Woe to Ariel, the city where David encamped; the sealed book none can read, and the day when the deaf shall hear and the meek find fresh joy in the LORD.
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
Ah, Ariel, Ariel, the city where David encamped! Add you year to year, Let the feasts come round!
verse value 2555
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 43 letters. The shortest word is "ah!" (ה֚וֹי, 3 letters) and the longest is "Ariel" (אֲרִיאֵ֣ל, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 242: Ariel, Ariel. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "encamped" (חָנָ֣ה), "add" (סְפ֥וּ), "feasts" (חַגִּ֥ים). The root אריאל appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "year" (root שנה, 25x in Isaiah); "ah!" (root הוי, 22x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root אריאל ("Ariel") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'David', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: ה֚וֹי [ah!] (21) + אֲרִיאֵ֣ל [Ariel] (242) + אֲרִיאֵ֔ל [Ariel] (242) + קִרְיַ֖ת [city] (710) + חָנָ֣ה [encamped] (63) + דָוִ֑ד [David] (14) + סְפ֥וּ [add] (146) + שָׁנָ֛ה [year] (355) + עַל־שָׁנָ֖ה [to·year] (455) + חַגִּ֥ים [feasts] (61) + יִנְקֹֽפוּ [let·them·strike] (246) = 2555.
Rashi
Behold Ariel. The Targum translates it as “the altar of the Lord.” Ezekiel also called it so, as it is stated: “And the Ariel, twelve” (Ezekiel 43:16). It is named after the upper fire that lay upon the altar like a lion, as we learned in the order of Yoma. Our Sages explained this regarding the Temple, which was narrow at the back and broad at the front.
"Kiryat Chana David" This is because it was built in the city where David dwelt.
"Count year upon year." And always your iniquities grow stronger and stronger, until your festivals are struck down (yinakofu) and cut off — the language of "nokef zayit" [striking an olive tree] (above, ch. 17).
Ibn Ezra
Behold Ariel. Some say that Jerusalem is called thus after the altar, as in “and the inner altar, and the Ariel” (Ezekiel 43:15–16), for the letters yod-heh-vav-aleph are interchangeable. And others say that it is called thus because its zodiac sign is the Lion, but this is far-fetched.
Kiriyah. It is adjacent and lacking the word "truth" or something similar to it:
[Chanah David]. That David dwelt there, or this is the linguistic usage to attach a noun to a past-tense verb, as in Genesis (Genesis 1:1) "In the beginning God created" and Hosea (Hosea 1:2) "The beginning of the word of the Lord":
"Count the year." [This implies] adding a year, as in the verse "and added another" (Numbers 32:14).
And the festivals are the burnt-offerings:
ינקופו. An intransitive verb, and the meaning is that the burnt offerings will cease; or it is a transitive verb, and the word "the ones who strike" is omitted, as in "and he said to Joseph" (Genesis 48:1).
Radak
“Hoi Ariel, Ariel.” The altar is called Ariel, as it is stated in the book of Ezekiel: “From the Ariel and upward, four horns.” And so Jonathan rendered it: “Woe, altar, altar, that was built in the city in which David dwelt.” And our Sages of blessed memory said that the Temple was narrow at the rear and broad at the front, resembling a lion, as it is stated: “Hoi Ariel, Ariel.” Just as this lion is narrow at the rear and broad at the front, etc. And the doubling of “Ariel” is in the manner of those who roar, who repeat their words, for the prophet was roaring over it, and he said concerning it: “Hoi.” And the explanation
“Kiriat Hannah David.” According to its Targum, or perhaps Ariel the Second is adjacent to Kiriat, and Kiriat is not adjacent except that the vav takes the place of the he in Mocheret, like Chatat Matzah Echad, Chamet Lamu, Tzitzat Novel, and their like. And the reason that David mentioned this in this narrative is that for David, the place of the altar was first seen on Mount Moriah, and his sacrifice was there, and he was answered there by fire, and the plague was halted. But what is offered there now is not acceptable, as it says, “Your burnt offerings are not acceptable,” since their deeds are evil, and they also slaughter to other gods, and the one who slaughters there is considered as if he were striking and beheading. And so it says, “He who slaughters a lamb is as one who beheads a dog.” Therefore, he said, “They will strike the lambs on the festivals,” meaning that their slaughter is considered for them as if they were beheading them. The Targum translates: “And you shall behead it, and you shall strike it.”
"Festivals." [Meaning] like lambs [festival sacrifices]; likewise, "bind the festival offering with cords" (Psalms 118:27). And regarding what it states, "Count year upon year," the explanation is that whatever you add to bring as sacrifices, year after year, they are not considered valid sacrifices.
Metzudat David
Woe, Ariel. The prophet said: One should lament over the altar that stood in the city where David dwelt.
“Count, etc.” For never has a person lodged in Jerusalem with sin upon him, for always the morning sacrifice atones for the sins of the night, and always the afternoon sacrifice atones for the sins of the day. But from now on, the sins of this year will be added to the sins of the previous year, for the sacrifices will be abolished and there will be no atonement.
Metzudat Zion
Ari’el. The altar is called Ari’el, and so Ezekiel called it, as it is stated: “And the Ari’el twelve cubits in length” (Ezekiel 43:16). It is called so because the fire from God descended from heaven upon it and spread over it like a lion, and the word is doubled, in the manner of roaring and crying out, as it says: “My heart, my heart, I writhe in pain” (Jeremiah 4:19).
Kiryah. A city:
Hannah. Dwelt:
“Sefu.” From the language of “addition”:
"Festivals." So too, the sacrifices are called "festivals" because most of them are brought during the festivals. And similarly, "the binding of the festival" (Psalms 118:27):
Yinakfu. The meaning is cutting down and severing, like "and he cut down the thickets of the forest" (above 10):
Malbim
“Hear, Ariel!” (He begins to explain in detail the referent of the previous parable, for it is not forever that the plowman plows to sow, nor do troubles persist eternally; rather, they compel them to return in repentance, and then they will be saved.) “Ariel, Ariel,” says [the verse]: Jerusalem, esteemed whether on account of itself—namely, the strength of Israel and their valor—or on account of its king, the city where David the righteous encamped. And so it should have been for you to engage in the fear of the Lord and His service, yet it was the opposite: “You add year upon year.” You add years as though the essence of your lives is merely to accumulate years, not to acquire therein any perfection. And throughout these years of your lives, “festivals will strike.” Festivals will continually encircle you—days of holiday and joy that are vanity. But know that after which...
Then will I distress Ariel, And there shall be mourning and moaning; and she shall be to Me as a hearth of God.
verse value 2591
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 42 letters. The shortest word is "to·me" (לִּ֖י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·I·will·distress" (וַהֲצִיק֖וֹתִי, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 426: and·it·shall·be, and·it·shall·be. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·I·will·distress" (וַהֲצִיק֖וֹתִי), "to·Ariel" (לַאֲרִיאֵ֑ל), "mourning" (תַֽאֲנִיָּה֙). The root אריאל appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "to·me" (root לי, 20x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·Ariel', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַהֲצִיק֖וֹתִי [and·I·will·distress] (627) + לַאֲרִיאֵ֑ל [to·Ariel] (272) + וְהָיְתָ֤ה [and·it·shall·be] (426) + תַֽאֲנִיָּה֙ [mourning] (466) + וַאֲנִיָּ֔ה [and·moaning] (72) + וְהָ֥יְתָה [and·it·shall·be] (426) + לִּ֖י [to·me] (40) + כַּאֲרִיאֵֽל [as·Ariel] (262) = 2591.
Rashi
"And it shall be to Me like Ariel." It shall be surrounded by the slain of the sword, like an altar that is surrounded by animal sacrifices.
Ibn Ezra
"And I will distress Ariel." To Jerusalem:
"And there shall be mourning." Like "And we, the fishermen" (Isaiah 19:8). And there are those who say that it is derived from the root of "anna" (Genesis 37:36), meaning that only its place shall remain.
And it shall be to Me as Ariel. That the altar shall be desolate of burnt offerings, or as Ariel — that they shall all be slaughtered [as offerings].
Radak
"And I will distress Ariel." He called the name of the city Jerusalem "Ariel" on account of the altar that was within it, and He said that He would pour out distress upon it. And so it was, for the King of Assyria seized all its surroundings.
"And mourning and moaning." [This teaches that] they will mourn in Jerusalem for their brothers who were slain in the surrounding cities, and they will also fear for themselves.
“And she shall be to Me as Ariel.” Jerusalem shall be to Me like the altar that is surrounded by sacrifices; so too shall she be surrounded by the slain in the cities that are around her. And what He said to Me, that just as the sacrifices of the altar are Mine, for they are offered up to Me, so too is the blood of the slain Mine, for it was done by My will, as it is said: “I called the king of Assyria the rod of My anger, and the staff of My fury.”
Metzudat David
"And I will bring distress upon her..." I will bring distress and calamity upon Jerusalem, and it will be filled with anguish and wailing, and it will be surrounded by the slain, like the altar which is surrounded by the carcasses of sacrificial animals.
Metzudat Zion
"And I will afflict them." From the language of "tzokah" and "tzarah," meaning distress and trouble.
To Ariel. He called the name of the city Jerusalem after the altar that stands in it.
Taniah and aniyah. The matter of mourning and distress, as it is said: “Taniah and aniyah have increased in the daughter of Judah” (Lamentations 2:5).
Malbim
"And I will distress Ariel, until it pours out its distress of soul (peretzweyflung) until, and there shall be mourning that laments over its sins and its evil fate; then it shall be Mine, to serve Me as Ariel, as befits Ariel, the Holy City (and this is the underlying metaphor for the entire passage: 'Today let him plow')."
And I will encamp against you round about, And will lay siege against you with a mound, And I will raise siege works against you.
verse value 3243
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 41 letters. The shortest word is "entrenchment" (מֻצָּ֔ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·I·will·maintain" (וַהֲקִימֹתִ֥י, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 130: against·you, against·you, against·you. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·I·will·decline" (וְחָנִ֥יתִי), "and·I·will·be·adversary·to" (וְצַרְתִּ֤י), "entrenchment" (מֻצָּ֔ב). The root על appears 3 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "against·you" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "and·I·will·maintain" (root קום, 36x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'against·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְחָנִ֥יתִי [and·I·will·decline] (484) + כַדּ֖וּר [like·a·circle] (230) + עָלָ֑יִךְ [against·you] (130) + וְצַרְתִּ֤י [and·I·will·be·adversary·to] (706) + עָלַ֙יִךְ֙ [against·you] (130) + מֻצָּ֔ב [entrenchment] (132) + וַהֲקִימֹתִ֥י [and·I·will·maintain] (571) + עָלַ֖יִךְ [against·you] (130) + מְצֻרֹֽת [fortified] (730) = 3243.
Rashi
“Kadur.” Like a row of encircling legions:
MUTZAV. This is the language of "the rampart that is set (mutzav) against the cities."
“From fortified cities.” This is the language of “fortified city.”
Ibn Ezra
And I will encamp like a sphere. Suddenly, like a sphere, upon a land of broad expanse (Isaiah 22:18):
MUTZAV. A watchtower:
Radak
"And I will encamp." When the king of Assyria will encamp against Jerusalem, it is I Who will encamp over her, for all that he does, he will do by My command and according to My will. And so it is with "And I will besiege" and "And I will raise up." And the explanation is:
"Circle." It means a circuit, and similarly in the Mishnah: "the circle and the sphere." It is called so because it is round, and it lacks the letter kaf or bet in its usage. "And I will encamp around you on all sides," like "the circle," and similarly, "a circle of a land with broad hands." And in another measure, "like a king destined to circle."
"And I will besiege." From the context of "When you besiege a city."
A siege tower. A wooden tower that is erected against the city in order to capture it:
“Mitzorot.” From the verse “And you shall build a siege-work” (Isaiah 22:9). And even though it is not written in that passage that the king of Assyria built a siege-work against Jerusalem, but rather the prophet said, “He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with a shield, nor cast up a mound against it” (Isaiah 37:33), and what is stated by “He shall not come” means that he shall not enter within the city to conquer it; and what is stated by “nor shoot,” “nor come before it,” and “nor cast up” means that he did not do these things, but he prepared them for Jerusalem today, and to cast up a mound tomorrow. And they also erected a wooden tower and a siege-work to fight tomorrow, and at night the angel of the Lord struck them, and their plan was thwarted. And the Targum [Jonathan] translates, “And I will set against you a garrison, and I will heap upon you a mound,” as Onkelos translated, “And you shall build a siege-work, and you shall build mounds.” And he translated, “And I will set against you siege-works, and I will heap upon you a mound,” as he translated, “Nor cast up a mound against it” as “He shall not heap upon it a mound.”
