Isa 3:1 See now, the Lord, the LORD Almighty, is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water,
Isa 3:2 the hero and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder,
Isa 3:3 the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter.
Isa 3:4 “I will make mere youths their officials; children will rule over them.”
Isa 3:5 People will oppress each other— man against man, neighbour against neighbour. The young will rise up against the old, the nobody against the honoured.
Isa 3:6 A man will seize one of his brothers in his father’s house, and say, “You have a cloak, you be our leader; take charge of this heap of ruins!”
Isa 3:7 But in that day he will cry out, “I have no remedy. I have no food or clothing in my house; do not make me the leader of the people.”
Isa 3:8 Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence.
Isa 3:9 The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves.
Isa 3:10 Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.
Isa 3:11 Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them! They will be paid back for what their hands have done.
Isa 3:12 Youths oppress my people, women rule over them. My people, your guides lead you astray; they turn you from the path.
Isa 3:13 The LORD takes his place in court; he rises to judge the people.
Isa 3:14 The LORD enters into judgment against the elders and leaders of his people: “It is you who have ruined my vineyard; the plunder from the poor is in your houses.
Isa 3:15 What do you mean by crushing my people and grinding the faces of the poor?” declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty.
Isa 3:16 The LORD says, “The women of Zion are haughty, walking along with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, strutting along with swaying hips, with ornaments jingling on their ankles.
Isa 3:17 Therefore the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the women of Zion; the LORD will make their scalps bald.”
Isa 3:18 In that day the Lord will snatch away their finery: the bangles and headbands and crescent necklaces,
Isa 3:19 the earrings and bracelets and veils,
Isa 3:20 the headdresses and anklets and sashes, the perfume bottles and charms,
Isa 3:21 the signet rings and nose rings,
Isa 3:22 the fine robes and the capes and cloaks, the purses
Isa 3:23 and mirrors, and the linen garments and tiaras and shawls.
Isa 3:24 Instead of fragrance there will be a stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of well-dressed hair, baldness; instead of fine clothing, sackcloth; instead of beauty, branding.
Isa 3:25 Your men will fall by the sword, your warriors in battle.
Isa 3:26 The gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground.
HIGHLIGHTS OF CHAPTER 3
1 The great confusion which comes by sin. 9 The audacity of the people. 12 The oppression and covetousness of the rulers. 16 The judgments which shall be for the pride of the women.
Isa 3:1 See now, the Lord, the LORD Almighty, is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water,
From Jerusalem and from Judah. Jerusalem and Judah represent the professed people of God, who, in Isaiah’s time, had gone far from God and yet made a loud but vain profession of religion. A similar situation prevails in the world today, and the same message is needed in these last days for a people who worship God with their lips but whose hearts are far from Him. See on Matt. 15:7–9.
Supply and support. The Lord is about to remove from Judah the two chief supports of life, bread and water. See Lev. 26:26; Ps. 105:16; Eze. 4:16; 5:16; 14:13, where the expression “staff of bread” is used. Undoubtedly Isaiah here refers to literal famine, but the context seems to apply the figures of literal famine to a dearth of able leaders.
The nation would suffer from a lack of leadership as the body does from lack of food. When statesmen were removed, the responsibilities of government rested upon the shoulders of weaklings. The inevitable result was national decline (see vs. 2–5).
Isa 3:2 the hero and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder,
The judge, and the prophet.
Verses 2 and 3 list the various classes of men who were the mainstay of the nation. Without such leaders no state can long endure. But men like these would be removed from Judah, with the result that national weakness and disruption would follow.
The Lord does not say that He will deliberately remove such men from the land, but simply calls attention to the working of the law of cause and effect. He allowed Israel to have leaders after their own heart, who would rule as the people wanted to be ruled.
Isa 3:3 the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counsellor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter.
This verse continues the list of able leaders to be removed from Judah—army officers, men occupying positions in the civil service, all needed to make a nation strong and prosperous. It was men of this type who were taken to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar (see 2 Kings 24:14; cf. Jer. 24:1; Dan. 1:3, 4).
Isa 3:4 “I will make mere youths their officials; children will rule over them.”
