Commentary for Isaiah 12:2

for the strength and the praise of the Eternal the Lord The strength and the praise of the Holy One, blessed be He, that was my salvation. We cannot, however, explain עָזִּי, like עֻזִּי, my strength, for we do not find in Scripture עָזִּי vowelized with a short ‘kamatz,’ but with a ‘shuruk,’ reading עֻזִּי, with the exception of three places where it is accompanied by וְזִמְרָת. Also, וְזִמְרָת cannot be explained like וְזִמְרָתִי, my praise, but we are forced to say that וְזִמְרָת is connected to the word following it. Therefore, I say that the ‘yud’ of עָזִּי is merely like the ‘yud’ of (Deut. 33:16) שׁוֹכְנִי סְנֶה, “He Who dwells in the thornbush.”

הנה אל ישועתי The God of my salvation is with me,¹A. V. God is my salvation. and therefore אבטח I will dwell in safety.²A. V. I trust.

the Eternal the Lord Until now His Name was divided, and with the downfall of Amalek, it became whole, and so Scripture states (Exodus 17:16): “For the hand is on the throne of the Eternal (כֵּס יָהּ),” implying that the throne is incomplete and the Name is incomplete until the Lord wages war against Amalek.

The explanation of יה, the half of the name of God, will be found in the Book of Psalms,³In his Commentary on Ps. 118:17, I. E. explains וזמרת, but not the meaning of יה. He intended perhaps to do it on Ps. 68:5, to which verse he refers also in his commentary on Isaiah 26:4. It is, however, explained, Ex. 3:15, and Sefer Hashem, 100:8. and of זמרת in the Pentateuch (Exod. 15:2)

was my salvation. Heb. וַיְהִי לִי לִישׁוּעָה, like הָיָה לִי לִישׁוּעָה, was to me for a salvation, and it is customary for Scripture to speak in this manner. Comp. (Exodus 9:21) “And he who did not heed the word of the Lord, left (וַיַּעֲזֹב) his slaves and his cattle”; also, in II Chronicles (10:17): “And the children of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned (וַיִּמְלֹךְ) over them.” It should say, מָלַךְ עֲלֵיהֶם.