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Isaiah 3:10 Say
to the
righteous that
it will go
well with them,
for they will
eat the
fruit of their
actions.
(NASB:
Lockman) |
|
English Translation of
the Greek (Septuagint): Woe
to their soul, for they have devised an evil counsel against
themselves, saying against themselves, Let us bind the just, for he is
burdensome to us: therefore shall they eat the fruits of their works.
Amplified: Say to the righteous that it shall be well with
them, for they shall eat the fruit of their deeds.
(Amplified
Bible - Lockman)
KJV: Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him:
for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
NET: Tell the innocent it will go well with them, for they
will be rewarded for what they have done.
(NET
Bible)
NJB: Say, 'Blessed the upright, for he will feed on the fruit
of his deeds; (NJB)
NLT: But all will be well for those who are godly. Tell them,
"You will receive a wonderful reward!"
(NLT
- Tyndale House)
Young's Literal: Say ye to the righteous, that it is
good, Because the fruit of their doings they eat. |
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Say
to the righteous that
it will go well with them, for they will eat the fruit of their
actions: (Is 26:20,21; Eccl
8:12; Je 15:11;
Ezek 9:4; 18:9-19; Zeph 2:3; Mal 3:18; Ro 2:5, 6, 7,
8, 9, 10, 11) (Eat - Ps 18:23,24; 128:1,2; Gal 6:7,8; He 6:10)
Say - Isaiah is commanded to
speak to the righteous. God remembers His children even in the times
of judgment. Note that he does not promise the righteous will be
immune to suffering during this time but that it will go well.
God is our Refuge
and Defense;
In trouble our unfailing Aid;
Secure in His omnipotence,
What foe can make our souls afraid?
(God
Is Our Refuge and Defense)
The righteous - These are
those Jews who like "father" Abraham, had humbled their hearts and
believed in God's revelation of Messiah (Ge 15:6, Gal 3:8, 16). They
constituted the believing
remnant,
those who were genuinely saved. They were reckoned as righteous
before God not because they kept the Mosaic Law but because they
were saved by grace through faith. This is God's plan for the
redemption of sinners whether in the Old Testament or the New
Testament. The OT saints looked forward to the Cross while NT
believers look back to the Cross. From this brief discussion, it
follows that although Israel was chosen by God to be a people for His
own possession, this choosing did not guarantee salvation to every
individual Israelite. In fact, careful study of the OT reveals that
most of the nation of Israel were not genuinely saved, but trusted in
their own righteousness rather than God's provision of righteousness
in the Messiah. Nevertheless, God preserved a faithful, believing
remnant
throughout the
history of Israel. It is that believing
remnant
which Isaiah is
referring to in this passage.
God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear...
Ps 46:1, 2a
Spurgeon commenting on
Psalm 46:1 writes...
God is our refuge and strength.
Not our armies, or our fortresses. Israel's boast is in Jehovah, the
only living and true God. Others vaunt their impregnable castles,
placed on inaccessible rocks, and secured with gates of iron, but God
is a far better refuge from distress than all these: and when the time
comes to carry the war into the enemy's territories, the Lord stands
His people in better stead than all the valour of legions or the
boasted strength of chariot and horse. Soldiers of the cross, remember
this, and count yourselves safe, and make yourselves strong in God.
Forget not the personal possessive word our; make sure
each one of your portion in God, that you may say, "He is my refuge
and strength." Neither forget the fact that God is our refuge just
now, in the immediate present, as truly as when David penned the word.
God alone is our all in all. All other refuges are refuges of lies,
all other strength is weakness, for power belongeth unto God: but as
God is all sufficient, our defence and might are equal to all
emergencies.
A very present help in trouble,
or in distress he has so been found, he has been tried and proved by
his people. He never withdraws himself from his afflicted. He is their
help, truly, effectually, constantly; he is present or near them,
close at their side and ready for their succour, and this is
emphasized by the word very in our version, he is more present than
friend or relative can be, yea, more nearly present than even the
trouble itself. To all this comfortable truth is added the
consideration that his assistance comes at the needed time. He is not
as the swallows that leave us in the winter; he is a friend in need
and a friend indeed. When it is very dark with us, let brave spirits
say, "Come, let us sing the forty-sixth Psalm." (Listen
to Psalm 46 in Song)
"A fortress firm,
and steadfast rock,
Is God in time of danger;
A shield and sword in every shock,
From foe well known or stranger."