The leadership in national affairs would fall into the hands of men with the brains of children. Men lacking in ability would be chosen to govern the nation. There would be a grave lack of capable leaders, and as a result affairs would go from bad to worse. “Children”—capricious individuals, men lacking clarity of thought and judiciousness of action—would make the decisions and control the destiny of the state. Under such conditions national doom would be swift and certain.
Isa 3:5 People will oppress each other— man against man, neighbour against neighbour. The young will rise up against the old, the nobody against the honoured.
People will oppress.
Nations with wise and capable rulers do not suffer from injustice and oppression. A determined effort on the part of a nation’s leaders to promote equality and justice will prevent abuses that result in the ruin of civilization.
When citizens of a nation are constantly oppressed by their neighbours their confidence and prosperity languish. Where there is injustice and deceit, violence and oppression, a nation is on the downward path, and a day of reckoning is certain to come. This has been true in all the ages; it was true of Judah in the day of Isaiah, and it is fully as true today. Corruption paves the way for chaos and ruin.
Those young in years and experience would disdain the counsel of their elders. As set forth in the Decalogue, man’s first duty to his fellow men is to honour his parents (Ex. 20:12; cf. Lev. 19:32). The perils foretold of the last days include those of children “disobedient to parents,” and men “heady, highminded,” and “despisers of those that are good” (2 Tim. 3:1–4).
Isa 3:6 A man will seize one of his brothers in his father’s house, and say, “You have a cloak, you be our leader; take charge of this heap of ruins!”
Attempts would be made to thrust leadership upon men with property, ignoring the fact that the possession of material advantages is not necessarily evidence of ability to govern.
Heap ruins. By “this ruin” the speaker refers to the nation as if it were a dilapidated dwelling. Times would be far from prosperous.
Isa 3:7 But in that day he will cry out, “I have no remedy. I have no food or clothing in my house; do not make me the leader of the people.”
Do not make me the leader. This is the reply of the brother who had been urged to become ruler over the “ruin” (v. 6). The appeal is refused, and the position of “healer” goes unfilled. Not for him is the task of binding up other men’s wounds. If there is a work of restoration to be done, let another undertake the responsibility. Whether or not he possessed the qualifications, he would refuse the responsibility of leadership.
Isa 3:8 Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence.
Jerusalem staggers.
By the time of Sennacherib’s invasions, the kingdom of Judah had been largely reduced to ruins. King Hezekiah had been forced to submit to a burdensome levy imposed by the Assyrian king (see on ch. 2:7). Though Sennacherib failed in entering Jerusalem, the rest of the nation had fallen into his hands.
Their words and deeds. Isaiah here sets forth the reason for the humiliation that had befallen the nation and the complete ruin that was certain to follow—the people had forsaken the Lord, and as a result He could no longer bless and protect them. In both word and deed the professed people of God were in rebellion against Him.
To provoke the eyes of his glory. Literally, “to rebel before the eyes of his glory,” that is, “in his very presence” (see v. 9). God is long-suffering and kind and hesitates long before inflicting judgment upon the guilty. But the time of reckoning, though long delayed, will surely come.
Isa 3:9 The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves.
Literally, “their regard for faces,” meaning “their partiality” (see Acts 10:34). Right or wrong was without meaning for these evil men; they did as they pleased. Justice did not count, only expediency. Their attitude and their deeds bore witness against them in the sight of Heaven.
Their sin as Sodom. The men of Sodom were open sinners. The city was notorious for its wickedness, and the people took delight in their reputation for evil. There was no pretence of right action—nothing but blatant iniquity openly flaunted before the world.
This class of sinners was in open rebellion against God and made no attempt to hide the fact. At this stage, vice no longer paid homage to virtue by making a pretence of goodness. There was an open display of vice and iniquity, an utter shamelessness in the doing of wrong. The cities of Israel were like the cities of the plain in their profligacy, and were ripe for destruction.
Sin sows the seeds of its own destruction. A sinner’s wickedness calls for a cup of bitterness and evil that will burn his soul and destroy his being. All who do wrong reward themselves with evil, not good.
Isa 3:10 Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.
Every man reaps that which he himself has sown. The righteous sows good seed, which will bring forth a harvest of good. The great lesson men need to learn is that whatsoever they sow they will also reap. There is no greater mistake that parents or teachers can make than to allow the youth to think that when they sow evil they may reap good. Inexorable fate has pronounced a curse upon the sinner. Let no man therefore say to the sinner in Zion that the future will be well with him. It cannot be, for God has pronounced a curse. Only he who forsakes sin and does well may expect the blessing of Heaven.
