1 Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! add ye year to year; let them kill sacrifices.
2 Yet I will distress Ariel, and there shall be heaviness and sorrow: and it shall be unto me as Ariel.
3 And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with a mount, and I will raise forts against thee.
4 And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.
5 Moreover the multitude of thy strangers shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones shall be as chaff that passeth away: yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly.
6 Thou shalt be visited of the LORD of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire.
7 And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, even all that fight against her and her munition, and that distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision.
8 It shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.
9 Stay yourselves, and wonder; cry ye out, and cry: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.
10 For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered.
11 And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed:
12 And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned.
13 Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:
14 Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.
15 Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?
16 Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter's clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, He had no understanding?
17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?
18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of darkness.
19 The meek also shall increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off:
21 That make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of nought.
22 Therefore thus saith the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale.
23 But when he seeth his children, the work of mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel.
24 They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine.
1 Woe H1945 to Ariel, H740 to Ariel, H740 the city H7151 where David H1732 dwelt! H2583 add H5595 ye year H8141 to year; H8141 let them kill H5362 sacrifices. H2282
2 Yet I will distress H6693 Ariel, H740 and there shall be heaviness H8386 and sorrow: H592 and it shall be unto me as Ariel. H740
3 And I will camp H2583 against thee round about, H1754 and will lay siege H6696 against thee with a mount, H4674 and I will raise H6965 forts H4694 against thee.
4 And thou shalt be brought down, H8213 and shalt speak H1696 out of the ground, H776 and thy speech H565 shall be low H7817 out of the dust, H6083 and thy voice H6963 shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit, H178 out of the ground, H776 and thy speech H565 shall whisper H6850 out of the dust. H6083
5 Moreover the multitude H1995 of thy strangers H2114 shall be like small H1851 dust, H80 and the multitude H1995 of the terrible ones H6184 shall be as chaff H4671 that passeth away: H5674 yea, it shall be at an instant H6621 suddenly. H6597
6 Thou shalt be visited H6485 of the LORD H3068 of hosts H6635 with thunder, H7482 and with earthquake, H7494 and great H1419 noise, H6963 with storm H5492 and tempest, H5591 and the flame H3851 of devouring H398 fire. H784
7 And the multitude H1995 of all the nations H1471 that fight H6633 against Ariel, H740 even all that fight H6638 against her and her munition, H4685 and that distress H6693 her, shall be as a dream H2472 of a night H3915 vision. H2377
8 It shall even be as when an hungry H7457 man dreameth, H2492 and, behold, he eateth; H398 but he awaketh, H6974 and his soul H5315 is empty: H7386 or as when H834 a thirsty man H6771 dreameth, H2492 and, behold, he drinketh; H8354 but he awaketh, H6974 and, behold, he is faint, H5889 and his soul H5315 hath appetite: H8264 so shall the multitude H1995 of all the nations H1471 be, that fight H6633 against mount H2022 Zion. H6726
9 Stay H4102 yourselves, and wonder; H8539 cry ye out, H8173 and cry: H8173 they are drunken, H7937 but not with wine; H3196 they stagger, H5128 but not with strong drink. H7941
10 For the LORD H3068 hath poured out H5258 upon you the spirit H7307 of deep sleep, H8639 and hath closed H6105 your eyes: H5869 the prophets H5030 and your rulers, H7218 the seers H2374 hath he covered. H3680
11 And the vision H2380 of all is become unto you as the words H1697 of a book H5612 that is sealed, H2856 which men deliver H5414 to one that is learned, H3045 saying, H559 Read H7121 this, I pray thee: and he saith, H559 I cannot; H3201 for it is sealed: H2856
12 And the book H5612 is delivered H5414 to him that is not learned, H3045 H5612 saying, H559 Read H7121 this, I pray thee: and he saith, H559 I am not learned. H3045
13 Wherefore the Lord H136 said, H559 Forasmuch H3282 as this people H5971 draw near H5066 me with their mouth, H6310 and with their lips H8193 do honour H3513 me, but have removed H7368 their heart H3820 far H7368 from me, and their fear H3374 toward me is taught H3925 by the precept H4687 of men: H582
14 Therefore, behold, I will proceed H3254 to do a marvellous work H6381 among this people, H5971 even a marvellous work H6381 and a wonder: H6382 for the wisdom H2451 of their wise H2450 men shall perish, H6 and the understanding H998 of their prudent H995 men shall be hid. H5641
15 Woe H1945 unto them that seek deep H6009 to hide H5641 their counsel H6098 from the LORD, H3068 and their works H4639 are in the dark, H4285 and they say, H559 Who seeth H7200 us? and who knoweth H3045 us?