Metzudat David
"And I will encamp a sphere over you." I will dwell over you as a host all around, like this sphere, which is round. And concerning the camp of Sennacherib it will say:
"And I will set a siege tower against you." I will stir up the heart of Sennacherib to besiege you by setting up a siege tower—that is, a wooden tower that they erect near the city to hurl arrows and catapult stones from it.
Metzurot. Other kinds of siege works:
Metzudat Zion
"And I will encamp." From the language of encampment and dwelling:
"Kadur": Like "ke-kadur" [as in the phrase "like a ball"], but with the letter kaf omitted from the usage. And similarly, "kadur" in the phrase "to the land of broad hands" (above, 22). It refers to anything that is thrown from hand to hand and received by the other.
And I will besiege. From the word "metzor" (siege). Likewise, the structures that are built and surround the city in order to subdue it are called "metzurot" (siege works), and they are named so because they besiege and press upon them thereby.
Motzav. A tall wooden tower erected from logs. From the word *metzor*:
Malbim
"And I will encamp" (the second parable of the "baked bread"): I will encamp around you with my armies afterward, and besiege you until you come under siege; afterward, "and I will set up against you a siege" to capture the city and take it, until...
And brought down you shall speak out of the ground, And your speech shall be low out of the dust; And your voice shall be as of a ghost out of the ground, And your speech shall chirp out of the dust.
verse value 5867
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְֽ֠הָיָ֠ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "will·be·bowed" (תִּשַּׁ֣ח, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·you·will·be·low" (וְשָׁפַלְתְּ֙, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 661: your·word, your·word. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·you·will·be·low" (וְשָׁפַלְתְּ֙), "you·speak" (תְּדַבֵּ֔רִי), "will·be·bowed" (תִּשַּׁ֣ח). The root ארץ appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "from·land" (root ארץ, 169x in Isaiah); "you·speak" (root דבר, 88x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·word', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְשָׁפַלְתְּ֙ [and·you·will·be·low] (816) + מֵאֶ֣רֶץ [from·land] (331) + תְּדַבֵּ֔רִי [you·speak] (616) + וּמֵעָפָ֖ר [and·from·earth] (396) + תִּשַּׁ֣ח [will·be·bowed] (708) + אִמְרָתֵ֑ךְ [your·word] (661) + וְֽ֠הָיָ֠ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + כְּא֤וֹב [as·ghost] (29) + מֵאֶ֙רֶץ֙ [from·land] (331) + קוֹלֵ֔ךְ [your·voice] (156) + וּמֵעָפָ֖ר [and·from·earth] (396) + אִמְרָתֵ֥ךְ [your·word] (661) + תְּצַפְצֵֽף [will·chirp] (740) = 5867.
Rashi
"From the land you shall speak." It should appear as though the speech issuing from your mouth is emerging from beneath the ground.
"Your word shall chirp" – to supplicate before Me, and from your supplication My mercies will be stirred.
Tzipitzuf. It is the term for a whispering sound, like the sound of small birds.
Ibn Ezra
"and you shall humble." The meaning [of the verse] refers to the words of Hezekiah's envoys to Rabshakeh:
“From the land you shall speak.” It is as if it says, “You shall speak from the depths of the earth.”
“Like a medium (a ghost's voice).” Just as it says, “and new wineskins” (Job 32:19), for such is their craft.
Radak
"ושפלת" – "And you shall humble": This means "you shall humble" in the future tense. He spoke this in reference to Jerusalem, meaning those who dwell in it.
“From the land shall you speak.” This means that you shall speak in a low voice, as if the voice were emerging from beneath the earth. Similarly, it says “you shall hiss,” as if you were emerging from the dust. The matter is repeated in different words, in accordance with the customary style. Furthermore, it repeats and states, “And it shall be that from the land the voice of your mourning shall be heard,” etc. The meaning of “mourning” is that those who consult a medium or spirit will cause a low voice to be heard from beneath the earth, as we have explained in the Book of Samuel in the portion of the medium of Endor.
Tzafzaf. Regarding the pronunciation, like the letter tav in the word tashach, it is said that the voice will be so low that it will not resemble human speech, but rather the chirping of birds. This matter is said about Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah, who said to Rabshakeh, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, and do not speak to us in Judean, in the ears of the people who are on the wall.” And these words they said to him in a low voice, so that they would not hear. And it says, “And Rabshakeh stood and cried out in a loud voice in Judean,” so that the people would hear.
Metzudat David
“and you shall humble.” You shall be humbled and speak with humility, in a low voice, as if the voice were emerging from beneath the earth.
"And from the dust your word shall bow." You shall bow your word, as if you were speaking from the dust. And the matter is repeated in what is stated, to indicate the greatness of the humility.
"And it shall be like an *ov*." She spoke in a whisper, in humility, and he heard a voice like the voice of an *ov* (medium) that is heard from the earth, which is a low voice, so that it does not resemble human speech but rather a chirping like that of birds.
"From dust." [She] will chirp with a voice as if it is emerging from the dust, and the matter is repeated many times due to the greatness of the humility and the abundance of the supplications.
Metzudat Zion
Teshach. The matter of "bending" is like [the verse] "and the man bent" (above, 2).
As an "ov" (medium). So too, the body of the deceased is called an "ov," for it reveals the future through sorcery, as expounded in the verse "They inquire of the mediums" (above, chapter 8).
Tzafzaf. This is the term used for the sound of birds, as it is also written: "and opening its mouth and chirping" (above 10).
Malbim
“And you shall humble yourself” – as if you were speaking from the earth, due to the depth of your humility; (and regarding “from dust,” see the commentary on the words). And it shall be that, in addition to the humility of your place, your voice shall resemble the voice of the *ob*, which is not the speech of a living person, but rather from a dead body into which a soul has been temporarily cast; nor shall it be human speech at all, but your utterance shall chirp like the chirping of a bird. And then
But the multitude of your foes shall be like small dust, And the multitude of the terrible ones as chaff that passes away; Indeed, it shall be at an instant suddenly—
verse value 2667
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 47 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֛ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "thin" (דַּ֖ק, 2 letters) and the longest is "awe-inspiring" (עָרִיצִ֔ים, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 101: multitude·of, multitude·of. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "thin" (דַּ֖ק), "stranger·of" (זָרָ֑יִךְ), "and·like·chaff" (וּכְמֹ֤ץ). The root היה appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "crossing" (root עבר, 41x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root דק ("thin") in Isaiah. First appearance of the root פתאם ("suddenly") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'stranger·of', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְהָיָ֛ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + כְּאָבָ֥ק [as·dust] (123) + דַּ֖ק [thin] (104) + הֲמ֣וֹן [multitude·of] (101) + זָרָ֑יִךְ [stranger·of] (237) + וּכְמֹ֤ץ [and·like·chaff] (156) + עֹבֵר֙ [crossing] (272) + הֲמ֣וֹן [multitude·of] (101) + עָרִיצִ֔ים [awe-inspiring] (420) + וְהָיָ֖ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + לְפֶ֥תַע [at·instant] (580) + פִּתְאֹֽם [suddenly] (521) = 2667.
Rashi
“And it shall be like fine dust, the multitude of your strangers.” The inhabitants of Sennacherib [i.e., his army] shall become fuel for fire and turn into dust.
And it shall be. This matter:
“Suddenly, unexpectedly.” An unexpected occurrence:
Ibn Ezra
"And it shall be like fine dust." It is lacking a word, for it is attached (and in the precise text: "like dust"):
A multitude of your helpers. They are the camp of Assyria, and this will be suddenly and unexpectedly:
Radak
"And it shall be like dust" – just as fine dust is carried away by the breath of the mouth, so too the multitude of your adversaries shall be swiftly destroyed. The meaning of "your adversaries" is the foreign nations encamped against you, namely the camp of Assyria. He repeats the matter and says, "And like chaff before the wind."
“Suddenly, unexpectedly.” The lamed is used in place of a bet, just as in “in a sudden, unexpected manner,” and similarly, “I will kill them for their wounds,” “before you, to the sword,” and similar expressions. That is to say, their destruction will come suddenly, for in the morning they will all be found as dead corpses. And “suddenly” is like “unexpectedly,” and the matter is repeated in different words to strengthen it.
Metzudat David
“And it shall be like dust.” And because of your great humility, My compassion will be aroused for you, and the multitude of strangers who press upon you will be like fine dust that is blown away by the breath of the mouth, for they will quickly be destroyed by the hand of the angel who strikes them.
And like chaff that passes away. Just as chaff is carried off by a slight breeze, so too will the multitude of the arrogant be exhausted. The matter is repeated in what is stated:
"And it shall come to pass suddenly, in a moment." This matter shall occur suddenly, in a moment.
Metzudat Zion
"Like dust." Thus, fine dust is called "dust"; and likewise, "and it shall become dust upon the land of Egypt" (Exodus 9:9). To add further clarification, the term "fine" is stated.
המון. The matter of a multitude of people, as in: "all this great multitude" (I Kings 20:13).
Zarich. From the language of "stranger" and "foreigner":
"And like chaff." This refers to the refuse of the grain, as it is stated: "Like chaff shall be driven away from the threshing floor" (Hosea 13:3).
The tyrants. Strong ones, as it is said: “Like a mighty tyrant” (Jeremiah 20:11).
“Suddenly.” Just as in “suddenly”, and similarly, “You sat upon the throne” (Psalms 9:5), and “His judgment is upon the throne.” The meaning of *pata‘* is like *pata‘om* (suddenly), and the doubling of the word with synonymous terms is also seen in “the earth of dust” (Daniel 12:2).
Malbim
And it shall be like fine dust: the dust is the separation of the composite into fine particles, and it possesses two degrees of superiority over the passing chaff: 1. They are parts of the composite, unlike the chaff, which is merely refuse; 2. They lie in their place, unlike the passing chaff, which is the chaff that the wind scatters. And this is what it says: “For the camp of Sennacherib”—who are the multitude of the mighty ones who will die around Jerusalem and their corpses will remain there—will be like dust, and the multitude of the tyrants—who are the heroes, namely the King of Assyria and some of his officials who remained and did not die—will be like passing chaff, which the wind will carry to his land, and his sons will fall by the sword in his land. And all of this will happen suddenly, in one night, because
There shall be a visitation from Hashem of hosts With thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, With whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire.
verse value 3232
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 53 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֤ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "fire" (אֵ֥שׁ, 2 letters) and the longest is "hosts" (צְבָאוֹת֙, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 43: great, and·flame. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "she·shall·be·visited" (תִּפָּקֵ֔ד), "in·thunder" (בְּרַ֥עַם), "and·with·quaking" (וּבְרַ֖עַשׁ). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "with" (root עם, 107x in Isaiah); "hosts" (root צבא, 73x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root סער ("and·storm") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'great', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 5 words. Full calculation: מֵעִ֨ם [with] (150) + יְהֹוָ֤ה [Hashem] (26) + צְבָאוֹת֙ [hosts] (499) + תִּפָּקֵ֔ד [she·shall·be·visited] (584) + בְּרַ֥עַם [in·thunder] (312) + וּבְרַ֖עַשׁ [and·with·quaking] (578) + וְק֣וֹל [and·voice] (142) + גָּד֑וֹל [great] (43) + סוּפָה֙ [whirlwind] (151) + וּסְעָרָ֔ה [and·storm] (341) + וְלַ֖הַב [and·flame] (43) + אֵ֥שׁ [fire] (301) + אוֹכֵלָֽה [eating] (62) = 3232.
Rashi
"From the Lord of Hosts shall you be visited." And after you have humbled yourself and your utterance shall falter, [then] Ariel shall be visited by Me to save it, with thunder and earthquake, etc.
Ibn Ezra
From the mouth of the Lord [they were counted]. Let this accounting be upon the enemies:
On the word "thunder." In the circle:
Regarding the word "ra'ash" (noise/quake): In the land...