Isa 3:11 Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them! They will be paid back for what their hands have done.
Woe unto the wicked!
This is not an arbitrary decree on the part of God, but the statement of a fundamental fact. Nothing in the world is more certain than that the sowing of evil produces evil. When men sow wickedness, they and the world about them are certain to reap a harvest of woe. By its iniquity Israel was destroying itself. It was necessary to impress this fact indelibly upon the hearts of all in order that there might be a turning away from sin, and the nation saved as a result.
There is no greater patriot or more valuable citizen than the preacher of righteousness. From first to last, Isaiah kept this point before his people, and not altogether without success. It was largely his preaching that brought about a reformation, and thereby saved the nation from the doom that would otherwise have speedily engulfed the land.
Shall be given him. The recently discovered Dead Sea scroll 1QIsa (see Vol. I, p. 31; Vol. IV, p. 86) reads, “will return to him.”
Isa 3:11 Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them! They will be paid back for what their hands have done.
Isa 3:12 Youths oppress my people, women rule over them. My people, your guides lead you astray; they turn you from the path.
The meaning is that the rulers of the time were children in mental outlook and capacity. Experienced leadership was lacking, on the throne, in the home, and elsewhere. This was, of course, true particularly with Ahaz, who began to rule a few years after Isaiah received his call, and who was succeeded by the good king Hezekiah.
Women rule over them. Again, the meaning is that the land was governed by men who were without any particular aptitude for rulership. Although the words “children” and “women” are not to be taken literally, the influence of the haughty and dissolute “daughters of Zion” described in vs. 16–24 must have exercised an indirect influence upon affairs of state through the leaders. Instead of helping their husbands, such women were a hindrance to them, and instead of teaching their children the ways of righteousness, they led them in paths of evil.
They which lead thee. A leader occupies a position of great responsibility, for where he leads, the people will follow. When leaders go in the wrong direction entire nations are led astray. The civil and religious leaders of Isaiah’s time were leading the professed people of God into paths of iniquity and destruction. The world today is under evil influences that are steadily but surely leading men along pathways of evil, whose end is eternal doom. Never in all the ages was right leadership of greater importance than it is today.
Isa 3:13 The LORD takes his place in court; he rises to judge the people.
When evil reaches a certain limit, which the Lord has predetermined, He will arise in judgment (PK 364; 5T 208, 524). Intercession ceases and the execution of judgment begins. God is pleading with His people to repent and turn from their evil before it is forever too late.
Isa 3:14 The LORD enters into judgment against the elders and leaders of his people: “It is you who have ruined my vineyard; the plunder from the poor is in your houses.
The spoil of the poor. The poor of the land were defrauded by those who ruled over them. The reason for the impoverishment of the people was the greed of those in positions of influence and power.
Isa 3:15 What do you mean by crushing my people and grinding the faces of the poor?” declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty.
15. Ye beat my people. The people of Israel were the people of God. The poor and unfortunate were as much children of God, and were held in as high esteem by the Ruler of heaven, as were the rich. To oppress the poor is to violate the basic principles of the kingdom of heaven. God will not look kindly upon those who secure wealth by taking advantage of the poor, and then endeavor to salve their conscience by making offerings of ill-gotten gains to the Lord.
Isa 3:16 The LORD says, “The women of Zion are haughty, walking along with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, strutting along with swaying hips, with ornaments jingling on their ankles.
16. Daughters of Zion. Having discussed the princes and elders of Israel, Isaiah now turns to their wives and daughters, who are fully as degenerate. Nowhere else in the Bible is there so detailed a denunciation of degenerate womanhood as here.
The women of Isaiah’s time are pictured exactly as they were—vain, haughty, highminded, proud, interested in themselves rather than in the Lord and the needs of those about them. In striking contrast is the picture Peter gives of ideal Christian womanhood (Peter 3:1–5). Haughtiness was the outstanding characteristic of the “daughters of Zion,” whereas “a meek and quiet spirit” is the outstanding trait God would see reflected in their lives.
