Woe to the rebellious children, says Hashem, That take counsel, but not of Me; and that form projects, but not of My spirit, that they may add sin to sin;
verse value 4088
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 68 letters. The shortest word is "ah!" (ה֣וֹי, 3 letters) and the longest is "says·Hashem" (נְאֻם־יְהֹוָ֔ה, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 37: and·not, and·not. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·to·pour·out" (וְלִנְסֹ֥ךְ), "molten·image" (מַסֵּכָ֖ה), "to·sweep·away" (סְפ֥וֹת). The root לא appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "says·Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "and·not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "to·do" (root עשה, 101x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·spirit', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 4 words.
Rashi
"Rebellious ones." They turn away from the path:
"To pour out a molten image." To liken them to a ruler, but not by My spirit and My will. And what is the libation? It is Pharaoh.
Ibn Ezra
Woe. Alas, for the rebellious children:
And not from Me. And not from Me; and likewise, “Look away from Me” (Isaiah 22:4):
"And to pour out the libation of the *masechah*." This is similar to the usage in "and the *masechah*" (Isaiah 25:7), where the meaning is a metaphor for counsel.
"And not from My spirit." The meaning is: from My prophecy.
Radak
“Woe to the rebellious children!” Now, at the beginning of the book, it is stated that Isaiah prophesied in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, and Ahaz. Yet we do not find in the records of these kings that they sought assistance from Egypt, as is described in these passages and for which they were reproached. If we were to say that he prophesied concerning the generation of Zedekiah, who came after them, and that he said to them, “Woe,” because they would send to Egypt for help—and indeed they did so—this would not accord with the context of the subsequent passages, which speak of the deliverance that occurred in the days of Hezekiah. Therefore, it is said that this took place in the days of Ahaz, even though this is not written in the Book of Kings or in Chronicles; or perhaps it occurred in the days of Hezekiah himself, when the officials of Judah were not upright, for Hezekiah had to compel them strongly to turn to what is good. Moreover, the king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. Had they been upright, such a thing would not have befallen them. This is the correct interpretation according to the context of these adjacent passages. And the reason he says in each of these passages “the Holy One of Israel” is because He was sanctified among Israel through the matter of the Assyrian camp. And he says, “Woe to the rebellious children,” meaning woe to those who are called “children,” as it is written, “You are children to the Lord your God.” But they are rebellious, a rebellious generation, who turn aside from the good path and abandon their Father in Heaven. And when distress comes upon them, they do not return to Him nor seek help from Him, but rather seek help from their enemies. And in all that they do, they do not inquire of the prophet to seek the word of the Lord concerning all their deeds, but they act according to their own counsel.
"And not from Me." The counsel is not from Me. He repeats the matter in different words, saying, "And to pour out a libation."
And not My Spirit, not from My breath, nor from My words:
"And to pour out a covering." Just as "to devise counsel," for counsel is in secret and hidden, so too "to pour out a covering" refers to the matter of covering and hiding the counsel. And according to Targum Jonathan: "And to be concealed like a king, and not to inquire of prophets." Or the explanation is: "And to pour out a covering" means that they intended to be concealed in the shadow of Egypt.
"So that sin may be added to sin." It was not enough for them with their iniquity and their sin, but they added this sin upon them, that they would seek help, since it was not by my permission. And this is a great rebellion: a servant rebelling against his master by attaching himself to another master in his face.
Metzudat David
Woe. The prophet said: One should complain about Israel, who are rebellious children straying from the path of good, in that they devise counsel, and that counsel is not from Me—meaning, I do not desire it.
“And to weave a covering.” To be covered with a covering and to take refuge in its shadow, and this is not My desire.
"For the purpose of adding." It is as if their sins from that time were too little for them, and they desired to add to them, for seeking help from Egypt is counted as a sin, and they did not inquire of the mouth of the Lord.
Metzudat Zion
"Rebellious [ones]." The matter refers to deviation from the straight path. And likewise, "a rebellious and stubborn son" (ibid. 21:18):
"Meni." From me:
And to pour the libation of the covering. The word is from the root of covering and shielding, like "and the covering that is poured" (above, 25:).
My spirit. The matter of "desire" is similar to "Behold, I will put a spirit within him" (below 37:1).