16 Surely your turning of things upside down H2017 shall be esteemed H2803 as the potter's H3335 clay: H2563 for shall the work H4639 say H559 of him that made H6213 it, He made H6213 me not? or shall the thing framed H3336 say H559 of him that framed H3335 it, He had no understanding? H995
17 Is it not yet a very H4213 little while, H4592 and Lebanon H3844 shall be turned H7725 into a fruitful field, H3759 and the fruitful field H3759 shall be esteemed H2803 as a forest? H3293
18 And in that day H3117 shall the deaf H2795 hear H8085 the words H1697 of the book, H5612 and the eyes H5869 of the blind H5787 shall see H7200 out of obscurity, H652 and out of darkness. H2822
19 The meek H6035 also shall increase H3254 their joy H8057 in the LORD, H3068 and the poor H34 among men H120 shall rejoice H1523 in the Holy One H6918 of Israel. H3478
20 For the terrible one H6184 is brought to nought, H656 and the scorner H3887 is consumed, H3615 and all that watch H8245 for iniquity H205 are cut off: H3772
21 That make a man H120 an offender H2398 for a word, H1697 and lay a snare H6983 for him that reproveth H3198 in the gate, H8179 and turn aside H5186 the just H6662 for a thing of nought. H8414
22 Therefore thus saith H559 the LORD, H3068 who redeemed H6299 Abraham, H85 concerning the house H1004 of Jacob, H3290 Jacob H3290 shall not now be ashamed, H954 neither shall his face H6440 now wax pale. H2357
23 But when he seeth H7200 his children, H3206 the work H4639 of mine hands, H3027 in the midst H7130 of him, they shall sanctify H6942 my name, H8034 and sanctify H6942 the Holy One H6918 of Jacob, H3290 and shall fear H6206 the God H430 of Israel. H3478
24 They also that erred H8582 in spirit H7307 shall come H3045 to understanding, H998 and they that murmured H7279 shall learn H3925 doctrine. H3948
1 Ho Ariel, Ariel, the city where David encamped! add ye year to year; let the feasts come round:
2 then will I distress Ariel, and there shall be mourning and lamentation; and she shall be unto me as Ariel.
3 And I will encamp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with posted troops, and I will raise siege works against thee.
4 And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust; and thy voice shall be as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.
5 But the multitude of thy foes shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones as chaff that passeth away: yea, it shall be in an instant suddenly.
6 She shall be visited of Jehovah of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire.
7 And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, even all that fight against her and her stronghold, and that distress her, shall be as a dream, a vision of the night.
8 And it shall be as when a hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.
9 Tarry ye and wonder; take your pleasure and be blind: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.
10 For Jehovah hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes, the prophets; and your heads, the seers, hath he covered.
11 And all vision is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I cannot, for it is sealed:
12 and the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I am not learned.
13 And the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw nigh `unto me', and with their mouth and with their lips to honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment of men which hath been taught `them';
14 therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder; and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.
15 Woe unto them that hide deep their counsel from Jehovah, and whose works are in the dark, and that say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?
16 Ye turn things upside down! Shall the potter be esteemed as clay; that the thing made should say of him that made it, He made me not; or the thing formed say of him that formed it, He hath no understanding?
17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?
18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.
19 The meek also shall increase their joy in Jehovah, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scoffer ceaseth, and all they that watch for iniquity are cut off;
21 that make a man an offender in `his' cause, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just with a thing of nought.
22 Therefore thus saith Jehovah, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale.
23 But when he seeth his children, the work of my hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name; yea, they shall sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall stand in awe of the God of Israel.
24 They also that err in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmur shall receive instruction.
1 Wo `to' Ariel, Ariel, The city of the encampment of David! Add year to year, let festivals go round.
2 And I have sent distress to Ariel, And it hath been lamentation and mourning, And it hath been to me as Ariel.
3 And I encamped, O babbler, against thee, And I laid siege against thee -- a camp. And I raised up against thee bulwarks.
4 And thou hast been low, From the earth thou speakest, And from the dust makest thy saying low, And thy voice hath been from the earth, As one having a familiar spirit, And from the dust thy saying whisperest,
5 And as small dust hath been The multitude of those scattering thee, And as chaff passing on the multitude of the terrible, And it hath been at an instant -- suddenly.
6 By Jehovah of Hosts thou art inspected, With thunder, and with an earthquake, And great noise, hurricane, and whirlwind, And flame of devouring fire.
7 And as a dream, a vision of night, hath been The multitude of all the nations Who are warring against Ariel, And all its warriors, and its bulwark, Even of those distressing her.
8 And it hath been, as when the hungry dreameth, And lo, he is eating, And he hath waked, and empty `is' his soul, And as when the thirsty dreameth, And lo, he is drinking, and he hath waked, And lo, he is weary, and his soul is longing, So is the multitude of all the nations Who are warring against mount Zion.
9 Tarry and wonder, look ye, yea, look, Be drunk, and not with wine, Stagger, and not with strong drink.
10 For poured out on you hath Jehovah a spirit of deep sleep, And He closeth your eyes -- the prophets, And your heads -- the seers -- He covered.
11 And the vision of the whole is to you, As words of the sealed book, That they give unto one knowing books, Saying, `Read this, we pray thee,' And he hath said, `I am not able, for it `is' sealed;'
12 And the book is given to him who hath not known books, Saying, `Read this, we pray thee,' And he hath said, `I have not known books.'
13 And the Lord saith: Because drawn near hath this people, with its mouth, And with its lips they have honoured Me, And its heart it hath put far off from Me, And their fear of Me is -- A precept of men is taught!