Walking along with outstretched necks. The women of Zion affected the gait, walking of harlots to attract the attention of men. With outstretched necks and ogling eyes, eyeing the men, with mincing steps and coy, flirtatious glances, the women walked the streets, seeking to attract attention to themselves and bring their victims within their power (see Prov. 7:6–21).
A tinkling. In certain Oriental countries small silver bells were fastened to the ankles, which gave out a tinkling sound as the wearers walked. Bracelets were worn on legs as well as arms, and these too made a tinkling sound as the girls walked the streets. The “daughters of Zion” followed the customs of the degenerate nations about them.
Isa 3:17 Therefore the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the women of Zion; the LORD will make their scalps bald.”
Sores. The women would be smitten with various types of disease and would fall victim to brutal invaders who would strip them of their costly clothing.
Isa 3:18 In that day the Lord will snatch away their finery: the bangles and headbands and crescent necklaces,
Isa 3:19 the earrings and bracelets and veils,
Bracelets. They were frequently large and gaudy
Isa 3:20 the headdresses and anklets and sashes, the perfume bottles and charms,
Oriental women often decorated their legs as much as they did their arms.
Earrings. Heb. lechashim, “charms,” or “amulets,” probably containing magic words and worn to produce for the wearer some magical effect.
Isa 3:21 the signet rings and nose rings,
Common item of jewelry in the East, today as in ancient times.
Isa 3:22 the fine robes and the capes and cloaks, the purses
Isa 3:21 the signet rings and nose rings,
Common item of jewelry in the East, today as in ancient times.
Isa 3:22 the fine robes and the capes and cloaks, the purses
22. Changeable suits of apparel. More accurately, “formal dresses,” “festal robes,” “state dresses.” Compare Zech. 3:4, “change of raiment.” The garments referred to were used only on state occasions, and were removed before the wearer resumed the activities of ordinary life.
Isa 3:23 and mirrors, and the linen garments and tiaras and shawls.
Transparent dresses were common in ancient Egypt, and may have been adopted by the women of apostate Judah. Polished metal mirrors were also common in the ancient Orient (see on Ex. 38:8).
Isa 3:24 Instead of fragrance there will be a stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of well-dressed hair, baldness; instead of fine clothing, sackcloth; instead of beauty, branding, engraving.
Many living in luxury would be stripped of earthly wealth and carried captive to foreign lands. The Assyrians were cruel masters. Sennacherib claims to have taken 200,150 of the people of Judah captive to Assyria in the year 701.
Among the captives he particularly mentions daughters of the royal household, royal concubines, and male and female musicians. Many of the “daughters of Jerusalem” who flaunted their finery at the time of Isaiah’s scathing denunciation were no doubt among those stripped and taken to Assyria in disgrace and shame. Instead of the balmy scent of perfume there would be the stench of filth, pestilence, and death.
Isa 3:24 Instead of fragrance there will be a stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of well-dressed hair, baldness; instead of fine clothing, sackcloth; instead of beauty, branding.
Isa 3:25 Your men will fall by the sword, your warriors in battle.
The men of Judah would fall by the sword of invading armies. It is impossible to say how many thousands in Judah perished at the hands of the Assyrians during the days of Isaiah. If over 200,000 men and women were taken captive at the time of Sennacherib’s invasion of 701, it is possible that the number slain in this, his first campaign, was even greater
Warriors. Sennacherib mentions the elite troops of Hezekiah falling into his hands. Undoubtedly many of the bravest soldiers perished and many others were taken captive to the far land of Assyria.
Isa 3:26 The gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground.
Jerusalem is pictured as a stricken woman, sitting on the ground desolate and afflicted, crying bitterly over the terrors that have overwhelmed her. The experience of Israel of old was recorded “for our learning” (Rom. 15:4), “for our admonition” (1 Cor. 10:11), with the purpose that we should avoid making the same mistakes (1 Cor. 10:1–10) and as a result realize the glorious purpose God has for His people today (see Heb. 3:7, 8, 12–15; 4:1–3, 11, 14, 15).
ELLEN G. WHITE COMMENTS
1–26 1T 270
1–4 PK 323
8 PK 324
9 PP 455
10 8T 250
10, 11 Ed 146; GC 540; 1T 469; 2T 648; 3T 272; 5T 431
12 FE 222; PK 324; 5T 88
14–16, 18–23 PK 306 25 1T 270