Sefot. From the language of addition:
Malbim
"Be rebellious sons, turning from the straight path time and again." [1] They sinned by devising a plan that was contrary to God’s commandment, as will be explained in the subsequent verse. [2] They sinned by pouring out a libation to take upon themselves a position of authority, which is also contrary to the Spirit of God and His will. In order that they might add sin upon sin, he now explains his words, corresponding to what was stated above regarding "devising a plan."
That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at My mouth; to take refuge in the stronghold of Pharaoh, and to take shelter in the shadow of Egypt!
verse value 3193
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 51 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "that·go" (הַהֹֽלְכִים֙, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 380: Egypt, Egypt. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "to·go·down" (לָרֶ֣דֶת), "and·my·mouth" (וּפִ֖י), "to·be·strong" (לָעוֹז֙). The root מצרים appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "that·go" (root הלך, 60x in Isaiah); "Egypt" (root מצרים, 38x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·asked', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 6 words. Full calculation: הַהֹֽלְכִים֙ [that·go] (110) + לָרֶ֣דֶת [to·go·down] (634) + מִצְרַ֔יִם [Egypt] (380) + וּפִ֖י [and·my·mouth] (96) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + שָׁאָ֑לוּ [they·asked] (337) + לָעוֹז֙ [to·be·strong] (113) + בְּמָע֣וֹז [into·stronghold·of] (125) + פַּרְעֹ֔ה [Pharaoh] (355) + וְלַחְס֖וֹת [and·to·seek·refuge] (510) + בְּצֵ֥ל [in·shadow·of] (122) + מִצְרָֽיִם [Egypt] (380) = 3193.
Rashi
Those who were going down to Egypt. Concerning Hoshea son of Elah, who sent messengers to So, king of Egypt (II Kings 17:4):
"To go down to Egypt." The Land of Israel is higher than all the lands; another interpretation: "going down" for them
And for shelter. To cover oneself. abri'er, in the vernacular language:
Ibn Ezra
“Those who go...” And behold, the verse explained above:
The mem of "ma'oz" did not change, because it is from the doubled form (pa'al kaful).
Radak
"Those who go down." They go down from their land to descend to Egypt to seek help for themselves. And it says "to descend," because one who travels from Jerusalem is considered as descending.
Metzudat David
“The ones who went.” Now he explains what they did, and says: “who went down to Egypt to seek their help, and did not inquire of the Lord.”
To strength. To strengthen oneself with the strength of Pharaoh:
Metzudat Zion
"To take strength in the stronghold." The matter is one of strength:
Malbim
Those who went down to Egypt to seek aid from Pharaoh, and in the course of this, several people descended to settle there, yet they did not ask for permission, for it was contrary to the commandment of the Torah, which warned: “We shall not return to Egypt” (Maimonides, Laws of Kings, Chapter 5). Against the pouring out of libations, it said, “He cried out for help to the strength of Pharaoh.” In this matter, they acted foolishly in two ways: 1. They thought they would find strength and help from Pharaoh, who would not truly save them, as stated subsequently. 2. They sought refuge in the shadow of Egypt, having accepted upon themselves the service of Egypt, to shelter under its shadow and to become his slaves, bearing tribute.
Therefore shall the stronghold of Pharaoh turn to your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt to your confusion.
verse value 2438
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 38 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "to·you" (לָכֶ֛ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "shadow·of·Egypt" (בְּצֵל־מִצְרַ֖יִם, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·refuge" (וְהֶחָס֥וּת), "shadow·of·Egypt" (בְּצֵל־מִצְרַ֖יִם), "to·disgrace" (לִכְלִמָּֽה). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root בשת ("to·shame") in Isaiah. First appearance of the root כלמה ("to·disgrace") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·shame', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְהָיָ֥ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + לָכֶ֛ם [to·you] (90) + מָע֥וֹז [stronghold·of] (123) + פַּרְעֹ֖ה [Pharaoh] (355) + לְבֹ֑שֶׁת [to·shame] (732) + וְהֶחָס֥וּת [and·refuge] (485) + בְּצֵל־מִצְרַ֖יִם [shadow·of·Egypt] (502) + לִכְלִמָּֽה [to·disgrace] (125) = 2438.
Ibn Ezra
And "the shelter." It is a noun, and it ought to have been "chasiyut" [it should be "chasiyut"] on the pattern of "avadut" (Ezra 9:8):
Radak
"And Pharaoh shall be your stronghold": You thought that he would be your stronghold, but he will be your shame, in that you will not be aided by him, and you will be put to shame because of your counsel.