14 Therefore, lo, I am adding to do wonderfully with this people, A wonder, and a marvel, And perished hath the wisdom of its wise ones, And the understanding of its intelligent ones hideth itself.'
15 Wo `to' those going deep from Jehovah to hide counsel, And whose works have been in darkness. And they say, `Who is seeing us? And who is knowing us?'
16 Your perversion! as clay is the potter esteemed? That the work saith of its maker, `He hath not made me?' And the framed thing said of its framer, `He did not understand?'
17 Is it not yet a very little, And turned hath Lebanon to a fruitful field, And the fruitful field for a forest is reckoned?
18 And heard in that day have the deaf the words of a book, And out of thick darkness, and out of darkness, The eyes of the blind do see.
19 And the humble have added joy in Jehovah, And the poor among men In the Holy One of Israel rejoice.
20 For ceased hath the terrible one, And consumed hath been the scorner, And cut off have been all watching for iniquity,
21 Causing men to sin in word, And for a reprover in the gate lay a snare, And turn aside into emptiness the righteous.
22 Therefore, thus said Jehovah, Who ransomed Abraham, Concerning the house of Jacob: `Not now ashamed is Jacob, Nor now doth his face become pale,
23 For in his seeing his children, The work of My hand, in his midst, They sanctify My name, And have sanctified the Holy One of Jacob, And the God of Israel they declare fearful.
24 And the erring in spirit have known understanding, And murmurers learn doctrine!'
1 Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city of David's encampment! Add ye year to year; let the feasts come round.
2 But I will distress Ariel, and there shall be sorrow and sadness; and it shall be unto me as an Ariel.
3 And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with watch-posts, and I will raise forts against thee.
4 And thou shalt be brought low, thou shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall come low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.
5 And the multitude of thine enemies shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones as chaff that passeth away; and it shall be in an instant, suddenly.
6 Thou shalt be visited by Jehovah of hosts with thunder and with earthquake and great noise, with whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire.
7 And the multitude of all the nations that war against Ariel, even all that war against her and her fortifications, and that distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision.
8 It shall even be as when the hungry dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; and he awaketh, and his soul is empty; or as when the thirsty dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; and he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul craveth: so shall the multitude of all the nations be that war against mount Zion.
9 Be astounded and astonished, blind yourselves and be blind! They are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.
10 For Jehovah hath poured out upon you a spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes; the prophets and your chiefs, the seers, hath he covered.
11 And the whole vision is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which they give to one that can read, saying, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I cannot, for it is sealed.
12 And they give the book to him that cannot read, saying, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I cannot read.
13 And the Lord saith, Forasmuch as this people draw near with their mouth, and honour me with their lips, but their heart is removed far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught of men;
14 therefore, behold, I will proceed to do marvellously with this people, to do marvellously, even with wonder, and the wisdom of their wise [men] shall perish, and the understanding of their intelligent ones shall be hid.
15 Woe unto them that hide deep, far from Jehovah, their counsel! And their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?
16 [Oh] your perverseness! -- Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay, so that the work should say of him that made it, He made me not; or the thing formed say of him that formed it, He hath no understanding?
17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?
18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and, out of obscurity and out of darkness, the eyes of the blind shall see;
19 and the meek shall increase their joy in Jehovah, and the needy among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the terrible one shall come to nought, and the scorner shall be no more, and all that watch for iniquity shall be cut off,
21 that make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and pervert [the judgment of] the righteous by futility.
22 Therefore thus saith Jehovah who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now be pale;
23 for when he seeth his children, the work of my hands, in the midst of him, they shall hallow my name, and hallow the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel.
24 And they that are of erring spirit shall know understanding, and the disobedient shall learn doctrine.
1 Ho Ariel, Ariel, the city where David encamped! add you year to year; let the feasts come round:
2 then will I distress Ariel, and there shall be mourning and lamentation; and she shall be to me as Ariel.
3 I will encamp against you round about, and will lay siege against you with posted troops, and I will raise siege works against you.
4 You shall be brought down, and shall speak out of the ground, and your speech shall be low out of the dust; and your voice shall be as of one who has a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and your speech shall whisper out of the dust.
5 But the multitude of your foes shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the awesome ones as chaff that passes away: yes, it shall be in an instant suddenly.
6 She shall be visited of Yahweh of Hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire.
7 The multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, even all who fight against her and her stronghold, and who distress her, shall be as a dream, a vision of the night.
8 It shall be as when a hungry man dreams, and, behold, he eats; but he awakes, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreams, and, behold, he drinks; but he awakes, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul has appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against Mount Zion.
9 Stay you and wonder; take your pleasure and be blind: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.
10 For Yahweh has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes, the prophets; and your heads, the seers, has he covered.
11 All vision is become to you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one who is learned, saying, Read this, I pray you; and he says, I can't, for it is sealed:
12 and the book is delivered to him who is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray you; and he says, I am not learned.
13 The Lord said, Because this people draw near [to me], and with their mouth and with their lips to honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment of men which has been taught [them];
14 therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder; and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.