[“And the voice, etc.”] And with a great voice, in a storm and tempest, with a flame of fire—the reason being the departure of the angel upon the camp of Assyria to destroy it.
Radak
"From." The verse says: "How will this great decree come suddenly?" Because it will come from the Lord of Hosts, and the plague is compared to thunder and earthquake, etc.
Metzudat David
"From the Lord." From the Omnipresent, this decree will come upon them with thunder and shaking, etc. And the verse compares the striking of the angel upon them to thunder and shaking, etc.
“And a flame of fire shall consume it.” This is as if a flame of fire burned them.
Metzudat Zion
Tefaked. The matter refers to the providential oversight in bringing about the calamity, as it is said: “And the days of punishment have come” (Hosea 9:7).
"Storm and tempest." Strong winds:
And the flame. Flame:
One who eats it. One who burns it:
Malbim
From the Lord of Hosts you shall be visited, this decree against Assyria, with thunder and earthquake: these are the two matters mentioned above (28:21), "As Mount Perazim shall the Lord arise"—that is the earthquake, and "As the valley at Gibeon shall He tremble"—that is the thunder. And it shall not be in secret, but with a great voice. And attached to this is a storm with a flame of fire, that the storm shall kindle the flame, as stated above (10:16), "And the light of Israel shall be for fire." (Also, this depicts the three camps that Elijah saw: wind, earthquake, and fire (1 Kings 19:12); and regarding the fourth camp of the still small voice, he said that here it shall be with a great voice.)
And the multitude of all the nations that war against Ariel, Even all that war against her, and the bulwarks about her, and they that distress her, Shall be as a dream, a vision of the night.
verse value 2025
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 64 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֗ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 2025 = 45². The shortest word is "to·her" (לָֽהּ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·the·ones·who·distress" (וְהַמְּצִיקִ֖ים, 8 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "as·a·dream" (כַּֽחֲלוֹם֙), "against·Ariel" (עַל־אֲרִיאֵ֑ל), "and·all·who·war·against·her" (וְכׇל־צֹבֶ֙יהָ֙). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "against·Ariel" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "the·ones·who·served" (root צבא, 73x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'against·Ariel', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְהָיָ֗ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + כַּֽחֲלוֹם֙ [as·a·dream] (104) + חֲז֣וֹן [vision] (71) + לַ֔יְלָה [night] (75) + הֲמוֹן֙ [multitude·of] (101) + כׇּל־הַגּוֹיִ֔ם [all·the·nations] (114) + הַצֹּבְאִ֖ים [the·ones·who·served] (148) + עַל־אֲרִיאֵ֑ל [against·Ariel] (342) + וְכׇל־צֹבֶ֙יהָ֙ [and·all·who·war·against·her] (163) + וּמְצֹ֣דָתָ֔הּ [and·her·bulwarks] (545) + וְהַמְּצִיקִ֖ים [and·the·ones·who·distress] (301) + לָֽהּ [to·her] (35) = 2025.
Rashi
"And it shall be like a dream": Just as one who dreams appears to see but has not actually seen, so too will the multitude of all the nations be like those who dream of conquering, but it will not succeed in their hands.
"And all its fortifications." Those who set up upon it a watchtower and a destructive force, which they call "Zinbil" in the vernacular, as it is stated of Saul (1 Samuel 14:15): "The watchtower and the destructive force trembled."
Ibn Ezra
"And it shall be like a dream." This teaches that a person will see it at night, and when he awakens, it will not be so; for this is the camp of Ashur.
"And all her fortresses." It is spelled without an aleph. [The meaning is:] "And all the men of her fortress," or the meaning is "and all the fortresses," like the watchtowers.
Radak
Let it be like a dream, a vision of the night. What a person sees in his dream is called a "vision," even though it is not prophecy. And Jonathan [ben Uzziel] translated it as "like one who dreams a thought of the night." This is explained in the preceding verse.
"Concerning Ariel." Concerning the city in which the altar is located, as we have explained.
Tzoviyah. Like tzova’iyah:
"וּמִצִּדְתָּהּ" – with a cholam, and the meaning is "the men of her fortress," i.e., those who build fortresses against her to capture her.
Metzudat David
"And it shall be like a dream..." The multitude of nations coming in army against Jerusalem shall be like a dream seen at night, which has no substance.
"And all her siege engines." Likewise, all who set up a siege mound and siege works, and all who besiege her.
Metzudat Zion
Chazon. The matter of seeing, like "And you shall see" (Exodus 18:21), and the dream is called a vision of the night.
“That war against.” From the language of “a host of people”:
Ariel. This is Jerusalem:
Tzoviyah. From the term "motzav" mentioned above, and it is a wooden tower.
"ומצודתה" – this refers to the matter of a fortress and strength; similarly, "the fortress of Zion" (2 Samuel 5:7).
"And those who harass them." From the language of distress and siege:
Malbim
“And it shall be like a dream,” just as the dreams of the sick in the morning are seen to have no substance, and particularly a vision of the night—a dream that is not true, but comes only through nocturnal visions and the faculty of imagination—so that besides having no reality in its very essence, no impression or emotional effect whatsoever remains from it; so too shall the multitude of all the nations that encamp against Ariel (this corresponds to “and I will encamp around you like a circle”), and all their splendor (corresponding to “and I will besiege you with fortresses”), and their strongholds (corresponding to “and I will raise up against you siege works”), and those who harass her (corresponding to “and I will harass Ariel”):
And 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.
verse value 5839
Insights
Verse structure: 26 words, 111 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֡ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "so" (כֵּ֣ן, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·the·nations" (כׇּל־הַגּוֹיִ֔ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 211: and·summer, and·summer. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "the·famine" (הָרָעֵ֜ב), "and·empty" (וְרֵיקָ֣ה), "the·thirsty·one" (הַצָּמֵא֙). The root הנה appears 3 times in this verse. 19 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "against·mount" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "as" (root אשר, 176x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root חלם ("will·dream") in Isaiah. First appearance of the root ריק ("and·empty") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'running', dividing the verse into phrases of 19 and 7 words.
Rashi
שוקקה – she is desirous. And similarly: “and your desire shall be to your husband” (Genesis 3:16).
“Thus it shall be, etc.” – They shall not attain the desire which they devised to do.
Ibn Ezra
"And it came to pass, etc." – The word "and behold" always follows a dream, and its meaning is as if to say "it was as though," and it refers back to the famine.
Shokkah. She is seeking a drink:
Radak
"And it shall be when he dreams." Just as a person is hungry, goes to sleep, and in his sleep sees that he is eating, and this is what he was pondering while he was awake, and behold, upon waking, his soul is empty as it was before the sleep, for whoever dreams will find nothing upon waking from all that he was dreaming, so too the thirsty one, and behold, he is weary, like the thirsty one, for the weary one from the journey is called thirsty; the weary one is called thirsty. And so the thirsty land, like the shadow of a heavy rock in a weary land.
Shoqeqah: Desiring, from [the verse] “and to your husband is your desire” (Genesis 3:16), and it is a description from the four-letter root, on the pattern of the word keforah sorerah (a stubborn heifer).
Metzudat David
"And it shall be as when one dreams." This matter is similar to one who is hungry and sees in his dream that he is eating to fill his stomach, but when he awakens, he finds his stomach empty of food, as it was before.
"And behold, he drinks to quench the thirst:"
And behold, he was weary. He was thirsty as he had been, and his soul longed for drink.
"Thus it shall be, etc." For they will think that they will capture the city, but it shall not be so.
Metzudat Zion
And he awoke. The matter of awakening from sleep:
And "riqah." From the language of "riq" (empty):
His soul. That is, like his body; and similarly, “And his soul shall come to iron” (Psalms 105:18).
Eif. The matter of "tzema'on" (thirst) is that "ha-eif" is thirsty to drink; and likewise, "in a thirsty land" (below, 32).
שוקקה. The meaning is desire, as it is stated: "Your desire shall be for your husband" (Genesis 3:16).
The encamped ones. Those who are encamped with their army:
Malbim
“And it shall be as when a man faints” — the hungry and the thirsty, because they will crave food and drink, will imagine in their dream that they are eating and drinking. And there is a difference between the one who dreams while hungry and the one who dreams while thirsty: for in the state of hunger, when the natural heat is inflamed by the vapors of hunger, the appetite for food is extinguished, and he perceives only fatigue and weakness, that his soul is empty, but not a craving for food, for the fever nourishes the body, as is well known. But the thirsty one, when the fever is inflamed in him through the effect of the dream, his craving for drink increases, in addition to the feeling of fatigue, as it is stated: “And he was weary, like the hungry dreamer,” and added to this is that his soul also thirsts and craves for drink. So too will the multitude of all the nations, who are arrayed against Mount Zion, resemble these two dreams mentioned: the nations who joined Sennacherib’s camp to plunder spoils, and who remained alive, resembled the hungry dreamer, for they returned to their homes empty-handed, just as they came. But Sennacherib himself and the Assyrian camp, who not only failed to plunder as they desired, but were also destroyed and their kingdom was lost, resembled the thirsty dreamer, in whom the thirst and the burning flame within him increase further through the illusion that deceived him in the dream.
Stupefy yourselves, and be stupid! Blind yourselves, and be blind! You that are drunken, but not with wine, That stagger, but not with strong drink.
verse value 3807
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 42 letters. The shortest word is "they·quivered" (נָע֖וּ, 3 letters) and the longest is "stupefy·yourselves" (הִתְמַהְמְה֣וּ, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "stupefy·yourselves" (הִתְמַהְמְה֣וּ), "and·be·astounded" (וּתְמָ֔הוּ), "blind·yourselves" (הִשְׁתַּעַשְׁע֖וּ). The root שעע appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·stroke', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words. Full calculation: הִתְמַהְמְה֣וּ [stupefy·yourselves] (501) + וּתְמָ֔הוּ [and·be·astounded] (457) + הִשְׁתַּעַשְׁע֖וּ [blind·yourselves] (1151) + וָשֹׁ֑עוּ [and·stroke] (382) + שָׁכְר֣וּ [they·hired] (526) + וְלֹא־יַ֔יִן [and·not·wine] (107) + נָע֖וּ [they·quivered] (126) + וְלֹ֥א [and·not] (37) + שֵׁכָֽר [strong·drink] (520) = 3807.
Rashi
“Hithmahemu.” Be moderate in pausing to reflect and consider your deeds:
And they were astonished. and you shall be astonished at your corruption:
Blind yourselves. This is the language of “his eyes were drowsy” (above 6:10), meaning they were blind, unable to see.
“Be drunk.” [This teaches that] you yourselves, and not from wine. Why?
Ibn Ezra
They lingered. He will speak to the men of Zion, that they will be amazed to seek how this will be, and what is the secret of this prophecy. And behold, the prophet will speak as a man speaks to his friend, and why did they not know that they were drunk, and not from wine?
Radak
“Be amazed and wonder.” This prophecy was spoken in the days of Ahaz: “Be amazed and wonder” refers to the men of Judah. Its meaning is “delay,” like the verse “and he delayed” (ויתמהמה). This delay is in thought; it says: prolong your thoughts and deliberate in your hearts through this delay, so that you may contemplate the matter. And after you have contemplated the matter, wonder within yourselves: How did this evil come upon you, that you abandoned the words of the Living God, which the true prophets say to you, and you were seduced by the words of the false prophets, who amused themselves and acted frivolously? My master and father, of blessed memory, interpreted it as: “Awaken and awaken others,” from the root of “and his eyes were dim” (ועיניו השע), referring to the false prophets: “Awaken and awaken yourselves from seeing the truth.”
“They are drunk,” and not wine. They are the false prophets, and it says, “not wine.” Above it says, “they err because of wine.” It does not say in this verse that they do not get drunk; rather, it says that even when they are not drinking, they are drunk, for they do not understand and do not comprehend, like a drunkard. And the verse repeats the matter in different words, for they stagger like a drunkard, for a drunkard sways and shakes his body this way and that until he falls.
Metzudat David
They hesitated and were astonished. He returned to admonish them, saying: “Tarry and ponder deeply, and marvel at yourselves—how did this evil come to pass, that you abandoned the words of the true prophet and were seduced by the false prophets?”
"Amuse yourselves and cry out." Engage in outcry and raise a bitter cry over your corruption.