“And the shelter in the shadow of Egypt.” “Shelter” is a noun following the same grammatical pattern as "galut" (exile).
Metzudat David
“Shame.” For they will not be of any help:
Malbim
"And it shall be: Shame is that which one is ashamed of oneself, and disgrace is that which one is disgraced by others. It says, 'The stronghold of Pharaoh shall be to you for shame'—in yourselves, for shame, because you will see afterward that it will not benefit you. And 'the trust in the shadow of Egypt' will bring you disgrace from others, because you humbled yourselves to become a tax-paying slave for nothing."
For his princes are at Zoan, and his ambassadors are come to Hanes.
verse value 1109
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 28 letters. The shortest word is "Hanes" (חָנֵ֥ס, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·his·messengers" (וּמַלְאָכָ֖יו, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "for·they·were" (כִּֽי־הָי֥וּ), "in·Zoan" (בְצֹ֖עַן), "and·his·messengers" (וּמַלְאָכָ֖יו). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "for·they·were" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·princes', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: כִּֽי־הָי֥וּ [for·they·were] (51) + בְצֹ֖עַן [in·Zoan] (212) + שָׂרָ֑יו [his·princes] (516) + וּמַלְאָכָ֖יו [and·his·messengers] (113) + חָנֵ֥ס [Hanes] (118) + יַגִּֽיעוּ [will·reach] (99) = 1109.
Rashi
For his princes were in Zoan. Of the king of Israel, on a mission to the king of Egypt:
Chanes. This is Tachpanches.
Ibn Ezra
“Ki.” Their leaders. The vav refers back to the people, who used to send even their leaders to Egypt, perhaps they would save Jerusalem from the hand of the king of Assyria.
Radak
For they were his princes. Princes of Judah, or the title for the king of Judah:
Metzudat David
"His princes." The leaders of Israel humbled themselves to go to Pharaoh to Zoan (and these were from the fortified cities of Judah, who did not rely on God and sought help from Pharaoh, and Sennacherib conquered them):
Chanus. It is the royal city:
Metzudat Zion
"And His messengers." His agents:
Malbim
“for his princes,” meaning the princes of the king of Egypt, whom he sent to aid you, were and remained in Zoan and the royal city; that is to say, they did not move from their place and did not go to aid you at all. But his messengers, namely the envoys he sent to collect from you the tribute and tax that you promised him in return for the assistance, will come in vain. They will come as far as Tahpanhes, for there the tribute was sent, and they will go to receive it from the hands of those carrying it.
They shall all be ashamed of a people that cannot profit them, that are not a help nor profit, but a shame, and also a reproach.
verse value 2477
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 51 letters. The shortest word is "all" (כֹּ֣ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "not·profit" (לֹא־יוֹעִ֣ילוּ, 8 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "shall·be·ashamed" (הֹבִ֔אישׁ), "not·profit" (לֹא־יוֹעִ֣ילוּ), "for·help" (לְעֵ֙זֶר֙). The root יעל appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "but" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah); "of·a·people" (root על, 200x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root באש ("shall·be·ashamed") in Isaiah. First appearance of the root יעל ("not·profit") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'at', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: כֹּ֣ל [all] (50) + הֹבִ֔אישׁ [shall·be·ashamed] (318) + עַל־עַ֖ם [of·a·people] (210) + לֹא־יוֹעִ֣ילוּ [not·profit] (163) + לָ֑מוֹ [at] (76) + לֹ֤א [not] (31) + לְעֵ֙זֶר֙ [for·help] (307) + וְלֹ֣א [and·not] (37) + לְהוֹעִ֔יל [to·profit] (151) + כִּ֥י [but] (30) + לְבֹ֖שֶׁת [to·shame] (732) + וְגַם־לְחֶרְפָּֽה [and·also·for·reproach] (372) = 2477.
Rashi
"All that have gone bad" – they all shamed themselves by acquiring for themselves masters at no cost, and the unlearned will not benefit them.
“Concerning a people.” For the sake of a people, they will not be of benefit to them.
To disgrace. Blasphemy, i.e., "insult" in the language of the gentiles.