Clarke summarizes the
righteous as...
the person, 1. Who fears God. 2.
Departs from evil (cp Job 1:1). 3. Walks according to the testimony of
God. 4. And expects and prepares for a glorious immortality. (Ed:
I agree with all 4 points which speak primarily to practical
righteousness or righteous behavior. Remember that the only one who
can truly behave righteously is the one who has received righteousness
[who has been declared righteous] from God by grace through faith -
see He 11:2-note).
Martin writes that...
God’s judgment is always fair.
Wicked people often think that sinful living is the way to get ahead
in life. Isaiah noted, however, that it is far better for a person to
live righteously.
(Walvoord,
J. F., Zuck, R. B., et al: The Bible Knowledge Commentary. 1985.
Victor or
Logos)
Solomon writes...
Although a sinner does evil a
hundred times and may lengthen his life, still I know that it will be
well for those who fear God, who fear Him openly. (Eccl 8:12, cp Eccl
3:14, 12:13,14)
This principle of preservation
of the righteous is promised again in Ezekiel in the
time of destruction of Jerusalem by Babylon...
And the LORD said to him, "Go
through the midst of the city, even through the midst of Jerusalem,
and put a mark (Literally = a "taw" = the shape of a cross!) on the
foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations
which are being committed in its midst."
Zephaniah (a contemporary
of Jeremiah prophesying during the reign of Josiah about
625BC)
speaking to Judah wrote...
Seek the LORD, all you humble (the
proud will not seek Him) of the earth who have carried out His
ordinances (obedience); Seek righteousness, seek humility. Perhaps you
will be hidden (concealed) In the day of the LORD'S anger (Babylon's
sacking of Jerusalem in
586BC). (Zeph 2:3)
Righteous (06662)
(tsaddiq) is from a root which emphasizes conformity to an
ethical or moral standard, which is the good and acceptable and
perfect will of God Who the psalmist describes as follows...
The LORD is righteous in all
His ways, and kind in all His deeds. ( Ps 145:17-note)
As Spurgeon says...
Jehovah cannot be unjust or impure.
Let His doings be what they may, they are in every case righteous and
holy. This is the confession of the godly who follow His ways, and of
the gracious who study His works. Whatever God is or does must be
right. In the salvation of His people he is as righteous and holy as
in any other of His ways and works: He has not manifested mercy at the
expense of justice, but the rather He has magnified His righteousness
by the death of His Son.
For Old and New Testament
believers righteousness is all that God is, all that God
commands, all that God demands, all that God approves, & ultimately
all that God provides in Christ.
Tsaddiq is used 11 times
(out of a total of 196v) in Isaiah (Is 3:10; 5:23; 24:16; 26:2, 7;
29:21; 41:26; 45:21; 53:11; 57:1; 60:21)
Well (02895)
(tob) is a verb which describes something that has attractive
or beneficial qualities. It is that which of a favorable character or
tendency (be it economic or material good, abstract good like
pleasant, morally good, etc). Tob describes that which has admirable,
pleasing, superior, or positive qualities and not that which is
negative, bad or mediocre.
I love David's picture of God's
goodness ("tob" - David uses the adjective) chasing
after the righteous...
Surely goodness (tob) and
lovingkindness (mercy) will follow (Hebrew = pursue after
cp the picture in Ge 14:14) me all the days of my life, and I will
dwell in the house of the LORD forever. (Ps 23:6)
Ray Stedman wrote...
Some quaint commentator has said
that those two words goodness and mercy are God's
sheep dogs. This is the Shepherd's Psalm. David wrote it when
he was but a lad, keeping sheep. In referring to the goodness
and mercy of God, he is referring to the sheep dogs that
nip at the heels of the flock and keep them in line, driving them into
place. "Surely Goodness and Mercy shall follow me all the days of my
life," nipping at my heels, humiliating me, turning me back from that
which looks good but is really evil, keeping me from getting what I
think I need, and what I think I want. But in the end we must name
these what God names them -- goodness and mercy!
Charles Haddon Spurgeon
adds...
Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me all the days of my life. This is a fact as indisputable
as it is encouraging, and therefore a heavenly verily, or "surely" is
set as a seal upon it. This sentence may be read, "only goodness and
mercy," for there shall be unmingled mercy in our history. These twin
guardian angels will always be with me at my back and my beck. Just as
when great princes go abroad they must not go unattended, so it is
with the believer. Goodness and mercy follow him always -- all the
days of his life -- the black days as well as the bright days, the
days of fasting as well as the days of feasting, the dreary days of
winter as well as the bright days of summer. Goodness supplies our
needs, and mercy blots out our sins. (Psalm
23:6 - Treasury of David)
Clarke comments on "well"
(good) writing that...
He is a good man, he does
nothing but good, and has a good God to deal with, from
whom he expects nothing but goodness. It shall be
well (good) with such in all circumstances of life. 1. In
prosperity. 2. In adversity. 3. In sickness. 4. In health. 5. In
death. 6. In judgment. And, 7. Through eternity. In every case,
occurrence, and circumstance, he shall eat the fruit of his doings-he
shall derive benefit from being a righteous man, and walking in a
righteous way.
They will eat the fruit of
their actions - This passage in no way teaches that actions
("good" deeds or works, attempts to keep the Law) in any way merit
salvation, which is always wholly by grace through faith (Ep 2:8, 9-note).
Paul is quite clear when he writes...
we maintain that a man is justified
(declared righteous) by faith apart from (choris = a marker of
dissociation = indicates a distinct, definitive separation from) works
of the Law. (Ro 3:28-note)
The fruit of their actions
(Literally = for the fruit of their deeds they will eat) -
The principle of sowing and reaping. See Rev 20:12,13, 22:12, Ps 62:12
Isa 3:10,11 Mt 16:27 Ro 2:5, 6, 7, 8,9, 10,11, 14:12 2Co 5:10 Ga 6:7
1Pe 1:17 Je 17:10.
Isaiah promises...
Behold, the Lord God will come with
might, with His arm ruling for Him. Behold, His reward is with Him and
His recompense before Him. (Is 40:10, cp Re 22:12-note)
Paul gives the most
succinct summary of the sowing/reaping principle first warning us...
Do not be deceived,
(present
imperative
+ negative = stop an action already under way!) God is not
mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one
who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption, but
the one who sows to the Spirit shall from the Spirit reap eternal
life. (Gal 6:7, 8)
Solomon records that...
What the wicked fears will come
upon him, And the desire of the righteous will be granted. 25 When the
whirlwind passes, the wicked is no more, But the righteous has an
everlasting foundation. (Pr 10:24, 25)
Octavius Winslow -
Devotional - 27 February - Isaiah 3:10
In all the spiritual exercises
through which the believer in Jesus passes, it must in truth be well
with him as to his real standing in Christ. You may be walking in
darkness, or in light. You may be mourning in the valley, or rejoicing
on the mount; now conquering, now foiled; now weeping, now rejoicing;
yet it is still well with you as a pardoned, justified, saved sinner.
Nothing can touch your interest in the Savior, or expel you from the
covenant, or change the love of God towards you. There are tides in
the faith and comfort of a child of God, even as there are in the
ocean. The believer has his ebb and flow, his fluctuations of
spiritual feeling. It is often low tide with his soul. The waves of
spiritual joy and peace ebb, and all looks barren and cheerless. And
now he begins to question the reality of all his former experience,
and the sincerity of all his past professions. He abjures his
adoption, doubts his interest in Christ, puts from him the promises,
appropriates the judgments, keeps back from the ordinances, and his
soul refuses to be comforted. But beloved saint of God - is there no
flow, as well as ebb, in the spiritual joy and comfort of the
believer? Is there no return of the tide of faith and consolation and
hope, in the Christian's experience-the wave of love's infinite ocean,
of the soul's perfect peace, of glory's anticipated joy, rolling back
again upon the shore, in sweet heavenly cadence? Oh yes! Listen to the
Divine assurances of this: "I have loved you with an everlasting
love." "I have chosen you, and not cast you away." "I will never leave
you, nor forsake you." "I have prayed for you, that your faith frill
not." "I will restore comforts unto you." "I will not leave you
comfortless." You have a little strength." "Therefore will the Lord
wait that he may be gracious unto you." "He will be very gracious unto
you at the voice of your cry: when he shall hear it, he will answer
you." "He restores my soul." All these exceeding great and precious
promises, beloved, are yours. They are your Father's epistles of love,
and He bids you read, believe, and enjoy them.