Their reward. They are intoxicated, not from drinking wine; rather, it means that their minds are confused like those of a drunkard.
They wander. They are wanderers and vagabonds, like a drunkard who cannot stand upright, but rather sways back and forth.
And not strong drink. Not from drinking strong drink, and the matter is repeated in what is stated:
Metzudat Zion
"He delayed." The meaning of "delayed" is akin to "if he tarry, wait for him" (Habakkuk 2:3).
"השתעשעו ושעו" – They made merry and shouted. The meaning of "צעקה" (shouting) is like "ושוע אל ההר" (and shout to the mountain) (above 22:).
And not wine. Explanation: And not from wine.
Nao. From the language of movement:
Strong drink. Old wine:
Malbim
“Are they staggering?” says He to the sons of Judah who come in the morning to behold the downfall of Sennacherib. He depicts it as if they would first hesitate to approach the fallen camp, and would be astonished, for they would not believe what their eyes see. And afterward, they would delight themselves and turn back again, and look and turn back again, time after time, like a man who does not believe the wonders that his eyes behold. For they would ask one another, saying: How is it possible that the men of Assyria became drunk, although they did not drink wine? And more than this, that they staggered like a drunkard in his vomit, although they did not drink strong drink? And who made them reel in tumult and noise? And who made them drunk and caused them to sleep the sleep of eternity?
For Hashem has poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, And has closed your eyes; The prophets, and your heads, the seers, has He covered.
verse value 3688
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 61 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "spirit·of" (ר֣וּחַ, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·prophets" (אֶת־הַנְּבִיאִ֛ים, 9 letters). 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "for·he·has·poured" (כִּֽי־נָסַ֨ךְ), "upon·you" (עֲלֵיכֶ֤ם), "deep·sleep" (תַּרְדֵּמָ֔ה). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "upon·you" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "your·eyes" (root עין, 45x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root עצם ("and·He·closed") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·eyes', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 4 words. Full calculation: כִּֽי־נָסַ֨ךְ [for·he·has·poured] (160) + עֲלֵיכֶ֤ם [upon·you] (170) + יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (26) + ר֣וּחַ [spirit·of] (214) + תַּרְדֵּמָ֔ה [deep·sleep] (649) + וַיְעַצֵּ֖ם [and·He·closed] (216) + אֶת־עֵינֵיכֶ֑ם [your·eyes] (601) + אֶת־הַנְּבִיאִ֛ים [the·prophets] (519) + וְאֶת־רָאשֵׁיכֶ֥ם [and·your·heads] (978) + הַחֹזִ֖ים [the·seers] (70) + כִּסָּֽה [covered] (85) = 3688.
Rashi
“For the Lord will pour out upon you...” – This is the language of mixing, as in “she has mixed her wine” (Proverbs 9:2); or it is a term of dominion — He has made a spirit of deep sleep rule over you. Concerning the sinners of Israel, who were stargazers, was he prophesying.
Ibn Ezra
"Ki nasech" – from the root of *masekh*, meaning "narrow," as in "gathered in" (Isaiah 28:20); and the letter *kaf* in "alichem" [to you] is directed toward the men of Zion.
"And He shut their eyes." From the root of "bone," as if it said, "He placed a bone over your eyes."
And behold, it covers forever the word nesekh:
Radak
"Ki nasekh": It means "covered," as in "the poured-out covering" (ve-hamaskah hanisukah), and "the pouring out of heaviness" (ve-et kashot hanasekh), which refers to the concept of covering. That is to say: He covered you with the power of a deep sleep that He cast upon you, so that you are considered as if you were asleep, and you do not hear anyone who calls to you.
“And He has closed (va-y’atzem).” And He has shut; likewise, from the qal conjugation, “he who shuts (otzem) his eyes” (Isaiah 33:15). He has covered you and shut your eyes so that you should not see. And not only you, but also the prophets, who are false prophets.
"And cover the heads of those who look." They are the ones who close your eyes so that you do not see. And what is meant by "for the Lord has poured upon you" is that the covering is so strong that it seems as though it is from the Lord. Or its interpretation is in the manner of "make the heart of this people fat," as we have explained.
Metzudat David
"For the Lord has poured out upon you" – The Omnipresent has covered you.
“Spirit of slumber”: To be confused, like one whom slumber has seized; for with one who comes to become impure, they open [the matter] for him.
And He closed [your eyes]. He closed your eyes so that you would not discern even something visible to the eye:
“The prophets.” With the false prophets: meaning, even upon you He poured out, etc.; even upon the prophets.
“And the heads of you who look” – these are the prophets who look for them, and the matter is repeated in what is stated:
Metzudat Zion
Nesekh (libation). From the root meaning to cover or roof, as in the covering that is poured out (above, ch. 25):
Tardemah: It is deep sleep, as it is written, “And he fell asleep and was weary” (Judges 4:21).
“And He closed them.” The meaning is of blocking and shutting, like “and He shut his eyes” (below 33).
The prophets. With the prophets:
"The soothsayers." From the word "chozeh" (seer), and it means the false prophets who make themselves out to be soothsayers.
Malbim
“Because He has poured out” – based on this, he begins to argue with the men of his generation who, until now, have not believed the words of the seers and the prophets. He says: “Behold, the Lord has poured out, and He has poured upon you a spirit of deep sleep, as if you had fallen asleep in the lap of the vanities of the world. And through this, He has shut your eyes, which you did not open to gaze upon the work of the Lord and His deeds. But how do you reason that this spirit of deep sleep has covered the prophets and the seers, your leaders and guides? Is it because you sleep the sleep of folly and ignorance? Is it for this reason that you think the eyes of the prophets and the seers are also blinded from seeing?”
And the vision of all this is become to you as the words of a writing that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying: ‘Read this, I pray you’; and he says: ‘I cannot, for it is sealed’;
verse value 5673
Insights
Verse structure: 21 words, 81 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "that·they·give" (אֲשֶֽׁר־יִתְּנ֣וּ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 421: and·it·was, vision. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "as·words·of" (כְּדִבְרֵי֮), "the·sealed" (הֶחָתוּם֒), "that·they·give" (אֲשֶֽׁר־יִתְּנ֣וּ). The root ספר appears 3 times in this verse. 17 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "saying" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "for" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'I·pray·this', dividing the verse into phrases of 15 and 6 words.
Rashi
“Hazot hakol” – All that you were observing in the constellations will be concealed from you, as it is stated regarding a letter sealed with wax, which they give to one who knows how to read a letter, and he says, “I cannot [read it], for I do not see what is within it, since it is sealed.”
Ibn Ezra
And it came to pass. All prophecy:
"For it is sealed." They will not be able to understand. And so is the meaning of "Seal the teaching" (Isaiah 8:16), as I have explained.
Radak
“And it shall be to you like a sealed book.” The prophecy of all, meaning the prophecy of all the prophets of the Lord who prophesy to you, is to you like a sealed book. If one were to give the letter to someone who knows how to read it, he would say, “I cannot [read it], for it is sealed.” He would find this pretext because he does not desire to read it; for if he desired to read it, he would say, “Open it, and I will read it.” So too, the wise men among you say that there are obscure matters in the words of God, and therefore they do not apply their minds to them. But if they desired to hear and understand, they would say to the prophet, “Explain this obscure matter to us.”
Metzudat David
And it shall be for you as if everything were visible. For you, the prophecy of all the prophets of the Lord was [accessible], like the words of a sealed book. If one were to hand it to a person who knows how to read, and they would say to him, “Please read this,” he would reply, “I cannot read it, for it is sealed.” And indeed, he would find an excuse and a pretext, because he does not wish to read. But if he had desired to read, he would have opened the seal and read it. Likewise, the sages among you say: Are there not in the matter of the Lord things that are sealed? And therefore they do not apply their minds to them. But if they had desired them, they would have said to the prophet: “Explain to us this hidden matter.”
Metzudat Zion
Chazot. The matter of prophecy:
The sealed. The matter of sealing and closing is like “sealed Torah” (above, 8):
“I can.” The word is derived from the root meaning “ability” (yokhel).
Malbim
“And it shall be,” and because you thought that just as your eyes are closed, so too the eyes of the prophets are shut, therefore the vision of all and the prophecy of all the prophets will seem to you like the words of a sealed book. That is to say, you think that even though the prophet recognizes the matter of his mission, nevertheless he does not know the interpretation of his prophecy and its explanation, because the Lord has sealed the book and the letter which He gave into the hand of the prophet to convey to the people, with His seal from above, to the extent that even the bearer of the book, who is the prophet, has no permission to remove the seal and open the letter. And according to this, you ask: If this letter were given to one who knows the book, namely the prophet himself, saying, “Please read this,” even if he had permission to remove the seal, he would be able to read the letter; nevertheless, would he not answer, saying, “I cannot read what is inside it, because it is sealed with the king’s ring, and I have no permission to open it.” And now, how?
and the writing is delivered to him that is not learned, saying: ‘Read this, I pray you’; and he says: ‘I am not learned.’
verse value 3654
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 46 letters. Verse gematria: 3654 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "to" (עַל֩, 2 letters) and the longest is "does·not·know" (לֹא־יָדַ֥ע, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 340: book, book. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "does·not·know" (לֹא־יָדַ֥ע). The root ספר appears 3 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "saying" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "to" (root על, 200x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'I·pray·this', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְנִתַּ֣ן [and·shall·be·given] (506) + הַסֵּ֗פֶר [the·book] (345) + עַל֩ [to] (100) + אֲשֶׁ֨ר [who] (501) + לֹא־יָדַ֥ע [does·not·know] (115) + סֵ֛פֶר [book] (340) + לֵאמֹ֖ר [saying] (271) + קְרָ֣א [call!] (301) + נָא־זֶ֑ה [I·pray·this] (63) + וְאָמַ֕ר [and·will·say] (247) + לֹ֥א [not] (31) + יָדַ֖עְתִּי [I·know] (494) + סֵֽפֶר [book] (340) = 3654.
Rashi
And he shall place the scroll upon him who does not know how to read. And when they take it from him and open its seal and give it to one who does not know the language of letters, and they say to him, “Please read this,” and he says, “I do not know how to read,” thus, when they cause the commander of the fire to take an oath, he will say, “I cannot, for the matter is sealed from me.” And when they cause his companion to take an oath, he will say, “I do not recognize this name by which you are making me swear, for this is not my name.” This is what Jeremiah said: “Behold, I am setting before you the vessels of war that are in your hands” (Jeremiah 21:4). This refers to the Explicit Name, as in the Midrash Tehillim:
Ibn Ezra
"And He shall give, etc." The meaning is that the wise who understand will not comprehend this prophecy, nor will those who lack understanding.
Radak
"And he shall give the book to him who knows not how to read." And he says, "I do not know how to read a book," and even if it were open, for the foolish among you will find a pretext, saying, "We do not understand the words of God," they say to our Sages. And behold, their sages and prophets will taste [of punishment]; behold, between this and that, the book will not be read. Thus, the words of the Lord will not be heard among you, neither by the wise nor by the foolish. And it is possible to interpret "the vision of all" [chazot hakol] as meaning that "chazot" [vision] will not be adjacent [to anything specific], and "hakol" [all] will be like "kol" [to all], and the meaning of the prophecy is to all of you, both to your wise and to your foolish, according to the words of the sealed book.
“Concerning that which He did not know.” That is to say, “to that which He did not know,” just as it says, “And Elkanah went to Ramah, to his house,” and just as it says, “And she prayed to the Lord,” where “to” is used in the sense of “to.” And Jonathan [ben Uzziel] rendered it in the Targum: “The sealed book,” meaning that His words are concealed and sealed.
Metzudat David
"And he shall give the book." And when he gives the book to one who does not know how to read a book, he should answer and say, "I do not know how to read." Even if he were deficient [in knowledge], and likewise the fools among you say, "We do not understand even the matters that are explained to us," and they said to the sages:
Metzudat Zion
"Al asher." Like "el asher":
Malbim
And he gave the book: How will they give it from now on to a person from the masses, who even if they remove the seal and open the letter, nevertheless will not be able to read it for another reason, namely that he does not know the book and the language of the learned? The intention here is that they think that the prophecy was spoken to the prophet in parables and is sealed from above with a tight seal, as it is written, “Is not the parable one who parables?” And the prophet, even though he is wise and understands every vision, will not be able to know the content of the words of the prophecy because it is sealed in riddles and allusions. And all the more so is it impossible for the common person to understand it, who even if the matter were told to him without riddles would not understand lofty matters that come from the Highest Mouth. And with this they came to deny that it is impossible for a person to know and understand the words of the living God: “There is no man on dry land who can endure the word of the king.”