Ibn Ezra
"All, etc." The extra aleph in "hovaish" is added; it means every person put to shame those who went, (it is a transitive verb), because they went to a people who could not help them:
Radak
"Kol haba'ish" – [is read] with two weak letters, an aleph and a yod. We have already written this, along with its counterparts, in the book Miklol, in its section on grammar. It pertains to the matter of "boshet" (shame), and its meaning is: "All of them were ashamed of him and were put to shame," when they went against a people who could not help them.
"Al." In the place of "el," as in "And she prayed to the Lord" (1 Samuel 1:10) and "And Elkanah went up from his city" (1 Samuel 2:11), and similar cases.
Metzudat David
"All who stank." All of them were put to shame and humiliated when they went to a people who could not benefit them.
To help. The going there will not be for help, but only for disgrace.
Metzudat Zion
"Upon a people." "To a people."
Malbim
"Every one that stinks, every one that is put to shame" — they accepted upon themselves all the shame on account of the Egyptians, who would be of no benefit to them. "No benefit" means that they would not be of any help, nor would they be of use to bring about any other advantage; rather, they would be a cause of shame and disgrace, which would result through them.
The burden of the beasts of the South. Through the land of trouble and anguish, from whence come the lioness and the lion, the viper and flying serpent, they carry their riches upon the shoulders of young asses, and their treasures upon the humps of camels, to a people that shall not profit them.
verse value 6521
Insights
Verse structure: 22 words, 96 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֥א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·on·hump·of" (וְעַל־דַּבֶּ֤שֶׁת, 7 letters). 11 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "beast" (בַּהֲמ֣וֹת), "south-country" (נֶ֑גֶב), "and·anguish" (וְצוּקָ֜ה). 22 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "to·a·people" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "in·land·of" (root ארץ, 169x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root אפעה ("a viper") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'south-country', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 19 words.
Rashi
"The burden of the beasts of the Negev." They are loaded upon their camels on the southern road, because the land of Egypt is to the south of the Land of Israel. And this is the insult and the reproach with which they reproach them: they see these who load their wealth upon their beasts to carry bribes to Egypt for nothing, and they endanger themselves in the deserts of a narrow and difficult land, etc.
Apeah. It is a species of venomous serpent, and there are only two in the world, a male and a female, and they give birth once every seventy years. And even the saraf, the flying serpent, is a species of serpent; it does not have wings to fly, but rather it leaps and bounds a great distance, and it shoots a flame from its mouth.
Their forces. Their wealth:
“Deveshet.” “Chotter” is “Chalder” in the vernacular. It is a part of the camel located at the place where the load is carried, and there it is always festering, and honey is applied there for healing; it is called “deveshet,” as we say in Bava Metzia: “Honey and fermented honey are suitable as a poultice for the sores of camels.”
Ibn Ezra
“Burden of the beasts of the Negeb,” etc. The word “burden” is attached to those who are going down to Egypt, and yet the prophet says “beasts of the Negeb,” and this refers to Egypt, for it is situated in the southern direction opposite the Land of Israel. And he said that along the path these travelers will take, they will encounter fierce beasts such as bears and leopards; therefore, a lion and a lion are among them.
"In a narrow land" – meaning that they will not be able to flee. And those who go down will carry their wealth on their shoulders, [which they will use] to flee to Egypt, just as it is written: "this wealth" (Deuteronomy 8:18).
Devasht. Like "gavnon" and there is no harm to him, and behold, the meaning is that the beasts of the Negev will destroy them.
Radak
"The burden of the beasts of the Negev." This prophecy, which prophesied that the beasts of the Negev would go forth, means the wild animals of the desert, which will devour those who go to seek help from Egypt. And "Negev" means a dry and desolate land, as it says, "The land of the Negev You have given me." It is called the Negev of Egypt because it is south of the Land of Israel.
"In a land of distress and hardship." That path on which they are traveling is narrow and rugged, with evil beasts dwelling therein. And it is said that a lion shall go forth from them, and according to some, a viper and a flying serpent, to the place where they carry their strength on the shoulders of donkeys, bearing wealth upon the donkeys and camels to give to the king of Egypt, that he may aid them against the king of Assyria.
Devasht. It is the hump of the camel, and it bears the load, just as the shoulder does in a donkey.
