Isaiah 17
17
A Prophecy about Damascus
1This is God’s message for Damascus:
“Behold, Damascus is gone!
It is no longer a city, only a heap of rubble.
2Her ruins # 17:2 Or “The towns of Aroer.” Aroer means “ruins.” will be abandoned—
left for flocks to lie down in with nothing to fear.
3Damascus will lose the power of her fortress,
and the strongholds of the northern kingdom # 17:3 Or “Ephraim.” will disappear.
The remnant of Syria # 17:3 Or “Aram.” will be like Israel—stripped of its glory,”
says the Lord Yahweh, Commander of Angel Armies.
4“On that day, the beautiful splendor of Jacob’s northern tribes
will be brought low, and they will become like skin and bones.
5It will be as when a farmer harvests the standing grain
and gathers armloads of grain,
and as one gathers ears of grain in the Valley of Giants. # 17:5 Or “mighty men” (Hb. rephaim). Jesus’ life within us will soon reap a harvest of glory (see James 3:18). Armloads (sons and daughters of power) of grain (spiritual harvest) will be seen in coming days through mighty men and women.
6Yet some gleanings will remain,
as when an olive tree is shaken, # 17:6 Olives were harvested by shaking (Hb. “beating”) the tree. See Heb. 12:26.
leaving two or three olives in the highest branches # 17:6 The Torah required farmers to leave some fruit behind for the poor and the stranger to glean. See Lev. 19:9–10. “Two or three” are sufficient for any need when they gather in agreement with Jesus. See Matt. 18:19–20. The uppermost branches point us to our heavenly life in the heavenly realm, our glorious resurrection life (see Col. 3:1–5).
and four or five on its fruitful branches,” # 17:6 Or “on her boughs, the many-branched one.” This points to the fruitful branches of Christ as he branches out through us and brings his fruit to the earth through yielded believers. See John 15:1–8. God appoints some to the “four or five” grace ministries appointed to “nurture and prepare all the holy believers” (see Eph. 4:11–12).
declares Lord Yahweh, the God of Israel.
7In that day, people will gaze toward their Creator, # 17:7 Or “At that time, the Adam will look toward the Creator.” See James 1:22–25.
and their eyes will look in faith toward the Holy One of Israel.
8They will not be infatuated with the religious altars
their own hands crafted,
nor by what their own fingers have made, # 17:8 See Acts 17:18–34.
nor with their sacred groves # 17:8 Or “poles” or “goddesses” (Hb. asherim). Asherim (plural) had a specific pagan context with the Canaanite religions stretching back into Israel’s history. See Ex. 34:13–14. or altars of incense.
9On that day their bustling cities will become deserted
like those conquered by the Israelites—
abandoned to thickets and undergrowth,
it will all become desolate.
10For you have ignored and forgotten the God who saves you
and have not remembered your Rock of Safety. # 17:10 See Deut. 32:15.
So what do you do?
You cultivate your beautiful gardens and plant imported vines.
11Even if on the day you plant them they begin to grow,
and even if immediately you see them bud,
your harvest will wither away in a day of grief and agony.
The Uproar of the Nations
12Ah, the thunder of many people joining together! # 17:12 That is, the armies of Assyria. See Ps. 2:1–3.
They roar like the roar of the sea.
Woe to the uproar of the many nations!
They thunder like the crashing of ocean waves.
13The nations are roaring like the roar of a massive waterfall,
but when God rebukes them they disperse
like chaff on the mountains,
like a tumbleweed whirling in the wind.
14In the evening—behold, sudden terror!
Before the morning comes, they vanish!
Such is the fate of those who plunder and try to rob us. # 17:14 See John 10:10.
Currently Selected:
Isaiah 17: TPT
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
The Passion Translation® is a registered trademark of Passion & Fire Ministries, Inc.
Copyright © 2020 Passion & Fire Ministries, Inc.
Learn More About The Passion TranslationIsaiah 17
17
The Lord Will Judge Damascus
1 Here is a message about Damascus:
“Look, Damascus is no longer a city,
it is a heap of ruins!
2 The cities of Aroer are abandoned.#tn Three cities are known by this name in the OT: (1) an Aroer located near the Arnon, (2) an Aroer in Ammon, and (3) an Aroer of Judah. (See BDB 792-93 s.v. עֲרֹעֵר, and HALOT 883 s.v. II עֲרוֹעֵר.) There is no mention of an Aroer in Syrian territory. For this reason some want to emend the text here to עֲזֻבוֹת עָרַיהָ עֲדֵי עַד (’azuvot ’arayha ’adey ’ad, “her cities are permanently abandoned”). However, Aroer near the Arnon was taken by Israel and later conquered by the Syrians. (See Josh 12:2; 13:9, 16; Judg 11:26; 2 Kgs 10:33). This oracle pertains to Israel as well as Syria (note v. 3), so it is possible that this is a reference to Israelite and/or Syrian losses in Transjordan.
They will be used for herds,
which will lie down there in peace.#tn Heb “and they lie down and there is no one scaring [them].”
3 Fortified cities will disappear from Ephraim,
and Damascus will lose its kingdom.#tn Heb “and kingship from Damascus”; cf. NASB “And sovereignty from Damascus.”
The survivors in Syria
will end up like the splendor of the Israelites,”
says the Lord who commands armies.
