Isaiah 66:17 Commentary: The Meaning of 'One in the Middle'

Isaiah 66 stands at the close of the book, contrasting the destiny of God’s faithful servants with that of his enemies. Verses 15, 16 depict Yahweh coming in fire and whirlwind to execute judgment on all flesh. Against this backdrop, verse 17 names a specific group: Israelites who had abandoned exclusive loyalty to Yahweh and embraced the religious practices of their neighbours.

The “gardens” mentioned here and in Isaiah 65:3 are likely sacred groves where Canaanite fertility cults operated. Such sites often featured trees planted for worship of Asherah or Baal. The purification rites (Hebrew hithpael verbs, the reflexive stem) suggest that these participants saw themselves as performing initiatory washings or consecrations before entering the garden sanctuary. This mirrors mystery religions that required preparatory lustrations. The mysterious figure “in the middle” could be the presiding priest, an idol statue, or a sacred tree, the text leaves the precise object unnamed, perhaps intentionally (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown).

The forbidden foods are named from the most polluted to the most trivial: pig’s flesh (Leviticus 11:7; Deuteronomy 14:8), general abominations (sheqets, any unclean thing), and the mouse (akhbar, Leviticus 11:29). Each term intensifies the picture of defilement. The mouse, though small, was ritually unclean and sometimes associated with Philistine cultic objects (1 Samuel 6:4). By including it, the prophet shows that these worshippers go beyond even common heathen practice in their disregard for God’s law. The historical setting likely points to the reign of Manasseh, when syncretism reached its height in Judah (2 Kings 21:3, 7).

The phrase “one in the middle” has a textual variant in the Masoretic tradition. The consonantal text (chethib) reads achad (masculine, “one”), while the marginal reading (keri) substitutes achath (feminine), possibly to indicate a goddess rather than a male deity or priest. The Keri is supported by 30 manuscripts and the oldest editions. The ancient versions also diverge: the Syriac and Targum read “one after another” (implying a processional sense), while the Septuagint and Vulgate simplify to “behind the gate within” or “in the outer courts.” The consulted sources note no other significant textual variants affecting meaning.

The early church, following the Septuagint, generally read this verse as a condemnation of Jewish ritualism that had rejected Christ. Jerome’s Vulgate rendered the phrase “behind the gate within,” which influenced medieval interpretation as a description of secret hypocrisy. During the Reformation, Protestant commentators (Calvin, Henry) treated the verse as a warning against self-made religion, any worship designed by human invention rather than God’s command. Gill in the 18th century offered a pointed allegory, identifying the “one in the middle” with the pope and the gardens with Roman Catholic churches. In the 19th century, critical scholarship (Keil, Delitzsch) returned to the historical setting, emphasizing the syncretism of the monarchy period. The verse is rarely cited in liturgy but has been used in homiletic contexts to warn against the danger of mixing faith with cultural accommodation.

Three-point outline

1. The deception of self-made holiness. They “sanctify themselves” and “purify themselves”, reflexive verbs that show human effort at ritual purity. Genuine sanctification is God’s work, but here it is a human show.
2. The pull of syncretism. They do not abandon worship entirely; they blend it with idolatry. The garden becomes a place where forbidden foods and rituals are justified as religious devotion. This warns against adding worldly practices to faith.
3. The certainty of divine judgment. “They shall come to an end together” is comprehensive and final. No amount of ritual preparation can shield those who defy God’s covenant.

Five-point outline

1. Who are these people? Apostate Israelites, those who should have known better but turned to foreign gods.
2. What do they do? They perform consecration and purification rites, pretending to be holy.
3. Where do they go? Into gardens, the designated places for pagan worship, away from the temple.
4. What do they eat? Pig, abominations, and mouse, every item deliberately violating the Torah’s clean/unclean laws.
5. What is their end? Consumed together in Yahweh’s judgment, swept away with all who rebel.

Illustration hooks

• A church that adds trendy practices to attract crowds but loses the core of repentance and faithfulness resembles the garden worshippers: the outward show of holiness cannot mask inner compromise.
• Think of someone who follows a charismatic leader into a cult, drawn by promises of spiritual purity, yet led far from God. The phrase “following one in the middle” captures that gravitational pull toward a human authority.
• How easy it is to see the piety of others, their washings and fastings, and assume they are close to God. This verse reminds us that the most religious-looking acts can be performed in direct defiance of God’s Word.

Questions your congregation is asking

• How can we tell the difference between sincere worship and empty ritual?
• Does God care more about what we eat, or about the condition of our hearts?
• What modern “gardens” tempt us to mix faith with the world’s ways?

This passage confronts us with the danger of outward religion that masks inward rebellion. As you discuss it, focus on what the text actually says about these worshippers, what they did, where they went, and why God’s judgment fell. Then consider how similar tendencies appear in our own lives.

Discussion questions

1. Observation: What actions do these people take? (List the verbs: sanctify, purify, go, follow, eat.)
2. Observation: Where does their worship take place? Why are gardens significant in the context of Isaiah 1, 66?
3. Interpretation: Why do you think the prophet names specific foods (pig, mouse) when he could have said “unclean things”? What effect does that have?
4. Interpretation: The phrase “following one in the middle” is puzzling. What do the different interpretations tell us about the kind of worship being performed?
5. Application: In what ways can we “sanctify ourselves” for activities that actually lead us away from God? What does this tell us about motives in worship?
6. Application: This verse appears in a section about final judgment (Isaiah 66:15, 16). How does that context shape the urgency of the warning here?
7. Application: How can we guard against syncretism, the mixing of Christian faith with cultural or personal preferences that contradict Scripture?