"Al": Its meaning is that it is like "el" and "im"; and Targum Jonathan rendered "massa" [as a load], as in "two mules' burden of earth" (2 Kings 5:17); he said: "they load [it] upon their beasts on the road to the south."
Metzudat David
"The burden of the beasts of the Negev": This means that disgrace will befall those who carried their beasts' loads of silver and gold to bring bribes to Egypt, which dwells in the Negev of the Land of Israel.
"In a narrow and difficult land." And they passed through the wilderness, which is a narrow and difficult land, a place of lions.
“From them.” This means that among the harmful creatures found there, some are the afa and the sharaf that fly.
They shall carry. They used to carry great wealth upon donkeys and camels to a nation that would not benefit them.
Metzudat Zion
Lavi and Lish: These are names among the names of the lion.
Apah. A species of venomous snake:
And the flying serpent. A species of snake that leaps from place to place, and appears as if it is flying and soaring.
"Shoulder." So is called the area adjacent to the head, on this side and on that side.
"עירים" – A young donkey is called an "עיר," and similarly, "on a colt, the foal of a she-donkey" (Zechariah 9:9).
Cheileihem. Their wealth:
“Deveshet of camels.” This refers to the hump of the camel, upon which the load is placed. Because it is constantly subject to decay, its remedy is to anoint it with honey, and therefore it is called “deveshet” (honey-like).
On the people. To the people:
Malbim
“Burden,” the measure of the verse: “Beasts of the Negev” etc. “Burden of the lion” — some of them, who carried the offering through the sandy desert, which lies between the land of Egypt and Syria. Many of those carrying the offering died on the way, devoured by wild beasts that attacked them. Nevertheless, they did not cease from bringing their offering. “Beasts of the Negev” — at the time of the parched, dry desert, which is the time of the sandy desert, “like the surging of the sea to its waves” in a land of distress and anguish, which is this terrible desert. At that time, “burden of the lion” — some of them, the lion and the lioness carried a burden from them, from those bringing the offering, and the burden to the king of Egypt — the lion and the lioness, as well as the adder and the flying serpent, devoured and destroyed some of them. And despite all this, they did not turn back from their way; rather, “they shall carry on the shoulders of young camels their strength.” The verse depicts that the young camels, which are the young of the camels, carried their strength, and they continued to carry their strength and wealth for many days and years, to the extent that the young camels that carried them became old camels, and their backs were worn out from the constant carrying, until afterward they carried them on the saddles of the camels. And their strength had already been exhausted, and they began to take the treasures they had stored up from ancient times for preservation, until finally they carried their treasures. And all of this was because of and for “a nation that cannot profit.”
For Egypt helps in vain, and to no purpose; therefore have I called her arrogancy that sits still.
verse value 3235
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "abundance" (הֵ֖ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·Egypt" (וּמִצְרַ֕יִם, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "vanity" (הֶ֥בֶל), "and·purpose" (וָרִ֖יק), "to·this" (לָזֹ֔את). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "I·called" (root קרא, 84x in Isaiah); "abundance" (root הם, 49x in Isaiah); "therefore" (root כן, 48x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·will·help', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 6 words. Full calculation: וּמִצְרַ֕יִם [and·Egypt] (386) + הֶ֥בֶל [vanity] (37) + וָרִ֖יק [and·purpose] (316) + יַעְזֹ֑רוּ [they·will·help] (293) + לָכֵן֙ [therefore] (100) + קָרָ֣אתִי [I·called] (711) + לָזֹ֔את [to·this] (438) + רַ֥הַב [arrogancy] (207) + הֵ֖ם [abundance] (45) + שָֽׁבֶת [sitting·still] (702) = 3235.
Rashi
For this: To Egypt:
They are Rahab. The arrogant:
Cease. Referring to those who are idle and boast for no reason. Alternatively: their pride and haughtiness -- it is fitting that it cease.
Ibn Ezra
"And Egypt." I call this Jerusalem, that he who dwells in it shall triumph and not be brought low.
Radak
And Egypt. Therefore I called this—Explanation: I called this Jerusalem.
"Rahab" means "they sit idle". Their strength was that they rested in the city of Jerusalem and could not seek help from Egypt, for it would not benefit them. And "Rahab" means strength, as it is written, "And their strength is labor and oppression." And the Targum says, "In this, many of them were slain."
