all time; which is, and was, and is to come: the same is true of Christ, who is the everlasting Father, or Father of eternity, the true God, and eternal life; as appears from his nature, having the whole fulness, all the perfections of deity in him; from his office, as mediator, in which he was set up from everlasting; from his concern in eternal election, in the everlasting covenant, and in the creation of all things out of nothing: and he is the refuge of his people, the antitype of the cities of refuge, to whom sinners, under a sense of sin, flee for refuge; and where they are safe from avenging justice, the wrath of God, the condemnation of the law, everlasting ruin and destruction, or the second death; or their “mansion,” or “dwelling place”; which he has been in all generations, as Moses also says (Psa 90:1-2). Such is Christ to his people, who dwelt secretly in him from everlasting, being chosen in him, and given to him; and openly in conversion, where they dwell as in a strong hold, safely, quietly, comfortably, and pleasantly:
And underneath are the everlasting arms—That is, of God, which are the support of his people, and their protection, safety, and security; such as the arms of his everlasting love, which encircle them, and compass them about as a shield; his everlasting covenant, which is immovable, and in which they ever remain; eternal redemption and salvation, wrought out by Christ, which secures them from destruction; and everlasting power, by which they are kept and preserved as in a garrison; and everlasting consolation, which flows from all this: and so the arms of Christ, or his almighty power, are under the world, to uphold it in being; and under his church, to support it, on whose shoulders the government of it is; and under particular believers, whom he carries in his arms, embraces in his bosom, bears them up under all their afflictions and temptations, trials and exercises; nor will he ever suffer them to drop out of his arms, or to be plucked from thence:
And he thrust out the enemy before you—The Canaanites out of the land of Canaan, to make room for Israel, which he was just about to do, and quickly did. In like manner Christ thrusts out Satan and the spiritual enemies of his people, whom to dispossess is a work of mighty power; and not only so, but gives orders to destroy them, and does destroy them, and makes his people more than conquerors over them:
And said, “Destroy”—The Canaanites: to do which the people of Israel had an order from the Lord (Deu 7:1-2).
For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. ROM 1:20
John Gill
For his invisible attributes—Not the angels, the invisible inhabitants of heaven: nor the unseen glories of another world; nor the decrees of God; nor the persons in the divine nature, but the perfections of God, or his “properties,” as the Arabic version reads it; and which are explained by “his eternal power and divine nature”: these,
Have been clearly perceived—In an intellectual way, by the discursive faculty of the understanding,
Have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world—This is no new discovery, but what men have had, and might, by the light of nature, have enjoyed ever since the world was created; these
In the things that have been made—The various works of creation; all which proclaim the being, unity, and perfections of God their Creator,
So they are without excuse—The very nations, who have only the light of nature, and are destitute of a revelation, have no colour or pretext for their idolatrous practices, and vicious lives; nor have they, nor will they have anything to object to God’s righteous judgment against them, or why they should not be condemned.
but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— ROM 16:26
John Gill
But has now been disclosed—In these last days, in which God has spoken by his Son, by whom the doctrines of grace are most clearly revealed, and fully dispensed; and by his apostles, who were blessed with a clear insight into them, and with extraordinary gifts to minister them;
And through the prophetic writings—In which these truths are hinted, and by which, being made manifest by Christ and his apostles, they are attested and confirmed;
Has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—That is, it is by the express order and command of that God who is from everlasting to everlasting, that the mystery of the gospel is made manifest by the preaching of the apostles being witnessed to by the law and prophets in all its doctrines; particularly justification by Christ’s righteousness, remission of sins through his blood, and salvation by his sufferings and death; that this should be made known not only in the land of Judea, but to all the nations of the world; for this end, that many souls may be brought to submit to the righteousness of faith, to embrace the doctrine of faith, make a profession of it, be subject to the ordinances of it, live by faith on Christ, and also soberly, righteously and godly in this world: if this commandment refers, as it seems to do, to the order of Christ to his apostles, to preach the gospel to Jews and Gentiles, to the Jews first, and upon their rejection of it, to turn to the Gentiles; for so, says the apostle, has the Lord commanded us (Act 13:46-47); here is a clear proof that Christ is God, and that he is the eternal God.