Oh, it is, it must be, well with those whose sins are forgiven through
Christ, whose people are accepted in the Beloved, whose God is the
Lord, and upon whom His eye of love and delight rests from the
beginning of the year to the end of the year. Say not it is ill with
your soul, and not well, because the Holy Spirit is inserting the
plough more deeply into your heart, thus discovering more of its
hidden evil, detecting the lurking sin where its existence was not
suspected, and discovering the flaw and the failure in the action, the
principle, the motive, the end, which the fair surface, self-flattery,
or specious reasoning had concealed. Oh say not that it is ill with
your soul, and not well, because Jesus does not speak, God does not
smile, and prayer is not answered. "For a small moment," says God,
"have I hid myself from you; but with great mercies will I gather
you." In the dreary, lonely, trying path you now tread, trace you not
the footsteps of the flock, and, yet more distinct and blessed than
all, the footprints of the Shepherd of the flock? Do not be, then,
cast down. The Lord will bring you through this night of weeping into
a morning of joy. And your knowledge will be the deeper, and your
faith the stronger, and your joy the fuller, and your hope the
brighter, and your song the sweeter and the louder, for all the
painful exercises through which your soul has passed, and with deeper
emphasis you shall exclaim, "It is well." |
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Isaiah 3:11 Woe
to the
wicked! It will
go
badly with him,
for
what
* he
deserves
* will be
done to
him. (NASB:
Lockman)
(NASB:
Lockman) |
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English Translation of
the Greek (Septuagint):
Woe to the transgressor! evils shall happen to him according to the
works of his hands.
Amplified: Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with them,
for what their hands have done shall be done to them.
(Amplified
Bible - Lockman)
KJV: Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the
reward of his hands shall be given him.
NET: Too bad for the wicked sinners! For they will get exactly
what they deserve.
(NET
Bible)
NJB: woe to the wicked, it will go ill with him, for he will be
treated as his actions deserve.' (NJB)
NLT: But say to the wicked, "Your destruction is sure.
You, too, will get what you deserve. Your well-earned punishment is on
the way."
(NLT
- Tyndale House)
Young's Literal: Woe to the wicked -- evil, Because the
deed of his hand is done to him. |
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Woe to the wicked! It will
go badly with him, for what * he deserves * will be done to him : (Woe
- Is 48:22; 57:20,21; 65:13, 14, 15,20; Ps 1:3, 4, 5; 11:5,6;
Eccl 8:13) (Deserves - Ps 28:4; 62:12; Pr 1:31; 2Co 5:10; Jas 2:13) (Done Ps 120:3,4)
Constable comments that...
Sin does bring its own wages (Ro
6:23). Here the long term blessing of the righteous contrasts with the
short term blasting of the unrighteous. There were these two groups
among God’s chosen people then as there are now. The faithful
frequently suffer along with the unfaithful, but their ultimate ends
are very different (cf. Rev. 2:10,11). (Isaiah 3 - Expository Notes)
Woe (0188)('owy/'oy)
is an impassioned onomatopoetic (word whose sound suggest the sense or
meaning) interjection (act of uttering an exclamation) used to express
grief, despair, regret, distress, sorrow, pain, discomfort, or
unhappiness. Woe is a distinctive form of prophetic speech,
found both in the OT and in the NT {46x in 35v in the NT - Mt 11:21;
18:7; 23:13, 15, 16, 23, 25, 27, 29; 24:19; 26:24; Mk 13:17; 14:21; Lk
6:24, 25 (twice), Lk 6:26; 10:13 (twice); Lk 11:42, 43, 44, 46, 37,
52; 17:1; 21:23; 22:22; 1Co. 9:16; Jude 1:11; Re 8:13 (3x); Re 9:12
(2x); Re11:14(2x); Re 12:12; 18:10(2x), Re 18:16(2x), Re 18:19(2x)}
'Owy/'oy - 22v in the OT
- Nu 21:29; 24:23; 1Sa 4:7, 8; Is 3:9, 11; 6:5; 24:16; Je 4:13,
31; 6:4; 10:19; 13:27; 15:10; 45:3; 48:46; La 5:16; Ezek 16:23; 24:6,
9; Ho 7:13; 9:12 is translated "Woe" 19 times and "Alas" 2 times. The
Lxx translates the Hebrew with the interjection ouai which expresses
extreme displeasure, much like the Hebrew equivalent.