Metzudat David
"And Egypt, which is vanity and emptiness, shall help him." This means that not only do they lack the power to help, but furthermore, out of the arrogance of their hearts, they will not wish to help, for Egypt is an enemy to Israel.
For this: To Egypt:
They are like Rahab. They boast in a matter that they cannot guarantee support for, and they have no power to do so.
Shabbat. And they are idle and do not wish to help:
Metzudat Zion
“Vanity and emptiness.” This means a thing that has no substance.
Raḥav. The matter is one of arrogance and self-assertion, as in “the young man will grow arrogant toward the elder” (above, 3).
Shabbat. The matter of nullification, like Shabbat, is adjacent to (the discussion on) 14a:
Malbim
“And Egypt,” meaning: furthermore, beyond the fact that they are currently unable to assist them, is it not so that Egypt has always offered but vanity and emptiness in their aid? They never assisted any nation that placed its trust in them at any time. Now, “vanity” refers to something that lacks substance, while “emptiness” refers to something that has a shell but no interior. The meaning is: even if Egypt wishes to help, their assistance is but vanity and exceedingly weak. Moreover, even this vain and weak assistance is merely promised and not executed, such that even this vanity is only apparent in its shell and externality, but within it is empty even of vanity and weak assistance. The intent is that Egypt themselves are vanity in their power, and besides this, they offer only emptiness in their aid, for they do not even wish to provide the weak assistance that is within their capacity. Therefore, I have called this nation “Rahab” (they are), [the words being restrictive]: since they themselves are vanity, I called them by the name “Rahab,” because they boast more than what is within their power; and since they offer only emptiness in their aid, I called them “Shevet” (or “Sitting”), for they are a people who go in idleness, ceasing from all labor and toil.
Now go, write it before them on a tablet, and inscribe it in a book, that it may be for the time to come For ever and ever.
verse value 3151
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 49 letters. Notable word values: "to·day" (לְי֣וֹם) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "now" (עַתָּ֗ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·in·a·book" (וְעַל־סֵ֣פֶר, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "write·it" (כׇתְבָ֥הּ), "on·a·tablet" (עַל־ל֛וּחַ), "and·in·a·book" (וְעַל־סֵ֣פֶר). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·let·it·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "to·day" (root יום, 124x in Isaiah); "come" (root בוא, 120x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'inscribe', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 5 words. Full calculation: עַתָּ֗ה [now] (475) + בּ֣וֹא [come] (9) + כׇתְבָ֥הּ [write·it] (427) + עַל־ל֛וּחַ [on·a·tablet] (144) + אִתָּ֖ם [before·them] (441) + וְעַל־סֵ֣פֶר [and·in·a·book] (446) + חֻקָּ֑הּ [inscribe] (113) + וּתְהִי֙ [and·let·it·be] (421) + לְי֣וֹם [to·day] (86) + אַחֲר֔וֹן [last] (265) + לָעַ֖ד [to·the·future] (104) + עַד־עוֹלָֽם [until·forever] (220) = 3151.
Rashi
A statute. Engrave this prophecy:
Ibn Ezra
“Now come [write it] with them.” For the prophet was astonished at dwelling with them.
And regarding the verse “A book of the statute”. It is written as “chokha” with a patach under the chet, and there are manuscripts in which the final he is pronounced (mefakek), and the vav is in the imperative form, and the complete form would be “chakkah” or “chokkah” or “chakkannah” with a nun.
Radak
"Now." God said to the prophet: "Come, write this prophecy on a tablet," meaning, on tablets that they may see what you write on the tablet, and afterward inscribe this prophecy in a book, so that it may serve as testimony for the last day. And the phrase "for a testimony" means "for an eternal testimony," so that they and those who come after them may see that I did not bring calamity upon them for no reason, but because of their sins, for they are a rebellious people. And I have already testified against them day by day through My prophets, yet they refused to listen. Therefore, write the rebuke and the evil that is destined to befall them, so that it may serve as a testimony.
“Chukkah.” The heh has a mappiq, and its meaning is: engrave it. And according to the opinion of Jonathan, the heh of "chukkah" has no mappiq, nor does the heh of "kotvah" (write it), which he translated as "He inscribed upon a tablet between them, and upon the boards of the book it was written."
Metzudat David
"Now come, write it down." He said to the prophet: "Now, inscribe this as a memorial on the tablet, which is sealed, and engrave the matter in a book, so that it may serve as a remembrance for the latter days, forever, to make known that I did not bring the calamity upon them for no reason, but rather because of their iniquity."