15 Woe to those who hide deep their counsel from Yahweh, and whose works are in the dark, and who say, Who sees us? and who knows us?
16 You turn things upside down! Shall the potter be esteemed as clay; that the thing made should say of him who made it, He didn't make me; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, He has no understanding?
17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?
18 In that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.
19 The humble also shall increase their joy in Yahweh, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the terrible one is brought to nothing, and the scoffer ceases, and all those who watch for iniquity are cut off;
21 that make a man an offender in [his] cause, and lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate, and turn aside the just with a thing of nothing.
22 Therefore thus says Yahweh, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale.
23 But when he sees his children, the work of my hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name; yes, they shall sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall stand in awe of the God of Israel.
24 They also who err in spirit shall come to understanding, and those who murmur shall receive instruction.
1 Ho! Ariel, Ariel, the town against which David made war; put year to year, let the feasts come round:
2 And I will send trouble on Ariel, and there will be weeping and cries of grief; and she will be to me as Ariel.
3 And I will make war on you like David, and you will be shut in by earthworks, and I will make towers round you.
4 And you will be made low, and your voice will come out of the earth, and your words will be low out of the dust; and your voice will come out of the earth like that of a spirit, making bird-like noises out of the dust.
5 And the army of your attackers will be like small dust, and all the cruel ones like dry stems gone before the wind; suddenly it will come about.
6 The Lord of armies will come in with thunder and earth-shaking and great noise, with rushing wind and storm, and the flame of burning fire.
7 And all the nations making war on Ariel, and all those who are fighting against her and shutting her in with their towers, will be like a dream, like a vision of the night.
8 And it will be like a man desiring food, and dreaming that he is feasting; but when he is awake there is nothing in his mouth: or like a man in need of water, dreaming that he is drinking; but when he is awake he is feeble and his soul is full of desire: so will all the nations be which make war on Mount Zion.
9 Be surprised and full of wonder; let your eyes be covered and be blind: be overcome, but not with wine; go with uncertain steps, but not because of strong drink.
10 For the Lord has sent on you a spirit of deep sleep; and by him your eyes, the prophets, are shut, and your heads, the seers, are covered.
11 And the vision of all this has become to you like the words of a book which is shut, which men give to one who has knowledge of writing, saying, Make clear to us what is in the book: and he says, I am not able to, for the book is shut:
12 And they give it to one without learning, saying, Make clear to us what is in the book: and he says, I have no knowledge of writing.
13 And the Lord said, because this people come near to me with their mouths, and give honour to me with their lips, but their heart is far from me, and their fear of me is false, a rule given them by the teaching of men;
14 For this cause I will again do a strange thing among this people, a thing to be wondered at: and the wisdom of their wise men will come to nothing, and the sense of their guides will no longer be seen.
15 Cursed are those who go deep to keep their designs secret from the Lord, and whose works are in the dark, and who say, Who sees us? and who has knowledge of our acts?
16 You are turning things upside down! Is the wet earth the same to you as the one who is forming it? will the thing made say of him who made it, He made me not: or the thing formed say of him who gave it form, He has no knowledge?
17 In a very short time Lebanon will become a fertile field, and the fertile field will seem like a wood.
18 And in that day those whose ears are stopped will be hearing the words of the book; and the eyes of the blind will see through the mist and the dark.
19 And the poor will have their joy in the Lord increased, and those in need will be glad in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the cruel one has come to nothing; and those who make sport of the Lord are gone; and those who are watching to do evil are cut off:
21 Who give help to a man in a wrong cause, and who put a net for the feet of him who gives decisions in the public place, taking away a man's right without cause.
22 For this reason the Lord, the saviour of Abraham, says about the family of Jacob, Jacob will not now be put to shame, or his face be clouded with fear.
23 But when they, the children of Jacob, see the work of my hands among them, they will give honour to my name; yes, they will give honour to the Holy One of Jacob, and go in fear of the God of Israel.