4 “At that time#tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
Jacob’s splendor will be greatly diminished,#tn Heb “will be tiny.”
and he will become skin and bones.#tn Heb “and the fatness of his flesh will be made lean.”
5 It will be as when one gathers the grain harvest,
and his hand gleans the ear of grain.
It will be like one gathering the ears of grain
in the Valley of Rephaim.
6 There will be some left behind,
like when an olive tree is beaten –
two or three ripe olives remain toward the very top,
four or five on its fruitful branches,”
says the Lord God of Israel.
7 At that time#tn Heb “in that day” (so ASV, NASB, NIV); KJV “At that day.” men will trust in their creator;#tn Heb “man will gaze toward his maker.”
they will depend on#tn Heb “his eyes will look toward.” the Holy One of Israel.#sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
8 They will no longer trust in#tn Heb “he will not gaze toward.” the altars their hands made,
or depend on the Asherah poles and incense altars their fingers made.#tn Heb “and that which his fingers made he will not see, the Asherah poles and the incense altars.”
9 At that time#tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV). their fortified cities will be
like the abandoned summits of the Amorites,#tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “like the abandonment of the wooded height and the top one.” The following relative clause appears to allude back to the Israelite conquest of the land, so it seems preferable to emend הַחֹרֶשׁ וְהָאָמִיר (hakhoresh vÿha’amir, “the wooded height and the top one”) to חֹרֵשֵׁי הָאֱמֹרִי (khoreshe ha’emori, “[like the abandonment] of the wooded heights of the Amorites”).
which they abandoned because of the Israelites;
there will be desolation.
10 For you ignore#tn Heb “you have forgotten” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV). the God who rescues you;
you pay no attention to your strong protector.#tn Heb “and the rocky cliff of your strength you do not remember.”
So this is what happens:
You cultivate beautiful plants
and plant exotic vines.#tn Heb “a vine, a strange one.” The substantival adjective זָר (zar) functions here as an appositional genitive. It could refer to a cultic plant of some type, associated with a pagan rite. But it is more likely that it refers to an exotic, or imported, type of vine, one that is foreign (i.e., “strange”) to Israel.
11 The day you begin cultivating, you do what you can to make it grow;#tn Heb “in the day of your planting you [?].” The precise meaning of the verb תְּשַׂגְשֵׂגִי (tÿsagsegi) is unclear. It is sometimes derived from שׂוּג/סוּג (sug, “to fence in”; see BDB 691 s.v. II סוּג). In this case one could translate “you build a protective fence.” However, the parallelism is tighter if one derives the form from שָׂגָא/שָׂגָה (saga’/sagah, “to grow”); see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:351, n. 4. For this verb, see BDB 960 s.v. שָׂגָא.
the morning you begin planting, you do what you can to make it sprout.
Yet the harvest will disappear#tc The Hebrew text has, “a heap of harvest.” However, better sense is achieved if נֵד (ned, “heap”) is emended to a verb. Options include נַד (nad, Qal perfect third masculine singular from נָדַד [nadad, “flee, depart”]), נָדַד (Qal perfect third masculine singular from נָדַד), נֹדֵד (noded, Qal active participle from נָדַד), and נָד (nad, Qal perfect third masculine singular, or participle masculine singular, from נוּד [nud, “wander, flutter”]). See BDB 626 s.v. נוּד and HALOT 672 s.v. I נדד. One could translate literally: “[the harvest] departs,” or “[the harvest] flies away.” in the day of disease
and incurable pain.
12 The many nations massing together are as good as dead,#tn Heb “Woe [to] the massing of the many nations.” The word הוֹי (hoy) could be translated as a simple interjection here (“ah!”), but since the following verses announce the demise of these nations, it is preferable to take הוֹי as a funeral cry. See the note on the first phrase of 1:4.
those who make a commotion as loud as the roaring of the sea’s waves.#tn Heb “like the loud noise of the seas, they make a loud noise.”
The people making such an uproar are as good as dead,#tn Heb “the uproar of the peoples.” The term הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) does double duty in the parallel structure of the verse; the words “are as good as dead” are supplied in the translation to reflect this.
those who make an uproar as loud as the roaring of powerful waves.#tn Heb “like the uproar of mighty waters they are in an uproar.”
13 Though these people make an uproar as loud as the roaring of powerful waves,#tn Heb “the peoples are in an uproar like the uproar of mighty waters.”
when he shouts at#tn Or “rebukes.” The verb and related noun are used in theophanies of God’s battle cry which terrifies his enemies. See, for example, Pss 18:15; 76:7; 106:9; Isa 50:2; Nah 1:4, and A. Caquot, TDOT 3:49-53. them, they will flee to a distant land,
driven before the wind like dead weeds on the hills,
or like dead thistles#tn Or perhaps “tumbleweed” (NAB, NIV, CEV); KJV “like a rolling thing.” before a strong gale.
14 In the evening there is sudden terror;#tn Heb “at the time of evening, look, sudden terror.”
by morning they vanish.#tn Heb “before morning he is not.”
This is the fate of those who try to plunder us,
the destiny of those who try to loot us!#tn Heb “this is the portion of those who plunder us, and the lot of those who loot us.”
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
1996 - 2007 by Biblical Studies Press, LLC