And the Lord said: Forasmuch as this people draw near, and with their mouth and with their lips do honour Me, But have removed their heart far from Me, And their fear of Me is a commandment of men learned by rote;
verse value 4992
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 77 letters. Verse gematria: 4992 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "and·as" (כִּ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·in·his·lips" (וּבִשְׂפָתָיו֙, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·in·his·lips" (וּבִשְׂפָתָיו֙), "they·honored·me" (כִּבְּד֔וּנִי), "from·me" (מִמֶּ֑נִּי). 19 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "and·as" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah); "and·it·was" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·me', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 6 words.
Rashi
“Because this people have come near.” Jonathan rendered it: “Because this people have exalted themselves,” meaning that they have drawn near to exalt themselves, even to the heavens. They appear to honor Me with their mouth and lips, yet they have distanced their heart from Me.
"And the fear of Me was upon them." Not with a whole heart, but as a commandment of men who teach them; you showed yourselves as though humbled before Him, in order to beguile Him with your mouth.
Ibn Ezra
And he said. "For he was pressed" – from the root of "and those who press on hasten" (Exodus 5:13), in the Nifal conjugation; and the meaning is that he would afflict his soul for naught by fasting (Aderet Eliyahu, from "And Judah drew near to him" in Genesis 44:18).
In his mouth. Each one:
"The commandments of men, taught as doctrine" – according to the sense of "customary," as it is said, "The calf does not learn" (Jeremiah 31:18):
Radak
And He said, “Because they have drawn near.” There is a dispute regarding the reading of this word. Some read it with a shin dotted on the right, like “Joseph drew near” and “Rachel drew near,” meaning “approached.” And so it is according to the tradition upon it, which states, “there is none like it in the Book.” But if it is read with a shin dotted on the left, there is another instance like it: “He drew near, and he was answered.” However, the Targum reads it with a sin, like “those who draw near run,” which it translated as “those who have become numerous.” And so it is found in some manuscripts: “they have drawn near” with a sin. The explanation of the verse according to the reading of “drawn near” with a shin is thus: “Because” is connected to “therefore,” which He said in another verse. He said: Because they did this, therefore I will add. He said: Behold, they are close to Me in appearance and honor Me with their mouths, but they distance their hearts from Me. According to the reading of “drawn near” with a sin, it will be explained according to the opinion of the translator: Because they are great in their own eyes and show themselves as drawing near to the rest of the people to honor the Lord with their mouths and to pray before Him. And we will explain “drawn near” as “pressed,” like “He drew near, and he was answered.” He says that when they have distress, they honor Me with their mouths and bring their mouths and lips close to Me, but they distance their hearts from Me, and their fear of Me is “the commandments of men taught as doctrine.” For one who does only what is commanded and does not add from himself is not doing the thing from his desire, from his will.
Metzudat David
“Because they have drawn near.” Because this people has drawn near to Me to approach in speech of the mouth, and they honor Me with their lips, but not with their heart do they speak, for their heart is far from Me.
"And the fear of Me was upon them." That which they fear is not from the heart, but rather like the commandments of men who teach and say, "Appear as if you are afraid and submissive."
Metzudat Zion
Approached. A word denoting bringing near and proximity.
Malbim
And He said, “Because this people has come near with their mouth, and honored Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.” This means: Since this people has come near, behold, they are thinking that with such arguments they are coming near to Me and drawing close to the Lord, in that they magnify and revere the word of the Lord, which is above human intellect and comprehension. But in truth, they honor Me only with their mouth and their lips through this, for thereby they distance their hearts from Me. For through this they will imagine that it is impossible for a person to also comprehend the commandments of God and His teachings, and as if all that is desired from the commandment and the Torah is only external actions without thought and intention, since the thought of the Most High is, in their view, too exalted for a material creature, and all the ordinances of the Lord are material forms devoid of the spirit of intellect and knowledge. Therefore, “their fear of Me is taught as the precept of men,” meaning that their fear of Me is only the precept of men, and only learned and habitual. That is to say, there are those who perform the commandments only because they are accustomed to them from their youth and were brought up upon them, without intention and thought, and yet they know that they are the commandments of the Lord. But they do not perform them because the Lord commanded them at all, but only because their mothers and fathers commanded them, and even this without knowing any reason for the commandment, only on account of learning and habit. For through such arguments they will become brazen, denying altogether that the Lord commands a person commandments and statutes, and that a person can grasp the intention of the commandments and their straightforward reasons.
Therefore, behold, I will again 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 prudence of their prudent men shall be hid.
verse value 3909
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 62 letters. Notable word values: "and·will·perish" (וְאָֽבְדָה֙) = 18, chai, 'life'. The shortest word is "therefore" (לָכֵ֗ן, 3 letters) and the longest is "this·people" (אֶת־הָעָם־הַזֶּ֖ה, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 468: wisdom·of, and·understanding·of. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "to·act·wonderfully" (לְהַפְלִ֥יא), "this·people" (אֶת־הָעָם־הַזֶּ֖ה), "and·wonder" (וָפֶ֑לֶא). The root פלא appears 3 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "they" (root הן, 86x in Isaiah); "therefore" (root כן, 48x in Isaiah); "his·discerning·ones" (root בין, 43x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·wonder', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: לָכֵ֗ן [therefore] (100) + הִנְנִ֥י [they] (115) + יוֹסִ֛ף [again] (156) + לְהַפְלִ֥יא [to·act·wonderfully] (156) + אֶת־הָעָם־הַזֶּ֖ה [this·people] (533) + הַפְלֵ֣א [a·marvel] (116) + וָפֶ֑לֶא [and·wonder] (117) + וְאָֽבְדָה֙ [and·will·perish] (18) + חׇכְמַ֣ת [wisdom·of] (468) + חֲכָמָ֔יו [wise] (84) + וּבִינַ֥ת [and·understanding·of] (468) + נְבֹנָ֖יו [his·discerning·ones] (118) + תִּסְתַּתָּֽר [will·hide·itself] (1460) = 3909.
Rashi
"Therefore, behold, I am He" — this refers to the One who will add wonders upon wonders, covering upon covering, sealing upon sealing. What are these "wonders upon wonders"? It is the loss of the wisdom of their wise men. The removal of the sages of Israel is twice as severe as the destruction of the Temple. All the curses in Mishneh Torah [the Book of Deuteronomy] are but a single "wondrous [plague]" — "And the Lord will make your plagues wondrous (ve-hifla)" (Deuteronomy 28:59) — whereas here there are two wonders.
Ibn Ezra
Therefore, I will add. Just as “and I was left (nish'ar ani)” (Ezekiel 9:8), and “For I am wretched” (Psalms 6:3), because the lamed is open. And some say that the word “I will add” is a verb on the pattern of “You have cast my lot” (Psalms 16:5):
"Hefla ve-pela" – so that they should not understand; therefore, following it comes "ve-avadah" (and it was lost). And there is one who says that it is like "oseh pelay" (performing wonders) (Exodus 16:11). And according to my understanding, it means that He performs a wonder of this kind.
Radak
Therefore, behold, I will add. It is a verb in the qal conjugation, with a hireq vowel, like a tzeirei vowel pattern. Similarly, "behold, I will add to your days" (in the verse concerning Hezekiah) has the word tomikh (your strength) with a hireq vowel. And the word "add" implies: in addition to what I have brought upon you, I will bring yet another great evil upon you. To astonish: to bring evil upon them to such an extent that it will be astonishing in the eyes of the beholder, following the pattern of "and He made wonders descend" (Isaiah 25:11). Therefore, He repeated the word, saying "a wonder and a wonder."
"And the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men." In exile and displacement, their wisdom shall be lost; for though they are wise, their wisdom serves them for evil and not for good, as it is stated: "They are wise to do evil, but to do good they know not." Alternatively, the meaning of "and shall perish" is that when calamity befalls them, their wisdom shall be lost, in that they will have no counsel or scheme to save themselves from it, and their wisdom shall then be of no avail to them.
Metzudat David
Therefore, etc. For this reason, I am the One who will continue to bring calamity, until it becomes astonishing in the eyes of those who see it.
"A wonder and a wonder." This means a great and tremendous marvel.
And it shall perish. Then the wisdom of the wise shall be lost, and the understanding of the discerning shall be hidden and concealed. This means that they will not be able to devise a way to escape from the impending evil.
Malbim
Therefore, just as they claim that My words are wondrous, concealed, and hidden, so too I will add to making them wondrous and conceal everything from them, until they will not be able to grasp My words. Moreover, the wisdom that was received by the nation regarding the reasons for the commandments, their understanding, and the straight ways of the Lord will be lost from them. Likewise, the understanding of the wise men, who used to grasp My words through the insight of their own hearts, will be hidden (for indeed, it was incumbent upon them to know that the words of the Lord to the people—His teachings, His commandments, and His prophecy—were not spoken according to the power of the One who influences, but rather according to the preparation and intellect of the recipient, just as a teacher instructs a child according to the child’s intellect, not according to the breadth of the teacher’s heart).
Woe to them that seek deep to hide their counsel from Hashem, and their works are in the dark, and they say: ‘Who sees us? and who knows us?’
verse value 2884
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֤ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "who?" (מִ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·ones·who·go·deep" (הַמַּעֲמִיקִ֥ים, 8 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "the·ones·who·go·deep" (הַמַּעֲמִיקִ֥ים), "to·hide" (לַסְתִּ֣ר), "in·dark-place" (בְמַחְשָׁךְ֙). The root מי appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "from·Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "and·they·said" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'counsel', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 8 words. Full calculation: ה֛וֹי [ah!] (21) + הַמַּעֲמִיקִ֥ים [the·ones·who·go·deep] (315) + מֵיְהֹוָ֖ה [from·Hashem] (66) + לַסְתִּ֣ר [to·hide] (690) + עֵצָ֑ה [counsel] (165) + וְהָיָ֤ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + בְמַחְשָׁךְ֙ [in·dark-place] (370) + מַֽעֲשֵׂיהֶ֔ם [their·works] (465) + וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ [and·they·said] (263) + מִ֥י [who?] (50) + רֹאֵ֖נוּ [sees·us] (257) + וּמִ֥י [and·who] (56) + יֹֽדְעֵֽנוּ [knows·us] (140) = 2884.
Rashi
"To conceal counsel." Just as it is said, "to conceal counsel."
Ibn Ezra
Woe to those who delve deeply: in the depths of their hearts.
The letter lamed is opened to conceal the missing he of the binyan, as in "leshamid" (Isaiah 23:18):
Radak
“Behold those who are deep.” They are deep in their thoughts, seeking to conceal their counsel from God; that is to say, they think that the Lord does not watch over the affairs of the land, and therefore they do whatever they desire, for they say, “He does not see and He does not know.” And the meaning of “in darkness” is as if their deeds are in a place of darkness, hidden from human beings who do not see them; thus they think that all their deeds, whether in secret or in public, God will not see. And so Jonathan [ben Uzziel] translated “in darkness” as “in concealment.”
To conceal. Like the word "to conceal":
Metzudat David
“Woe to those who delve deeply from the Lord.” The prophet said that one should complain about the people who think to hide their counsel from the Lord in the depths of the heart, for they say, “God does not know man’s thoughts.”
“And it shall be in the darkness of their deeds.” All their evil deeds they will do in darkness, to hide themselves from human beings, and they will say, “Who sees us? And who knows of our deeds, since they are done in darkness?” But they are not hidden from the Lord.