Metzudat Zion
A tablet. It is a kind of board made for writing, and the term is derived from the expression “the tablets of the testimony” (Exodus 32).
Chukkat. From the root of engraving and writing:
Malbim
"Now come, write it on a tablet"—this refers to writing the matter on a small tablet that will remain with them for safekeeping and as a reminder for themselves. And in addition to this, "inscribe it in a book," meaning that an engraver will engrave them with an iron stylus, so that it will remain preserved even for future generations.
And he explains regarding "write it on a tablet" and "it will be for the latter day": that it will remain for themselves as a reminder until the latter day, which is the day of death. And regarding "inscribe it in a book," he says "for ever and ever," meaning that it will remain for safekeeping for all time for the coming days.
For it is a rebellious people, lying children, children that refuse to hear the teaching of Hashem;
verse value 2472
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 40 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "deceitful" (כֶּחָשִׁ֑ים, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 102: son, son. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "rebellion" (מְרִי֙), "deceitful" (כֶּחָשִׁ֑ים), "not·wanted" (לֹא־אָב֥וּ). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "for" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah); "people" (root עם, 107x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'deceitful', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: כִּ֣י [for] (30) + עַ֤ם [people] (110) + מְרִי֙ [rebellion] (250) + ה֔וּא [it] (12) + בָּנִ֖ים [son] (102) + כֶּחָשִׁ֑ים [deceitful] (378) + בָּנִ֕ים [son] (102) + לֹא־אָב֥וּ [not·wanted] (40) + שְׁמ֖וֹעַ [to·hear] (416) + תּוֹרַ֥ת [law] (1006) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 2472.
Rashi
With rebellion it is. Israel:
Ibn Ezra
kashim: an adjective on the pattern of okharim (Jeremiah 14:4), and the kaf is given a qamats due to the guttural letter.
Shema. The infinitive:
Radak
"For it is a rebellious people" — "kechashim" (lying, false ones). The singular form is "kachash," and it is one of the dagesh-taking adjectives; had it not been for the chet [a guttural, which cannot take a dagesh], it would have had a dagesh, following the pattern of "akkar," "akkareihem" (a plowman, their plowmen). And the meaning of "a rebellious people" is, as its Targum [renders it], "a stubborn people," who are rebellious against God and His commandments.
“Children who deal falsely.” This refers to the fact that they were God’s children, yet they denied Him, claiming He was not their Father, because they did not listen to Him. For a son who does not listen to his father is as though he denies him, saying he is not his father.
Metzudat David
"For it is a rebellious people." What they asked for help from Pharaoh and did not ask for the word of the Lord is considered rebellion:
“Lying children.” They deny the providence of the Omnipresent.
They refused to listen. They did not wish to hear his Torah, and therefore they did not even consult him regarding the matter of the war.
Metzudat Zion
Mri. The matter of rebellion:
As for "falsehoods": lies.
"Lo avu" – they did not want, just as it is written, "Lo avah" (Deuteronomy 25:7).
Malbim
"For they are a rebellious people" – this means that there are some who hear the Torah of the Lord and also believe in God, yet nevertheless they transgress and violate His commandments due to the desires of their heart; and there are some who deny altogether, saying, "The Lord did not command this," which is worse; and there is yet another worse than this, who does not wish to hear the words of the Torah at all. This is what is stated: "they are a rebellious people." And worse than this is that they are "lying children" who deny and disbelieve; and worse still is that they are "children who are unwilling to listen" at all.
That say to the seers: ‘See not’, and to the prophets: ‘Prophesy not to us right things, speak to us smooth things, prophesy delusions;
verse value 4534
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 59 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "prophesy·to·us" (תֶחֱזוּ־לָ֖נוּ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 31: not, not. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "to·the·seers" (לָרֹאִים֙), "and·seering" (וְלַ֣חֹזִ֔ים), "prophesy·to·us" (תֶחֱזוּ־לָ֖נוּ). The root חזה appears 3 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "they·said" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "that" (root אשר, 176x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'straight in front', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 4 words. Full calculation: אֲשֶׁ֨ר [that] (501) + אָמְר֤וּ [they·said] (247) + לָרֹאִים֙ [to·the·seers] (281) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + תִרְא֔וּ [you·will·see] (607) + וְלַ֣חֹזִ֔ים [and·seering] (101) + לֹ֥א [not] (31) + תֶחֱזוּ־לָ֖נוּ [prophesy·to·us] (507) + נְכֹח֑וֹת [straight in front] (484) + דַּבְּרוּ־לָ֣נוּ [speak·to·us] (298) + חֲלָק֔וֹת [smooth·things] (544) + חֲז֖וּ [prophesy] (21) + מַהֲתַלּֽוֹת [delusions] (881) = 4534.