24 Those whose hearts were turned away from him will get knowledge, and those who made an outcry against him will give attention to his teaching.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Isaiah 29
Commentary on Isaiah 29 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
The prophecy here passes from the fall of Samaria, the crown of flowers (Isaiah 28:1-4), to its formal parallel. Jerusalem takes its place by the side of Samaria, the crown of flowers, and under the emblem of a hearth of God. 'Arı̄'ēl might, indeed, mean a lion of God. It occurs in this sense as the name of certain Moabitish heroes (2 Samuel 23:20; 1 Chronicles 11:22), and Isaiah himself used the shorter form אראל for the heroes of Judah (Isaiah 33:7). But as אריאל (God's heart, interchanged with הראל htiw degna , God's height) is the name given in Ezekiel 43:15-16, to the altar of burnt-offering in the new temple, and as Isaiah could not say anything more characteristic of Jerusalem, than that Jehovah had a fire and hearth there (Isaiah 31:9); and, moreover, as Jerusalem the city and community within the city would have been compared to a lioness rather than a lion, we take אריאל in the sense of ara Dei (from ארה , to burn). The prophet commences in his own peculiar way with a grand summary introduction, which passes in a few gigantic strides over the whole course from threatening to promise. Isaiah 29:1 “Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the castle where David pitched his tent! Add year to year, let the feasts revolve: then I distress Ariel, and there is groaning and moaning; and so she proves herself to me as Ariel.” By the fact that David fixed his headquarters in Jerusalem, and then brought the sacred ark thither, Jerusalem became a hearth of God. Within a single year, after only one more round of feasts (to be interpreted according to Isaiah 32:10, and probably spoken at the passover), Jehovah would make Jerusalem a besieged city, full of sighs ( vahătsı̄qōthı̄ , perf. cons. , with the tone upon the ultimate); but “she becomes to me like an Arı̄el ,” i.e., being qualified through me, she will prove herself a hearth of God, by consuming the foes like a furnace, or by their meeting with their destruction at Jerusalem, like wood piled up on the altar and then consumed in flame. The prophecy has thus passed over the whole ground in a few majestic words. It now starts from the very beginning again, and first of all expands the hoi . Isaiah 29:3, Isaiah 29:4 “And I encamp in a circle round about thee, and surround thee with watch-posts, and erect tortoises against thee. And when brought down thou wilt speak from out of the ground, and thy speaking will sound low out of the dust; and thy voice cometh up like that of a demon from the ground, and thy speaking will whisper out of the dust.” It would have to go so far with Ariel first of all, that it would be besieged by a hostile force, and would lie upon the ground in the greatest extremity, and then would whisper with a ghostlike softness, like a dying man, or like a spirit without flesh and bones. Kaddūr signifies sphaera , orbis , as in Isaiah 22:18 and in the Talmud (from kâdar = kâthar ; cf., kudur in the name Nabu - kudur - ussur , Nebo protect the crown, κίδαριν ), and is used here poetically for סביב . Jerome renders it quasi sphaeram (from dūr , orbis ). מצּב (from נצב , יצב ) might signify “firmly planted” (Luzzatto, immobilmente ; compare shūth , Isaiah 2:7); but according to the parallel it signifies a military post, like מצּב , נציב . M e tsurōth (from m âtsōr , Deuteronomy 20:20) are instruments of siege, the nature of which can only be determined conjecturally. On 'ōbh , see Isaiah 8:19;
(Note: The 'akkuubh mentioned there is equivalent to anbûb , Arab. a knot on a reed stalk, then that part of such a reed which comes between two knots, then the reed stalk itself; root נב , to rise up, swell, or become convex without and concave within (Fl.). It is possible that it would be better to trace 'ōbh back to this radical and primary meaning of what is hollow (and therefore has a dull sound), whether used in the sense of a leather-bag, or applied to a spirit of incantation, and the possessor of such a spirit.)
there is no necessity to take it as standing for ba‛al 'ōbh .
Thus far does the unfolding of the hoi reach. Now follows an unfolding of the words of promise, which stand at the end of Isaiah 29:1 : “And it proves itself to me as Ariel.” Isaiah 29:5-8 : “And the multitude of thy foes will become like finely powdered dust, and the multitude of the tyrants like chaff flying away; and it will take place suddenly, very suddenly. From Jehovah of hosts there comes a visitation with crash of thunder and earthquake and great noise, whirlwind and tempest, and the blazing up of devouring fire. And the multitude of all the nations that gather together against Ariel, and all those who storm and distress Ariel and her stronghold, will be like a vision of the night in a dream. And it is just as a hungry man dreams, and behold he eats; and when he wakes up his soul is empty: and just as a thirsty man dreams, and behold he drinks; and when he wakes up, behold, he is faint, and his soul is parched with thirst: so will it be to the multitude of the nations which gather together against the mountain of Zion.” The hostile army, described four times as hâmōn , a groaning multitude, is utterly annihilated through the terrible co-operation of the forces of nature which are let loose upon them (Isaiah 30:30, cf., Isaiah 17:13). “ There comes a visitation: ” tippâqēd might refer to Jerusalem in the sense of “it will be visited” in mercy, viz., by Jehovah acting thus upon its enemies. But it is better to take it in a neuter sense: “punishment is inflicted.” The simile of the dream is applied in two different ways: (1.) They will dissolve into nothing, as if they had only the same apparent existence as a vision in a dream. (2.) Their plan for taking Jerusalem will be put to shame, and as utterly brought to nought as the eating or drinking of a dreamer, which turns out to be a delusion as soon as he awakes. Just as the prophet emphatically combines two substantives from the same verbal root in Isaiah 29:1, and two adverbs from the same verb in Isaiah 29:5; so does he place צבא and צבה together in Isaiah 29:7, the former with על relating to the crowding of an army for the purpose of a siege, the latter with an objective suffix (compare Psalms 53:6) to the attack made by a crowded army. The m e tsōdâh of Ariel (i.e., the watch-tower, specula , from tsūd , to spy)
(Note: In Arabic, also, masâd signifies a lofty hill or mountain-top, from a secondary form of tsud ; and massara , to lay the foundations of a fortified city ( ‛ı̄r mâtsōr , Psalms 31:22), from tsūr .))