Wicked
(07583)
(rasha') is the opposite of the righteous (Is 3:10) and
identifies one who is guilty of a crime and deserving of punishment.
In context the wicked are guilty of hostility toward God.
The
Septuagint
translates rasha' with
anomos which means without law and so behaving contrary to the law,
which is to be wicked or godless.
Clarke writes this is...
the man who is, 1. Evil in his
heart. 2. Evil in his purposes. 3. Evil in his life. As he is wicked,
he does that which is wicked; and is influenced by the wicked one, of
whom he is the servant and the son...Of him you can speak no good; and
to him you can speak no good-all is evil, in him—before him—after
him—round about him—above him—below him. Evil in time—evil through
eternity!
Psalm 1 contrasts the blessed
way of the godly/righteous (cp Ps 1:1-note,
Ps 1:2-note,
Ps 1:3-note)
with that of the ungodly/wicked...
Psalm 1:4 The wicked are not
so, but they are like chaff (the light, worthless husks that surrounds
the valuable grain) which the wind drives away. 5 Therefore the
wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the
assembly of the righteous. 6 For the LORD knows the way of the
righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish. (Ps 1:4, 5, 6-note)
Badly (07451)
(ra) is an adjective which means bad, evil, wicked. It
describes the one with inability to come up to good standards (and is
the opposite of good).
The
Septuagint
translates ra with
poneros which means harmful, toilsome, painful, grievous.
For what he deserves will be
done to him - Literally “for the work of his hands will be done to
him.”
Clarke adds...
He shall be paid that for which he
has laboured, and his reward shall be in proportion to his work. O,
what a lot is that of the wicked! Cursed in time, and accursed through
eternity!
Paul exhorts us...
Do not be deceived,
God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.
For the one who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap
corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit shall from the Spirit
reap eternal life. (Gal 6:7, 8)
“Sow a thought, reap an action.
Sow an action, reap a habit.
Sow a habit, reap a character.
Sow a character, reap a destiny.”
Eccl 8:13 But it will not be well
for the evil man and he will not lengthen his days like a
shadow, because he does not fear God.
Isaiah 48:22 "There is no peace for
the wicked," says the LORD.
Isaiah 57:20 But the wicked
are like the tossing sea, For it cannot be quiet, And its waters toss
up refuse and mud. 21 "There is no peace," says my God, "for the
wicked."
Psalm 11:5 The LORD tests the
righteous and the wicked, and the one who loves violence
His soul hates. 6 Upon the wicked He will rain snares; Fire and
brimstone and burning wind will be the portion of their cup.
Spurgeon comments: The Lord
trieth the righteous: he doth not hate them, but only tries them. They
are precious to him, and therefore he refines them with afflictions.
None of the Lord's children may hope to escape from trial, nor,
indeed, in our right minds, would any of us desire to do so, for trial
is the channel of many blessings.
"It is my happiness below
Not to live without the cross;
But the Saviour's power to know,
Sanctifying every loss."
"Trials make the promise sweet;
Trials give new life to prayer;
Trials bring me to his feet --
Lay me low, and keep me there."
"Did I meet no trials here --
No chastisement by the way --
Might I not, with reason,
fear I should prove a cast away?"
"Bastards may escape the rod,
Sunk in earthly vain delight;
But the true born child of God
Must not -- would not, if he might."
William Cowper.
Is not this a very cogent reason
why we should not distrustfully endeavour to shun a trial? -- for in
so doing we are seeking to avoid a blessing.
But the wicked and him that
loveth violence his soul hateth: why, then, shall I flee from
these wicked men? If God hateth them, I will not fear them. Haman was
very great in the palace until he lost favour, but when the king
abhorred him, how bold were the meanest attendants to suggest the
gallows for the man at whom they had often trembled! Look at the black
mark upon the faces of our persecutors, and we shall not run away from
them. If God is in the quarrel as well as ourselves, it would be
foolish to question the result, or avoid the conflict.