Metzudat Zion
“The deep ones.” From the word *omek* (depth):
To conceal. Like the word "to conceal":
Malbim
Alas, after having refuted the sect that claimed that man does not understand the words of the Lord, he begins to refute another sect that claimed that the Lord does not understand the words and affairs of man, and they utterly denied prophecy, saying that it is impossible for the Lord to attend to the deeds of human beings and prophesy them. They also approached this matter from the perspective of the greatness and exaltation of the Name. They said: since vision can only be conceived through the instruments of sight, which are physical senses, and the Name has no physical instruments through which to sense, it is impossible for Him to see the tangible entities that are bound by time and place. And undoubtedly, this sect philosophized extensively on this matter, like the argument of the Greek philosophers in the wisdom of what is beyond nature, who advanced four arguments on this issue:
1. They argued that an increase in knowledge would necessitate an increase in the essence of the knower, but the Lord is One, in whom no change or multiplicity can be attained in any way. This is what it says: "Woe to those who are deep with the Lord" – for they delved deeply in their inquiry on the basis that He is the Lord, One, and cannot be multiplied.
2. They argued that it would necessarily result in new knowledge arising in Him due to the new counsel that man generates, since man chooses and counsels through free will, and this would necessitate change in the unchanging essence. This is what it says: "to confound counsel."
3. They argued that from this it would follow that the knower would be perfected by the known, and the knower would become identical with the known; and how can light become identical with darkness, the Supreme, who is not subject to limitation, with the material and dark? This is what it says: "and their deeds are in darkness."
4. They argued that since knowledge precedes sensory vision as its instrument, and the intellect abstracts its concepts from the senses, as is known in the wisdom of the soul, and since the Lord does not see with physical eyes, therefore He does not know. This is what it says: "And they said, 'Who sees us?' and consequently, 'Who knows us?'"
O your perversity! 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 framed say of him that framed it: ‘He has no understanding?’
verse value 3648
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 58 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "if·as·clay" (אִם־כְּחֹ֥מֶר, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 31: not, not. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "your·perverseness" (הַ֨פְכְּכֶ֔ם), "if·as·clay" (אִם־כְּחֹ֥מֶר), "He·who·fashions" (הַיֹּצֵ֖ר). The root יצר appears 3 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "that·it·says" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "to·his·maker" (root עשה, 101x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root הפך ("your·perverseness") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'will·be·thought', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 10 words. Full calculation: הַ֨פְכְּכֶ֔ם [your·perverseness] (165) + אִם־כְּחֹ֥מֶר [if·as·clay] (309) + הַיֹּצֵ֖ר [He·who·fashions] (305) + יֵחָשֵׁ֑ב [will·be·thought] (320) + כִּֽי־יֹאמַ֨ר [that·it·says] (281) + מַעֲשֶׂ֤ה [deed] (415) + לְעֹשֵׂ֙הוּ֙ [to·his·maker] (411) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + עָשָׂ֔נִי [did·me] (430) + וְיֵ֛צֶר [and·Jezer] (306) + אָמַ֥ר [said] (241) + לְיֹצְר֖וֹ [to·his·framer] (336) + לֹ֥א [not] (31) + הֵבִֽין [he·understood] (67) = 3648.
Rashi
“Your reversals, if they are to be regarded as the clay of the potter.” Your reversals—this you know: He is like the clay of the potter, for the clay cannot say to its maker, “You did not make me thus.” Likewise, you cannot say, “I do not understand your deeds.”
“Like clay, etc.” This is an expression of rhetorical question, and there are rhetorical questions that hold true.
"לעושהו" – like "על עושהו," and its parallel is "And Pharaoh said to the children of Israel" (Exodus 14), "Lest they say to me, 'A woman killed him'" (Judges 9).
And the thing formed said to its Maker, “He did not understand.” He said concerning his Creator, “He does not understand what He has formed,” for behold, He constructed his hidden stores, his chambers, and his thoughts.
Ibn Ezra
"Your deceitfulness." And behold, it is the opposite of truth:
If he is regarded as the clay of the potter, the human being:
And He formed. From the root of “forming,” it is said: “Because of His Former”, yet one does not understand this. And behold, the lamed [in “yotzer”] is like the lamed in “Amri li” (Genesis 20:1):
Radak
“Your reversal is light.” This is in the manner of “truth,” as in “And if He creates, He will create” (Numbers 16:30), and “And to mockers He will mock” (Proverbs 3:34), and similar verses, which I explained in this way in my book Sefer HaMiklol, in the section on grammar. He says, “In truth, your reversal is light in My sight, like the potter’s clay is accounted before Him.” Just as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so that he may make from it one vessel and then return to make another vessel, as it pleases the potter; so too, your reversal is light in My hand, for you are in My hand like the clay in the potter’s hand. And how can you say, “He does not see our deeds”?
"When he says, 'A work to its Maker'—in a tone of astonishment: 'And does a work say to its Maker, "You did not make me"? What business does he have to transform me from one vessel into another?' The matter is repeated in different words, and it says, 'or shall the thing formed say of its Former: He has no understanding?'"
"ויצר" (the vessel formed). This is the name for a vessel formed by the hand of the potter. And the lamed of "le-osehu" [and] "le-yotzro" is in place of "concerning," like the lamed of "say of me (imri li)" (Genesis 20:13).
Metzudat David
“Your perversity.” Your perversities are truly like the material of the potter; so shall your perversity be reckoned by Me. That is to say: Just as the potter knows what is in the material, so all your thoughts are revealed to Me.
"When he shall say": Perhaps one might say something that is done by the one who performed it, namely, "He has not made me."
"And He formed." Does one say of the potter that he is the vessel made by the potter? He did not understand the formation of My work. That is to say: just as this is not so, so too your thoughts are not hidden from Me.
Metzudat Zion
“Your deceitfulness.” The word is in the form of “haphukh,” and it means that you have inverted justice.
If. In truth, and so too, “And if the Lord creates a new creation” (Numbers 16:30).
Like clay. Like mud:
HaYotzer. So is called a potter.
"When he shall say." Lest he say:
"To Him who makes it." [The accent is on] "makes it." And likewise "say of me: he is my brother" (Genesis 20:13), and the like.
"Ve-yetzer." The vessel made by a potter of clay.
He understood. The word is from the root *binah* (understanding):
Malbim
“Your reversal”: He answers them regarding these claims of theirs, that all these claims reached the philosophers from the fact that they imagine that time and space and the attainment of the senses, which are the conditions for the intellectual comprehension of the human intellect, are the conditions for every intellect in general. And by this they judge from man’s attainment and his comprehension, which attains only through sense, to the attainment of every intellect in general. And this is a great error, for the attainment of the intellect from its own side is not dependent on the conditions of the senses at all. And the infinite intellect attains all as one, a simple attainment not dependent on time and space and their attainers at all. For time and space are not conditions of things as they are in themselves, but only as they are perceived by the senses, as is known in the wisdom of the clarity of the intellect. And the intellect that does not comprehend through sense will attain the essences of past, present, and future things in a simple, unchanging attainment, which does not increase from the fact that it knows Its own Self, until it attains the Lord knowing all that exists from beginning to end in one attainment, without this necessitating multiplicity and change in His Essence, and without space and time hindering Him. For space and time are only with our attainment, which is limited to seeing through these glasses. And the essence of attainment from the intellect itself truly requires that knowledge precede sight, that it first know the things from their own side, and through this knowledge it will see them, meaning it will also attain them according to their conditions, as the one who sees through sense attains them. And even this knowledge is necessarily found with the Creator of the eye and the Planter of the ear, who necessarily knows how man will serve with these vessels, and how he will see, hear, and sense according to the conditions of his attainment which the Lord limited for him. However, the Lord knows this not by seeing through sense, but only by knowing, in such a way that knowledge precedes sight. And what is the case with man, that sight precedes knowledge, is truly the reverse order, and this is his deficiency from the fact that he is possessed of matter. And therefore it says “Your reversal”: with you, truly, the matter is reversed, and your attainment is reversed from the true, pure intellectual attainment. But should the Creator be considered as matter? Is it because matter’s attainment is reversed, and it does not attain only after it sees, that it is therefore necessary that these conditions also be found in the Creator? And how do you bring proof from your attainment to the attainment of the Lord? But how can you deny that the Lord does not know and attain man’s nature and his characteristics? For just as it is impossible to say to the work, “He who made me did not make me,” so too it is impossible that the created thing should say to its Creator, “He did not understand me.” For just as the maker changes the accidents of the made matter, and this change testifies to an acting changer, which is called a maker, so too the Creator changes the essence of the matter which He created, and fashions its adhering form (for this is the difference between a Creator and a maker). And necessarily He understands and attains the essence of the thing which He created and its essential matters, as it is stated, “If He who forms the eye, does He not see?” And these preliminaries are explained in the Guide for the Perplexed (Part II) and in the wisdom of metaphysics.
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?
verse value 2255
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 41 letters. The shortest word is "little·of" (מְעַ֣ט, 3 letters) and the longest is "is·it·not·yet" (הֲלוֹא־עוֹד֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 320: to·the·fruitful-field, will·be·thought. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "is·it·not·yet" (הֲלוֹא־עוֹד֙). The root כרמל appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "is·it·not·yet" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "and·it·shall·turn" (root שוב, 51x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·fruitful-field', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: הֲלוֹא־עוֹד֙ [is·it·not·yet] (122) + מְעַ֣ט [little·of] (119) + מִזְעָ֔ר [a little] (317) + וְשָׁ֥ב [and·it·shall·turn] (308) + לְבָנ֖וֹן [Lebanon] (138) + לַכַּרְמֶ֑ל [to·the·fruitful-field] (320) + וְהַכַּרְמֶ֖ל [and·plantation] (301) + לַיַּ֥עַר [to·the·forest] (310) + יֵחָשֵֽׁב [will·be·thought] (320) = 2255.
Rashi
Is it not but a little while? In a few days it will be easy in My sight if you return to Me.
"And it shall return to Lebanon." This refers to a forest of trees, so that it will be like Carmel, and it will become fields and vineyards.
"And Carmel shall be counted as a forest." Jonathan rendered it: "Many inhabitants will dwell there." And the Midrash in Genesis Rabbah states: "The forests of man—cities will be inhabited, and people will be densely packed and filled, like this forest, which is full of trees."
Ibn Ezra
Is it not a small matter? In the days:
“And Lebanon shall be turned.” This refers to the fact that it yields more fruit than Carmel, as Carmel is like a forest, and this is the reason for their hunger.
Radak
“Is it not yet.” “Is it not yet” — in a short time you will see the opposite of what I am doing to you. And the phrase “a very little” is a double expression using different words to emphasize the brevity of the time. The prophecy was spoken in the days of Ahaz, and it stated that this would happen soon, in the days of Hezekiah.
“Return to Lebanon, to Carmel.” Lebanon is the Forest of Lebanon, which contains tall and lofty cedars.
"And Carmel." This is a place of grain fields, vineyards, and lowly trees. This is the parable he stated regarding the arrogant and haughty who were in the days of Ahaz: they will return to being lowly in the days of Hezekiah, to the extent that they will not have the authority to speak; they will return against their will to the good path. And "Carmel"—that is, the lowly and humble ones who were in the days of Ahaz, and who did not have the power in their hands to admonish them—will be exalted in the days of Hezekiah like the cedars of the forest of Lebanon, and they will increase in honor and greatness until they resemble the cedars of Lebanon, as it is stated, "And the humble shall increase in the Lord with joy."
Metzudat David
“Is it not yet a little while?” This is as if to say: If you were to ask, “If the Omnipresent knows all thoughts, why does He not reward the righteous according to their righteousness and punish the wicked according to their wickedness?” To this He says: “Is it not yet a little while?”—meaning, in a short time I will render recompense. “The forest of Lebanon shall become a fertile field, and the fertile field shall be regarded as a forest.” This means: I will exalt the lowly and humble the lofty.
Metzudat Zion
"Miz'ar." This is like "me'at" (a little), as in "and there remained a remnant of man, miz'ar" (above, 24:6). For if the verse had said "me'at," it would have said "miz'ar" to indicate restriction.
Lebanon. The name of a forest in the Land of Israel:
"To Carmel." It is a place of fields and vineyards. And similarly, "And the wilderness became Carmel" (below, 32:15).
Malbim
Behold, you shall see how the words of the prophets will be fulfilled, and not a word of them shall fall to the ground. In a very little while, in a short time, "Lebanon shall be turned into Carmel" — Lebanon, full of worthless trees, is an allegory for the wicked; it shall become like Carmel, which is a field of grain and fruit, meaning that the wicked will bear holy fruit and good deeds. And Carmel has a deficiency, for it is soft and weak. "And Carmel shall be regarded as a forest," meaning like a forest whose trees are strong and mighty; that is to say, the righteous will be strong and vigorous.