is the mountain of Zion mentioned afterwards in Isaiah 29:8. כּאשׁר , as if; comp. Zechariah 10:6; Job 10:19. אוכל והנּה without הוּא ; the personal pronoun is frequently omitted, not only in the leading participial clause, as in this instance (compare Isaiah 26:3; Isaiah 40:19; Psalms 22:29; Job 25:2; and Köhler on Zechariah 9:12), but also with a minor participial clause, as in Psalms 7:10; Psalms 55:20, and Habakkuk 2:10. The hungering and thirsting of the waking man are attributed to his nephesh (soul: cf., Isaiah 32:6; Isaiah 5:14; Proverbs 6:30), just because the soul is the cause of the physical life, and without it the action of the senses would be followed by no sensation or experience whatever. The hungry stomach is simply the object of feeling, and everything sensitive in the bodily organism is merely the medium of sensation or feeling; that which really feels is the soul. The soul no sooner passes out of the dreaming state into a waking condition, than it feels that its desires are as unsatisfied as ever. Just like such a dream will the army of the enemy, and that victory of which it is so certain before the battle is fought, fade away into nothing.
This enigma of the future the prophet holds out before the eyes of his contemporaries. The prophet received it by revelation of Jehovah; and without the illumination of Jehovah it could not possibly be understood. The deep degradation of Ariel, the wonderful deliverance, the sudden elevation from the abyss to this lofty height - all this was a matter of faith. But this faith was just what the nation wanted, and therefore the understanding depending upon it was wanting also. The sh e mu‛âh was there, but the bı̄nâh was absent; and all שׁמועה הבין was wrecked on the obtuseness of the mass. The prophet, therefore, who had received the unhappy calling to harden his people, could not help exclaiming ( Isaiah 29:9 ), “ Stop, and stare; blind yourselves, and grow blind! ” התמהמהּ , to show one's self delaying (from מההּ , according to Luzzatto the reflective of תּמהמהּ , an emphatic form which is never met with), is connected with the synonymous verb תּמהּ , to be stiff with astonishment; but to שׁעע , to be plastered up, i.e., incapable of seeing (cf., Isaiah 6:10), there is attached the hithpalpel of the same verb, signifying “to place one's self in such circumstances,” se oblinere (differently, however, in Psalms 119:16, Psalms 119:47, compare Isaiah 11:8, se permulcere ). They could not understand the word of God, but they were confused, and their eyes were, so to speak, festered up: therefore this self-induced condition would become to them a God-appointed punishment. The imperatives are judicial words of command.
This growth of the self-hardening into a judicial sentence of obduracy, is proclaimed still more fully by the prophet. “They are drunken, and not with wine; they reel, and not with meth. For Jehovah hath poured upon you a spirit of deep sleep, and bound up your eyes; the prophets and your heads, the seers, He has veiled. And the revelation of all this will be to you like words of a sealed writing, which they give to him who understands writing, saying, Pray, read this; but he says, I cannot, it is sealed. And they give the writing to one who does not understand writing, saying, Pray, read this; but he says, I do not understand writing.” They were drunken and stupid; not, however, merely because they gave themselves up to sensual intoxication ( יין , dependent upon שׁכרוּ , ebrii vino ), but because Jehovah had given them up to spiritual confusion and self-destruction. All the punishments of God are inflicted through the medium of His no less world-destroying than world-sustaining Spirit, which, although not willing what is evil, does make the evil called into existence by the creature the means of punishing evil. Tardēmâh is used here to signify the powerless, passive state of utter spiritual insensibility. This judgment had fallen upon the nation in all its members, even upon the eyes and heads of the nation, i.e., the prophets. Even they whose duty is was to see to the good of the nation, and lead it, were blind leaders of the blind; their eyes were fast shut ( עצּם , the intensive form of the kal , Isaiah 33:15; Aram. עצּם ; Talmud also עמּ ץ : to shut the eyes, or press them close), and over their heads a cover was drawn, as over sleepers in the night. Since the time of Koppe and Eichhorn it has become a usual thing to regard את־הנּביאים and החזים as a gloss, and indeed as a false one (compare Isaiah 9:13-14); but the reason assigned - namely, that Isaiah's polemics are directed not against the prophets, but against the stupid staring people - is utterly groundless (compare Isaiah 28:7, and the polemics of his contemporary Micah, e.g., Isaiah 3:5-8). Moreover, the author of a gloss would have been more likely to interpret ראשׁיכם by השּׂרים or הכּהנים (compare Job 9:24). And Isaiah 29:11, Isaiah 29:12 are also opposed to this assumption of a gloss. For by those who understood what was written ( sēpher ), it is evident that the prophets and rulers of the nation are intended; and by those who did not understand it, the great mass of the people. To both of them, “the vision of all,” i.e., of all and everything that God had shown to His true prophets, was by the judgment of God completely sealed. Some of them might have an outward knowledge; but the inward understanding of the revelation was sealed to them. Some had not even this, but stared at the word of the prophet, just as a man who cannot read stares at what is written. The chethib has הסּפר ; the keri ספר , though without any ground, since the article is merely generic. Instead of נא־זה קר א , we should write זה קרא־נא in both cases, as certain codices and old editions do.