Sodom and Gomorrah perished by a
fiery hail, and by a brimstone shower from heaven; so shall all the
ungodly. They may gather together like Gog and Magog to battle, but
the Lord will rain upon them "an overflowing rain, and great
hailstones, fire, and brimstone:" Ezekiel 38:22. Some expositors think
that in the term "horrible tempest," there is in the Hebrew an
allusion to that burning, suffocating wind, which blows across the
Arabian deserts, and is known by the name of Simoom. "A burning
storm," Lowth calls it, while another great commentator reads it
"wrath wind;" in either version the language is full of terrors. What
a tempest will that be which shall overwhelm the despisers of God! Oh!
what a shower will that be which shall pour out itself for ever upon
the defenceless heads of impenitent sinners in hell! Repent, ye
rebels, or this fiery deluge shall soon surround you. Hell's horrors
shall be your inheritance, your entailed estate, the portion of your
cup. The dregs of that cup you shall wring out, and drink for ever. A
drop of hell is terrible, but what must a full cup of torment be?
Think of it -- a cup of misery, but
not a drop of mercy. O people of God, how foolish is it to fear the
faces of men who shall soon be faggots in the fire of hell! Think of
their end, their fearful end, and all fear of them must be changed
into contempt of their threatenings, and pity for their miserable
estate.
Motyer writes that...
The tragedy of sin is that it ruins
the life of the sinner; the danger of sin is that it excites the wrath
of God. (Motyer, J. A. The Prophecy of Isaiah. Downers Grove,
Ill.: InterVarsity Press)
ILLUSTRATION of REAPING:
The Emperor Charlemagne wanted to have a magnificent bell cast for the
church he had built. An artist named Tancho was employed by the church
to make it. He was furnished, at his own request, with a great
quantity of copper, and a hundred pounds of silver for the purpose. He
kept the silver for his own personal use, however, and substituted in
its place a quantity of highly purified tin. When the work was
completed, he presented the bell to the Emperor, who had it suspended
in the church tower. The people, however, were unable to ring it. So
Tancho himself was called in to help. But he pulled so hard that its
tongue fell down and killed him. Woe! |
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Isaiah 3:12 O
My
people! Their
oppressors are
children, and
women
rule over them.
O My
people! Those
who
guide you
lead you
astray and
confuse the
direction of
your
paths.
(NASB:
Lockman)
(NASB:
Lockman) |
|
English Translation of
the Greek (Septuagint):
O my people, your exactors strip you, and extortioners rule over you:
O my people, they that pronounce you blesses lead you astray, and
pervert the path of your feet.
Amplified: As for My people, children are their
oppressors, and women rule over them. O My people, your leaders cause
you to err, and they confuse (destroy and swallow up) the course of
your paths.
(Amplified
Bible - Lockman)
KJV: As for my people, children are their oppressors, and
women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to
err, and destroy the way of thy paths.
NET: Oppressors treat my people cruelly; creditors rule
over them. My people's leaders mislead them; they give you confusing
directions.
(NET
Bible)
NJB: O my people, their oppressors pillage them and
extortioners rule over them! O my people, your rulers mislead you and
efface the paths you ought to follow! (NJB)
NLT: Children oppress my people, and women rule over
them. O my people, can't you see what fools your rulers are? They are
leading you down a pretty garden path to destruction.
(NLT
- Tyndale House)
Young's Literal: My people -- its exactors are
sucklings, And women have ruled over it. My people -- thy eulogists
are causing to err, And the way of thy paths swallowed up. |
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O My people! Their
oppressors are children, and women rule over them. O My people! Those
who guide you lead you astray and confuse the direction of your paths: (children
- Is 3:4; 2Ki 11:1; Nah 3:13) (Guide - Is 9:15; Nu 6:23, 24,
25, 26, 27; Je 5:31; Mt 15:14) (Mt 23:14)
O My people...O My people -
This repetition emphasizes a deep lament and pain for Judah and
Jerusalem. Either God or Isaiah is speaking but given that Isaiah is
God's messenger, this message is addressed to God's people regardless
of who is making the declaration.
Oppressors (05065)(nagas)
means to be pressed or harassed, to be a taskmaster. The root
conveys the sense of exertion of demanding oppressive pressure for
payment or labor. Although nagas is a verb, the participle is used to
describe a taskmaster or slave driver. For example in Ex 3:7 the
taskmasters caused affliction of God's people, but in the present
context the affliction is not from the Egyptians, but from one Jew to
another illustrative of the total breakdown of society in Judah and
Jerusalem.