And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of a book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.
verse value 3279
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 51 letters. The shortest word is "eye" (עֵינֵ֥י, 4 letters) and the longest is "in·that·day" (בַיּוֹם־הַה֛וּא, 8 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "in·that·day" (בַיּוֹם־הַה֛וּא), "words·of·a·book" (דִּבְרֵי־סֵ֑פֶר), "and·from·darkness" (וּמֵאֹ֣פֶל). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·that·day" (root יום, 124x in Isaiah); "and·they·shall·hear" (root שמע, 106x in Isaiah); "words·of·a·book" (root דבר, 88x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'words·of·a·book', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְשָׁמְע֧וּ [and·they·shall·hear] (422) + בַיּוֹם־הַה֛וּא [in·that·day] (75) + הַחֵרְשִׁ֖ים [deaf] (563) + דִּבְרֵי־סֵ֑פֶר [words·of·a·book] (556) + וּמֵאֹ֣פֶל [and·from·darkness] (157) + וּמֵחֹ֔שֶׁךְ [and·from·darkness] (374) + עֵינֵ֥י [eye] (140) + עִוְרִ֖ים [blind] (326) + תִּרְאֶֽינָה [they·will·see] (666) = 3279.
Rashi
"And you shall hear on that day, etc." And the curse mentioned above will be nullified, for "the Lord will pour upon you, etc., and you shall have the vision of all, and the wisdom of his wise men shall perish."
Ibn Ezra
And they shall hear. Then they will understand the words of prophecy, and these blind ones will not see except after they have been in darkness.
Radak
And they shall hear. Those who were deaf shall now come to hear the words of the scroll, and they were blind to see them, as it was stated above, “And it shall be for you a vision of all things according to the words of the sealed scroll.” And from darkness and gloom shall be for them, meaning that the distress shall cause them to see the prophecy that will be fulfilled, in which they were blind when the prophet was admonishing them.
Metzudat David
“And they shall hear in that day…”: When they see that I am recompensing [the righteous], then even those who stopped up their ears from hearing the words of the Book, as if they were deaf, behold, at that time they will hear the words of the Book.
"And the dark and the gloom..." Even from within the darkness, and even the eyes of the blind shall see the words of the Book. This means: even those who refused to see the words of the Book, as if they were in darkness, and even though they were blind in their eyes, behold, then they shall see.
Metzudat Zion
Words of the Book. This means: narratives of the words of the Omnipresent.
And "um'ofal." The word is derived from "afelah" (darkness) and "choshekh" (gloom).
Malbim
And they shall hear, and then the two groups with whom He has argued up to this point will be removed [proven wrong]: the group mentioned in verses 11 and 15, who claimed that the words of the prophet are like a sealed book, incomprehensible; then the deaf shall hear and understand the words of the book. And the group mentioned in verse 15, who said that the Lord does not see in the darkness the deeds of man—now, not only will they recognize that the Lord knows and sees, for with Him darkness is as light, but also the eyes of the blind, who are human beings, shall see then from gloom and darkness, and they shall attain a prophetic perception that is not dependent on sensory faculties.
The humble also shall increase their joy in Hashem, and the neediest among men shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.
verse value 1861
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 44 letters. The shortest word is "man" (אָדָ֔ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·needy·of" (וְאֶבְיוֹנֵ֣י, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·they·shall·continue" (וְיָסְפ֧וּ), "and·needy·of" (וְאֶבְיוֹנֵ֣י). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "Israel" (root ישראל, 84x in Isaiah); "in·Holy-One·of" (root קדוש, 37x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'joy', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְיָסְפ֧וּ [and·they·shall·continue] (162) + עֲנָוִ֛ים [humble] (176) + בַּֽיהֹוָ֖ה [in·Hashem] (28) + שִׂמְחָ֑ה [joy] (353) + וְאֶבְיוֹנֵ֣י [and·needy·of] (85) + אָדָ֔ם [man] (45) + בִּקְד֥וֹשׁ [in·Holy-One·of] (412) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (541) + יָגִֽילוּ [shall·exult] (59) = 1861.
Rashi
The humble: Those who are patient and have borne the yoke of the Holy One, blessed be He, and His decrees.
Ibn Ezra
And they added. The righteous will be saved, for the fortified cities of Judah were captured, because the judges of Ahaz were cut off, as I explained above (Isaiah 1:26):
Radak
"And they shall add." They [the wicked] will be in distress, and the humble will add to their joy in the Lord, for they had believed in Him previously; now that the distress has come, they will add to their joy when they see that the prophecy is fulfilled for them. For the wicked, there is distress; and for them, there is relief and honor. The matter is repeated in different words. And it says "and the poor of man," meaning the poor among mankind, who were in Jerusalem, and they are the humble.
Metzudat David
"And they shall add." Then the humble shall add to their joy in that which they had trusted in the Lord from of old, for they shall see that their hope has not perished.
“And the poor of man.” The poor among the children of men shall rejoice in that they have trusted in the Holy One of Israel. And the matter is doubled in what is stated:
Metzudat Zion
And the poor. The word “avyon” (poor) and “dal” (needy) are named so because he yearns for everything, for all things are lacking to him.
Malbim
"ויספו" – there is a distinction between the Tetragrammaton, which indicates that He is the Creator of the world and guides it through nature, and "Kadosh Yisrael" (the Holy One of Israel), which indicates His particular providence, as well as His signs and wonders. Likewise, there is a distinction between "simcha" (joy), which denotes continuous joy, and "gil" (exultation), which denotes something newly occurring. And similarly, there is a distinction between "anavim" (the humble), which denotes the righteous, and "evyonim adam" (the poor of man), which denotes the masses of people. In light of this, the righteous and the humble, who do not require wonders and changes in nature, because they believe in the Tetragrammaton on the basis that He is the Creator of the world and guides it through constant governance, will continue to rejoice in the Tetragrammaton just as they have rejoiced until now in His governance. And the poor of man, the masses, who did not rejoice in the Tetragrammaton because they do not recognize the Tetragrammaton in His continuous governance, will exult with a new exultation through "Kadosh Yisrael," namely the miracles and wonders that will then be renewed.
For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner ceases, and all they that watch for iniquity are cut off;
verse value 1925
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 30 letters. The shortest word is "scorner" (לֵ֑ץ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·shall·be·cut·off" (וְנִכְרְת֖וּ, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "scorner" (לֵ֑ץ), "and·shall·be·cut·off" (וְנִכְרְת֖וּ), "all·watchers·of" (כׇּל־שֹׁ֥קְדֵי). 7 unique roots are used. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'scorner', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: כִּי־אָפֵ֥ס [for·he·has·ceased] (171) + עָרִ֖יץ [awe-inspiring] (370) + וְכָ֣לָה [and·extermination] (61) + לֵ֑ץ [scorner] (120) + וְנִכְרְת֖וּ [and·shall·be·cut·off] (682) + כׇּל־שֹׁ֥קְדֵי [all·watchers·of] (464) + אָֽוֶן [iniquity] (57) = 1925.
Rashi
All who are diligent in iniquity. Those who are diligent and contemplate how to commit iniquity.
Ibn Ezra
"Ki efes": The word "tam" is similar to "ki efes kesef" (Genesis 47:16).
All who are diligent in iniquity. Just as it says, “to stand watch at my doors” (Proverbs 8:34):
Radak
“Ki afes.” They will rejoice and exult when they see the utter ruin of the arrogant and mockers, and those who are vigilant in wrongdoing, for they had no authority to speak before them or to reprove them; when they see their calamity, they will exult, as it is said, “At the destruction of the wicked, there is rejoicing.” The meaning is: “shokdei avon,” those who are engaged in and swift toward wrongdoing, and who constantly intend how to bring it about.
Metzudat David
For the tyrant shall be utterly destroyed. For then shall every tyrant be consumed, and the scoffer shall be destroyed, and all who are hasty to do wickedness shall be cut off.
Metzudat Zion
"Efes." The matter of destruction is like "exhausted" (Genesis 47:14):
“Arutz.” Chazak—meaning, strong in wickedness—shokedi. The matter of swiftness and exertion, as it is said, “They were vigilant and kept watch” (Ezra 8:29).
"Aven." The matter is a thing that is not proper:
Malbim
For, until now, three causes were found that caused the people to stumble, so that the deaf did not hear the words of the Book, and the humble did not rejoice in the Lord. The tyrants, who are the powerful rulers that prevented the people from serving God by force and compelled them to serve idolatry; now the tyrant is exhausted. The mockers, who seduced the people with mocking words away from God; now the mocker is ended. Those vigilant for iniquity, who commit sins in public, and from them the rest of the people learned to act like them; now those vigilant for iniquity are cut off. Now it explains, saying against the mockers.
That make a man an offender by words, and lay a snare for him that reproves in the gate, And turn aside the just with a thing of nought.
verse value 2137
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 41 letters. The shortest word is "man" (אָדָם֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·for·the·reprover" (וְלַמּוֹכִ֥יחַ, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "who·make·sin" (מַחֲטִיאֵ֤י), "and·for·the·reprover" (וְלַמּוֹכִ֥יחַ), "in·the·gate" (בַּשַּׁ֖עַר). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·thing" (root דבר, 88x in Isaiah); "man" (root אדם, 30x in Isaiah); "and·they·turned·aside" (root נטה, 27x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root תהו ("in·the·waste") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·lay·a·snare', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: מַחֲטִיאֵ֤י [who·make·sin] (78) + אָדָם֙ [man] (45) + בְּדָבָ֔ר [in·thing] (208) + וְלַמּוֹכִ֥יחַ [and·for·the·reprover] (120) + בַּשַּׁ֖עַר [in·the·gate] (572) + יְקֹשׁ֑וּן [they·lay·a·snare] (466) + וַיַּטּ֥וּ [and·they·turned·aside] (31) + בַתֹּ֖הוּ [in·the·waste] (413) + צַדִּֽיק [just] (204) = 2137.
Rashi
"Who lead people astray in a matter" – these are the false prophets.
"And for him who reproves in the gate they lay a snare." Targum: And for him who reproves them, they seek to trip him up; this is the term for a snare (mokesh).
"And they shall turn aside the righteous with emptiness." And they shall pervert with falsehood the judgment of the innocent.
Ibn Ezra
“Who cause others to sin.” They should guard a person’s speech, and cause him to sin, in order to punish him; or they cause others to sin through their words.
Yekushon. From the root of *mukash* (Deuteronomy 7:16). And Rabbi Moses the Cohen said that they will reprove the reprover, from the root of *hitkashshu* and *kashu* [Zephaniah 2:1], and he said that the shin ought to have a dagesh.
Radak
"Who lead the innocent astray." When a person reproves them with words, they consider the matter against him as a sin, as if he had struck them. And likewise, "to him who reproves in the gate, they will wound him," meaning: one who reproves them in the gate, that is, in public, so that they may be corrected—they will disfigure him and cause him to stumble in his ways; that is, they will conspire all manner of evil against him and inform on him to the king, and they "turn the righteous aside from his way" (Job 17:9), to naught and vanity. And Targum Jonathan translates: "And they will pervert the judgment of the righteous with falsehood."
Yakushon. It is from the root of the letter ayin, and it pertains to the concept of "mukash" (being entangled or ensnared), so that "yakesh" and "kush" would be of one meaning. And in Targum Jonathan it reads: "takkla lo" (they cast a stumbling block for him). And there is a way to interpret "yakushon" from the concept of "kash" (straw) and its roots, namely that it is from the root "kashash" (to gather straw). And similarly, "hitkashshu" and "kashu" are from "lekashesh kash" (to gather straw). For just as one who gathers wood or straw collects from here and from there and gathers them together, so too when a person reviles another, he collects his faults from here and from there and says them to him. So too, those whom he rebukes say to him: "You gather insults and reproaches and say them to us, 'Did you not do such-and-such in such-and-such a place or at such-and-such a time? And furthermore, you did such-and-such. How can you presume to act as a rebuker?'"
Metzudat David
“Those who cause [Israel] to sin, etc.” – This refers back to the word “and they shall be cut off” stated in the preceding verse, to teach that those who caused people to sin through matters of speech, namely the false prophets, shall also be cut off.