This stupefaction was the self-inflicted punishment of the dead works with which the people mocked God and deceived themselves. “The Lord hath spoken: Because this people approaches me with its mouth, and honours me with its lips, and keeps its heart far from me, and its reverence of me has become a commandment learned from men: therefore, behold, I will proceed wondrously with this people, wondrously and marvellously strange; and the wisdom of its wise men is lost, and the understanding of its intelligent men becomes invisible.” Ever since the time of Asaph (Ps 50, cf., Psalms 78:36-37), the lamentation and condemnation of hypocritical ceremonial worship, without living faith or any striving after holiness, had been a leading theme of prophecy. Even in Isaiah's introductory address (chapter 1) this complain was uttered quite in the tone of that of Asaph. In the time of Hezekiah it was peculiarly called for, just as it was afterwards in that of Josiah (as the book of Jeremiah shows). The people had been obliged to consent to the abolition of the public worship of idols, but their worship of Jehovah was hypocrisy. Sometimes it was conscious hypocrisy, arising from the fear of man and favour of man; sometimes unconscious, inasmuch as without any inward conversion, but simply with work-righteousness, the people contented themselves with, and even prided themselves upon, an outward fulfilment of the law (Micah 6:6-8; Micah 3:11). Instead of נגּשׁ (lxx, Vulg., Syr., Matthew 15:8; Mark 7:6), we also meet with the reading נגּשׂ , “because this people harasses itself as with tributary service;” but the antithesis to richaq (lxx πόῤῥω ἀπέχει ) favours the former reading niggash , accedit ; and b e phı̄v (with its moth) must be connected with this, though in opposition to the accents. This self-alienation and self-blinding, Jehovah would punish with a wondrously paradoxical judgment, namely, the judgment of a hardening, which would so completely empty and confuse, that even the appearance of wisdom and unity, which the leaders of Israel still had, would completely disappear. יוסיף (as in Isaiah 38:5) is not the third person fut. hiphil here (so that it could be rendered, according to Isaiah 28:16, “Behold, I am he who;” or more strictly still, “Behold me, who;” which, however, would give a prominence to the subject that would be out of place here), but the part. kal for יוסף . That the language really allowed of such a lengthening of the primary form qatĭl into qatı̄l , and especially in the case of יוסיף , is evident from Ecclesiastes 1:18 (see at Psalms 16:5). In ופלא הפלא , פלא (cf., Lamentations 1:9) alternates with the gerundive (see at Isaiah 22:17): the fifth example in this one address of the emphatic juxtaposition of words having a similar sound and the same derivation (vid., Isaiah 29:1, Isaiah 29:5, Isaiah 29:7, Isaiah 29:9).
Their hypocrisy, which was about to be so wonderfully punished according to the universal law (Psalms 18:26-27), manifested itself in their self-willed and secret behaviour, which would not inquire for Jehovah, nor suffer itself to be chastened by His word. “Woe unto them that hide plans deep from Jehovah, and their doing occurs in a dark place, and they say, Who saw us then, and who knew about us? Oh for your perversity! It is to be regarded as potters' clay; that a work could say to its maker, He has not made me; and an image to its sculptor, He does not understand it!” Just as Ahaz had carefully kept his appeal to Asshur for help secret from the prophet; so did they try, as far as possible, to hide from the prophet the plan for an alliance with Egypt. לסתּיר is a syncopated hiphil for להסתּיר , as in Isaiah 1:12; Isaiah 3:8; Isaiah 23:11. העמיק adds the adverbial notion, according to our mode of expression (comp. Joel 2:20, and the opposite thought in Joel 2:26; Ges. §142). To hide from Jehovah is equivalent to hiding from the prophet of Jehovah, that they might not have to listen to reproof from the word of Jehovah. We may see from Isaiah 8:12 how suspiciously they watched the prophet in such circumstances as these. But Jehovah saw them in their secrecy, and the prophet saw through the whole in the light of Jehovah. הפכּכם is an exclamation, like תּפלצתּ ך in Jeremiah 49:16. They are perverse, or ( 'im ) “is it not so?” They think they can dispense with Jehovah, and yet they are His creatures; they attribute cleverness to themselves, and practically disown Jehovah, as if the pot should say to the potter who has turned it, He does not understand it.