Delitzsch comments that
nagas
signifies to treat as tyrant or
taskmaster. The meanest selfishness then stifles all nobler motives;
one becomes a tyrant over another, and rude insolence takes the place
of reverence, which, by the law of nature, as well as the Torah (Lv
19:32) and custom, is due to the aged and superiors from boys and
those in the humbler ranks...When there is disregard of the
distinctions due to age and rank, the State in a short time becomes a
wild and waste scene of confusion. (Isaiah 3 Commentary on the Prophecies of Isaiah)
Nagas - 23v in the OT -
Ex 3:7; 5:6, 10, 13, 14; Dt 15:2f; 1Sa 13:6; 14:24; 2Ki. 23:35;
Job 3:18; 39:7; Is 3:5, 12; 9:4; 14:2, 4; 53:7; 58:3; 60:17; Da 11:20;
Zec 9:8; 10:4.
Rule (04910)
(mashal) means to have dominion, reign over, be in charge,
exercise authority over another.
The translates mashal
with kurieuo (present
tense =
continuous action) which means to be lord of, to exercise control
over, to be master of or to dominate.
Mashal - 73x in OT - Gen.
1:18; 3:16; 4:7; 24:2; 37:8; 45:8, 26; Exod. 21:8; Deut. 15:6; Jos.
12:2, 5; Jdg. 8:22f; 9:2; 14:4; 15:11; 2 Sam. 23:3; 1 Ki. 4:21; 1 Chr.
29:12; 2 Chr. 7:18; 9:26; 20:6; 23:20; Neh. 9:37; Job 25:2; Ps. 8:6;
19:13; 22:28; 59:13; 66:7; 89:9; 103:19; 105:20f; 106:41; Prov. 6:7;
12:24; 16:32; 17:2; 19:10; 22:7; 23:1; 28:15; 29:2, 12, 26; Eccl.
9:17; 10:4; Isa. 3:4, 12; 14:5; 16:1; 19:4; 28:14; 40:10; 49:7;
52:5; 63:19; Jer. 22:30; 30:21; 33:26; 51:46; Lam. 5:8; Ezek.
19:11, 14; Dan. 11:3ff, 39, 43; Mic. 5:2; Hab. 1:14; Zech. 6:13 and is
rendered in the NAS as dominion(1), gain control(1), govern(1), had
charge(1), have authority(1), master(1), obtain dominion(1), really
rule(1), rule(27), ruled(5), ruler(18), ruler's(2), rulers(6),
rules(9), ruling(3), wielded(1).
Children and women -
These groups who would generally be considered the least suited to
rule would in fact rule.
Women rule over them - In
Isaiah 3:6,7 we see that no one wanted to hold office (be ruler), so
here we see women and children rule which would have been especially
humiliating in Judah’s male-dominated society! Some commentators (Ed
Young, John MacArthur) do not take this literally but rather as a
figurative description of the rulers who were as weak as women. Others
think this may refer to wives (or mistresses) influencing the
leadership of their husbands. The interpretation of this phrase is
difficult and not conclusive.
Nahum does use women in a
figurative description of the people...
Behold, your people are women in
your midst! The gates of your land are opened wide to your enemies;
Fire consumes your gate bars. (Nah 3:13)
There are references in the
OT which indicate women did exert considerable impact on the
nation...
When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah
saw that her son was dead, she rose and destroyed all the royal
offspring. (2Ki 11:1)
Those who guide you lead you
astray - This text finds a parallel in Psalm 1:1 which says...
How blessed is the man who does not
walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! (Ps 1:1-note)
Jeremiah describes false
prophets...
The prophets prophesy falsely, and
the priests rule on their own authority; and My people love it so! But
what will you do at the end of it? (Je 5:31)
Guide (0833)(asar)
means to lead or to set right, the exact opposite of what their
leaders accomplished.
Asar - 15v in the OT -
Gen. 30:13; Job 29:11; Ps. 41:2; 72:17; Prov. 3:18; 4:14; 9:6; 23:19;
31:28; Cant. 6:9; Isa. 1:17; 3:12; 9:16; Mal. 3:12, 15. The NAS
renders asar as bless(1), call blessed(3), called blessed(3),
direct(1), guide(2), guided(1), happy(2), proceed(2), reprove(1). |
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