And to the reprover: They would also cut off those who were preparing a trap for one who was reproving in the gate, which is the place where the judges sit, as it is stated, “And his levirate shall go up to the gate” (Deuteronomy 25:7).
And they shall turn aside, etc. They shall also cut them off, those who mislead the righteous from his righteousness with words of vanity.
Metzudat Zion
Yiqushon. The word is derived from the root meaning "to set a trap" (muqash):
"Tohu": The meaning is a thing that has no substance, as it is written, "And the earth was tohu" (Genesis 1:1-2).
Malbim
"Those who cause a person to sin through speech"—meaning, they caused him to sin through words, mockery, and accusations. Against "those vigilant for iniquity" it says, "and they lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate": if the rebuker reproves them regarding their iniquity, they lay a snare for him. Against "the tyrant" it says, "and they turn aside the righteous with falsehood," meaning they sought pretexts against the righteous in order to kill and destroy them.
Therefore thus says Hashem, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: Jacob shall not now be ashamed, Neither shall his face now wax pale;
verse value 4150
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 62 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 4150 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "therefore" (לָכֵ֗ן, 3 letters) and the longest is "Abraham" (אֶת־אַבְרָהָ֑ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 182: Jacob, Jacob. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "redeemsed" (פָּדָ֖ה), "Abraham" (אֶת־אַבְרָהָ֑ם), "not·now" (לֹֽא־עַתָּ֤ה). The root יעקב appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "and·not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "thus·said" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Abraham', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 7 words.
Rashi
"Who redeemed Abraham." From Ur of the Chaldees:
"Jacob shall not now be ashamed" — from his father.
"And not now shall his face be ashamed." [This is derived from] the father of his father, in whose bed no blemish is found, and whose bed is whole.
Ibn Ezra
Therefore, "Who redeemed Abraham," and brought him out from among the wicked.
They shall become pale. They shall turn white, and this expression is known in Aramaic:
Radak
Therefore. “To the house of Jacob, which He redeemed Abraham.” The explanation of the verse is: “Thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, to the house of Jacob,” meaning that Jacob shall not be ashamed. The matter is that they are all children of Jacob, and when there are wicked people among them, Jacob their father is as if he is ashamed of their deeds, as if he were alive; just as a righteous person is ashamed and embarrassed by the deeds of his son who has gone astray, so too here. The meaning of “who redeemed Abraham” is that just as our father Abraham dwelled among wicked people and the Lord redeemed him from their hands and brought him out of their land, so too the humble ones mentioned above were among the wicked and did not have the power to maintain the ways of the Lord publicly. He said that now the time will come, and this is in the days of Hezekiah, when they will openly maintain the ways of the Lord.
And they sanctified the Holy One of Jacob. And they will be called the House of Jacob in truth, and Jacob will not be ashamed of their deeds; rather, he will rejoice in the deeds of his children in the days of Hezekiah, when they return to the good path. The wicked were destroyed in the preceding wars, and those who remained from them—those who learned from their deeds and were not as wicked as they were, namely those who were erring in spirit and evil—will return to the good path. Thus, Jacob would not be ashamed of their deeds, were he alive.
“His face shall be pale.” It means that they shall become white, as in the Targum’s rendering of “white” as “pale,” and “and shame shall make their faces pale.” Likewise, in the words of our Sages of blessed memory: “One who makes his fellow’s face pale in public.”
Metzudat David
Therefore. Since I will do this thing:
"Asher padeh." This means: The Lord who redeemed Abraham from Ur of the Chaldeans, when he was cast into the fiery furnace.
"Now Jacob shall not be ashamed." For when Israel does not do the will of the Omnipresent, it is as if our father Jacob were ashamed on account of the matter; therefore it says, "From now on, Jacob shall not be ashamed."
His face shall grow pale. The matter is stated twice, as it is written:
Metzudat Zion
“Redeem.” The language of redemption and deliverance.
"יחורו" – The Targum translates "לבן" as "חיור," which refers to the matter of shame, for when one is ashamed, his face turns pale.
Malbim
Therefore, the lesson of the verse is: “Thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob” — for when Abraham first began to publicize the belief in God, he was alone among many nations of idolaters, and they pursued him and cursed him, until they cast him into the furnace of the Chaldeans. Nevertheless, the Lord saved him and redeemed him. And so too will He aid this people, the remnant, as it is stated below (51:2): “Look to Abraham your father, for he was one when I called him; I blessed him and made him many.” Thus, Jacob shall no longer be ashamed because of himself, nor shall his face grow pale before others (for this is the distinction between shame and the paling of the face). The phrase “nor shall his face grow pale” is explained in relation to others: until now, they have humiliated him, saying that God’s providence has departed from him. But now
When he sees his children, the work of My hands, in the midst of him, That they sanctify My name; indeed, they shall sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, And shall stand in awe of the God of Israel.
verse value 5032
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 68 letters. The shortest word is "when" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·they·shall·sanctify" (וְהִקְדִּ֙ישׁוּ֙, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "when·he·sees" (בִ֠רְאֹת֠וֹ), "his·children" (יְלָדָ֞יו), "consecrate" (יַקְדִּ֣ישֽׁוּ). The root קדש appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "when" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah); "Israel" (root ישראל, 84x in Isaiah); "when·he·sees" (root ראה, 83x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·name', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 6 words. Full calculation: כִּ֣י [when] (30) + בִ֠רְאֹת֠וֹ [when·he·sees] (609) + יְלָדָ֞יו [his·children] (60) + מַעֲשֵׂ֥ה [deed] (415) + יָדַ֛י [my·hands] (24) + בְּקִרְבּ֖וֹ [in·his·midst] (310) + יַקְדִּ֣ישֽׁוּ [consecrate] (430) + שְׁמִ֑י [my·name] (350) + וְהִקְדִּ֙ישׁוּ֙ [and·they·shall·sanctify] (431) + אֶת־קְד֣וֹשׁ [the·Holy·One·of] (811) + יַֽעֲקֹ֔ב [Jacob] (182) + וְאֶת־אֱלֹהֵ֥י [and·the·God·of] (453) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (541) + יַעֲרִֽיצוּ [they·shall·revere] (386) = 5032.
Rashi
“For when He sees His children—namely, those who are the work of His hands, meaning the righteous within Him—when He sees within Him that the work of His hands sanctifies My Name, such as Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, therefore his face shall not be ashamed.”
Ibn Ezra
"When He sees His children": And the good that I do with the good, they shall sanctify My Name.
“Ye shall fear Me.” Others will fear, or it is a participle in the present tense: after mentioning Jacob, he said by way of parable that if he were alive and saw the good children and the marvel that I will do with them, he and his sons would sanctify My Name, for I am the Holy One of Jacob.
Radak
"for when he saw them." Explanation: When Jacob saw his children, that they were truly his children and sons, walking in the good path, and when he saw the work of his hands within him, and this is what I will do to the camp of Assyria that comes into his land, and when he saw that his children sanctify My Name for the great miracle:
“And they shall sanctify the Holy One of Jacob.” This means that when they sanctify His Name, they shall say, “Holy One of Jacob and God of Israel, who is their Father.” Then Jacob shall not be ashamed, but rather he shall rejoice. All of this is metaphorical, as we have explained. The meaning of “they shall revere” is that they shall ascribe to Him in their praise the power and might by which He struck down in the camp of Assyria, during the night, one hundred and eighty-five thousand men, and their valor, strength, and multitude of troops did not avail them. And the reason why the sanctity of God is linked to Jacob in every instance, whereas He did not do so for the other patriarchs, is as stated in “Holy One of Jacob,” and as stated, “Thus says the Lord of Hosts, the Holy One of Israel, the Mighty One of Jacob,” and as stated, “The Holy One of Israel, your Savior,” and as stated, “Your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,” and as stated, “The Holy One of Israel, your Fashioner,” and as stated, “The Redeemer of Israel, His Holy One.” Although some of these may be interpreted as referring to Israel in general, nevertheless, there are among them those that can only be interpreted as referring to Jacob himself. And He said this because Jacob beheld the sanctity of God in the prophetic vision, in the dream of the ladder set upon the earth, whose top reached to heaven.
Metzudat David
"For when He sees..." The verse is inverted, meaning: "For when He sees within Himself..." That is to say: He will not be ashamed, for when He sees within Himself His children—the work of My hands—meaning righteous and worthy individuals who will sanctify My Name.
"And they sanctified them, etc." The repetition of the matter is for emphasis.
"They shall revere." They will praise [Him], saying that strength is in His hand.
Metzudat Zion
“Within him.” This means: within his offspring.
"They shall be strong." It denotes the concept of strength.
Malbim
For He created them as His children, He will also see that the work of My hands, My signs, and My wonders are within them, for the work of My hands and My marvels will be exalted among His children for honor and glory. And Jacob shall not be ashamed from now on, for until now he was ashamed because of his evil deeds, but now he will see that his children will sanctify My Name through their good deeds. Now he explains what was stated, “they will sanctify My Name,” and “they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob,” meaning that through the holiness of their deeds, the Name of the Lord will be sanctified (as stated in the note above, 5:16). And regarding what was stated, “the work of My hands is within them,” this is through the miracles that I will perform, and thereby “they will revere the God of Israel”—all will see His power and His strength, blessed be He.
They also that err in spirit shall come to understanding, And they that murmur shall learn instruction.
verse value 1400
Insights
Verse structure: 5 words, 30 letters. Verse gematria: 1400 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "understanding" (בִּינָ֑ה, 4 letters) and the longest is "they·shall·learn·instruction" (יִלְמְדוּ־לֶֽקַח, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "erring·in·spirit" (תֹֽעֵי־ר֖וּחַ), "and·murmuring" (וְרוֹגְנִ֖ים), "they·shall·learn·instruction" (יִלְמְדוּ־לֶֽקַח). 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·know" (root ידע, 73x in Isaiah); "understanding" (root בין, 43x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'understanding', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 2 words. Full calculation: וְיָדְע֥וּ [and·they·shall·know] (96) + תֹֽעֵי־ר֖וּחַ [erring·in·spirit] (694) + בִּינָ֑ה [understanding] (67) + וְרוֹגְנִ֖ים [and·murmuring] (315) + יִלְמְדוּ־לֶֽקַח [they·shall·learn·instruction] (228) = 1400.
Rashi
And the slanderers shall learn a lesson. The term "slanderers" (roganim) is derived from the language of "and you slandered in your tents" (Deuteronomy 1:27); those who were complaining and slandering the words of the prophets shall learn a lesson.
Ibn Ezra
And they shall know. "Their complainers," like "and you complained in your tents" (Deuteronomy 1:27), and they are the opposite of those who study.
Radak
"And they shall know." Those who were previously of wandering spirit, upon seeing this great miracle, shall know understanding; that is to say, they shall contemplate the deeds of God, and shall know that He watches over the deeds of man, and shall know that all that the prophets, the prophets of the Name, had said to them was true. The matter is repeated in different words, and it says, "and they are of wandering spirit," and "He took" refers to the Torah, as it is written: "For I give you good doctrine, forsake My Torah not."
Metzudat David
"Those who are of a wandering spirit." Even those who wander in their spirit, so as not to know Me, will then know understanding.
"Roganim" (informers/accusers). Those who are accustomed to complaining and grumbling should abandon their ways and learn a lesson, namely the Torah, which is called "a good lesson," as it is stated, "For it is a good lesson" (Proverbs 4:2), and as it is said, "And if even after all this you will not listen to Me..."—why then should Jacob be ashamed? From now on.
Metzudat Zion
Tua'i. The matter is confusion of the mind, and it is borrowed from one who goes from the straight path to the crooked path.
And "roganim." The matter is one of complaint and grumbling, as it is said: "And you complained in your tents" (Deuteronomy 1:27).
Malbim
"And the foolish shall know understanding"—these are the foolish in spirit, who stray from the paths of understanding through their intellect and are led astray by counterfeit proofs; they are those who lack the understanding to discern one matter from another through true, non-deceptive proofs. They, then, shall know understanding.
And those who are called "the grumblers" are called "the grumblers" out of willfulness, not because of an error of the intellect, for they do not investigate at all; rather, they contend willfully concerning the matter of God. And they lack the lesson they should take and accept the word of wisdom. They will learn the lesson to take the words of wisdom and believe in them.
Rashi
Ibn Ezra
Radak
Metzudat David
Metzudat Zion
Malbim