But the prophet's God, whose omniscience, creative glory, and perfect wisdom they so basely mistook and ignored, would very shortly turn the present state of the world upside down, and make Himself a congregation out of the poor and wretched, whilst He would entirely destroy this proud ungodly nation. “Is it not yet a very little, and Lebanon is turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field esteemed as a forest? And in that day the deaf hear scripture words, and the eyes of the blind will see out of obscurity and out of darkness. And the joy of the humble increases in Jehovah, and the poor among men will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. For tyrants are gone, and it is over with scoffers; and all who think evil are rooted out, who condemn a man for a word, and lay snares for him that is free-spoken in the gate, and overthrow the righteous through shameful lies.” The circumstances themselves, as well as the sentence passed, will experience a change, in complete contrast with the present state of things. This is what is affirmed in Isaiah 29:17; probably a proverb transposed into a more literary style. What is now forest becomes ennobled into garden ground; and what is garden ground becomes in general estimation a forest ( לכרמל , ליער , although we should rather expect ל , just as in Isaiah 32:15). These emblems are explained in Isaiah 29:18. The people that are now blind and deaf, so far as the word of Jehovah is concerned, are changed into a people with open ears and seeing eyes. Scripture words, like those which the prophet now holds before the people so unsuccessfully, are heard by those who have been deaf. The unfettered sight of those who have been blind pierces through the hitherto surrounding darkness. The heirs of the new future thus transformed are the anâvı̄m (“meek”) and the 'ebhyōnı̄m (“poor”). אד ם (the antithesis of אנשׁהים , e.g., Isaiah 29:13) heightens the representation of lowliness; the combination is a superlative one, as in הצאן צעירי , Jeremiah 49:20, and הצאן עניי in Zechariah 11:7 (cf., חיות פרי ץ in Isaiah 35:9): needy men who present a glaring contrast to, and stand out from, the general body of men. Such men will obtain ever increasing joy in Jehovah ( yâsaph as in Isaiah 37:31). Such a people of God would take the place of the oppressors (cf., Isaiah 28:12) and scoffers (cf., Isaiah 28:14, Isaiah 28:22), and those who thought evil ( shâqad , invigilare , sedulo agere ), i.e., the wretched planners, who made a חטא of every one who did not enter into their plans (i.e., who called him a c hōtē' ; cf., Deuteronomy 24:4; Ecclesiastes 5:5), and went to law with the man who openly opposed them in the gate (Amos 5:10; y e qōshūn , possibly the perf. kal , cf., Jeremiah 50:24; according to the syntax, however, it is the fut. kal of qūsh = yâqōsh : see at Isaiah 26:16; Ges. §44, Anm. 4), and thrust away the righteous, i.e., forced him away from his just rights (Isaiah 10:2), by tōhū , i.e., accusations and pretences of the utmost worthlessness; for these would all have been swept away. This is the true explanation of the last clause, as given in the Targum, and not “into the desert and desolation,” as Knobel and Luzzatto suppose; for with Isaiah tōhū is the synonym for all such words as signify nothingness, groundlessness, and fraud. The prophet no doubt had in his mind, at the time that he uttered these words, the conduct of the people towards himself and his fellow-prophets, and such as were like-minded with them. The charge brought against him of being a conspirator, or a traitor to his country, was a tōhū of this kind. All these conspirators and persecutors Jehovah would clear entirely away.
Everything that was incorrigible would be given up to destruction; and therefore the people of God, when it came out of the judgment, would have nothing of the same kind to look for again. “Therefore thus saith Jehovah of the house of Jacob, He who redeemed Abraham: Jacob shall not henceforth be ashamed, nor shall his face turn pale any more. For when he, when his children see the work of my hands in the midst of him, they will sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shudder before the God of Israel. And those who were of an erring spirit discern understanding, and murmurers accept instruction.” With אל (for which Luzzatto, following Lowth, reads אל sda , “the God of the house of Jacob”) the theme is introduced to which the following utterance refers. The end of Israel will correspond to the holy root of its origin. Just as Abraham was separated from the human race that was sunk in heathenism, to become the ancestor of a nation of Jehovah, so would a remnant be separated from the great mass of Israel that was sunk in apostasy from Jehovah; and this remnant would be the foundation of a holy community well pleasing to God. And this would never be confounded or become pale with shame again (on bōsh , see at Isaiah 1:29; c hâvar is a poetical Aramaism); for both sins and sinners that called forth the punishments of God, which had put them to shame, would have been swept away (cf., Zephaniah 3:11). In the presence of this decisive work of punishment ( m a‛ăseh as in Isaiah 28:21; Isaiah 10:12; Isaiah 5:12, Isaiah 5:19), which Jehovah would perform in the heart of Israel, Israel itself would undergo a thorough change. ילדיו is in apposition to the subject in בּראתו , “when he, namely his children” (comp. Job 29:3); and the expression “his children” is intentionally chosen instead of “his sons” ( bânı̄m ), to indicate that there would be a new generation, which would become, in the face of the judicial self-manifestation of Jehovah, a holy church, sanctifying Him, the Holy One of Israel. Yaqdı̄shū is continued in v e hiqdı̄shū : the prophet intentionally repeats this most significant word, and he‛ĕrı̄ts is the parallel word to it, as in Isaiah 8:12-13. The new church would indeed not be a sinless one, or thoroughly perfect; but, according to Isaiah 29:24, the previous self-hardening in error would have been exchanged for a willing and living appropriation of right understanding, and the former murmuring resistance to the admonitions of Jehovah would have given place to a joyful and receptive thirst for instruction. There is the same interchange of Jacob and Israel here which we so frequently met with in chapters 40ff. And, in fact, throughout this undisputedly genuine prophecy of Isaiah, we can detect the language of chapters 40-66. Through the whole of the first part, indeed, we may trace the gradual development of the thoughts and forms which predominate there.