The Second Isaiah: A New Interpretation

work by Torrey

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July 13, 2026

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Charles Cutler Torrey's work, "The Second Isaiah: A New Interpretation," argues for a later dating of chapters 34-35 and 40-66 of the Book of Isaiah, suggesting they were written around 400 BCE.1

The Book of Isaiah is a major prophetic work in the Old Testament, traditionally attributed to the prophet Isaiah of Jerusalem. However, scholars divide the book into sections: First Isaiah (chapters 1-39), Deutero-Isaiah (chapters 40-55), and Trito-Isaiah (chapters 56-66). First Isaiah contains prophecies from the 8th century BCE, while Deutero-Isaiah dates to the Babylonian Exile (6th century BCE), and Trito-Isaiah comes from a later period. Deutero-Isaiah, in particular, offers oracles of hope and promises the return of exiles from Babylon.23

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Charles Cutler Torrey
In The Second Isaiah: A New Interpretation (1928), he argued that Isa. 34–35 and 40–66 should be dated c. 400 bc. His Pseudo-Ezekiel and the Original Prophecy (1930) presents his theory that the canonical book of Ezekiel is a revision of a 3rd-century pseudepigraphon. In The…
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In The Second Isaiah: A New Interpretation (1928), he argued that Isa. 34–35 and 40–66 should be dated c. 400 bc. His Pseudo-Ezekiel and the Original Prophecy (1930) presents his theory that the canonical book of Ezekiel is a revision of a 3rd-century pseudepigraphon. In The…
Read More