Rashi
Smooth things. Flatteries.
Behold. Prophesy:
Ibn Ezra
"You shall not see. For us, you shall not prophesy:"
And they are called "seers" because their prophecy was through visions of God.
Nechuchut. Like the phrase “your words are upright and nechuchim” (2 Samuel 15:3), and it is an adjective.
Words of flattery. It is a noun, and likewise, they saw delusions:
Radak
Which they said to the seers and to the visionaries, they are the prophets of the Lord:
Uprightness. Straightforward words:
Chalqot. Just as the false prophets say, smoothing things over for them and saying, “Peace shall be yours,” [while they] do according to their desires.
From the category of "mockery." They do not claim that their words are mockery; rather, the prophet refers to the words of the false prophets as "mockery," because they mock the people and say to them, "Do not fear." And the people say to the prophets of the Lord, "Prophesy to us like these prophets, who prophesy peace and good to us." And they do not know that these are words of mockery and not upright words.
Metzudat David
"To those who see." They will say to the true prophets, "See no [true] prophecy to tell it to us."
"You shall not see for us." – You shall not prophesy for us truths:
“Speak to us smoothly.” Speak like the prophets of Baal, who smooth out their words and flatter, saying, “Peace shall be yours.”
“Envision deceptions.” They do not say that they are deceptions, but the Prophet calls the words of the false prophets “deceitful,” as if the Prophet were saying to them: “Behold, you will say, ‘Prophesy to us,’ like the words of the prophets who say, ‘Peace.’” Are not their words deceitful, and not upright words?
Metzudat Zion
And to the seers. And to the prophets:
"Uprightness." The matter of "straight things" is like "they are upright to the understanding" (Proverbs 9):
Smoothness: soft words and flattery.
"Mahtalot." The concept is one of mockery, similar to the verse: "And a man will mock his neighbor" (Jeremiah 9:4).
Malbim
As they said regarding the "seers": The seers are the prophets who rebuke concerning matters between man and his fellow. To them it was said: "You shall not see" and gaze upon these matters to rebuke them. And to the "visionaries," who rebuke concerning matters between man and the Divine, and who behold the visions of God, it was said: "You shall not divine for us." "For us" refers to matters that stand directly before the Lord. Now, he explains his words (and the statements are restrictive): To the seers, they said: "Speak to us smooth things," i.e., smooth and flattering words, like the case of the visionary to whom it was said: "Shave the armpit." To the visionaries, they say: "Prophesy illusions to us," i.e., words of mockery, like the false prophets who said things that had no substance.
Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.’
verse value 3236
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 42 letters. The shortest word is "incline" (הַטּ֖וּ, 3 letters) and the longest is "from·way" (מִנֵּי־דֶ֔רֶךְ, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "from·way" (מִנֵּי־דֶ֔רֶךְ), "from·path" (מִנֵּי־אֹ֑רַח), "cause·to·cease" (הַשְׁבִּ֥יתוּ). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "from·our·face" (root פנים, 88x in Isaiah); "Israel" (root ישראל, 84x in Isaiah); "from·way" (root דרך, 57x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·path', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: ס֚וּרוּ [depart] (272) + מִנֵּי־דֶ֔רֶךְ [from·way] (324) + הַטּ֖וּ [incline] (20) + מִנֵּי־אֹ֑רַח [from·path] (309) + הַשְׁבִּ֥יתוּ [cause·to·cease] (723) + מִפָּנֵ֖ינוּ [from·our·face] (236) + אֶת־קְד֥וֹשׁ [sacred] (811) + יִשְׂרָאֵֽל [Israel] (541) = 3236.
Rashi
Turn aside. Us:
From the path. We desire false prophecy.
Ibn Ezra
"Depart." These are the words of the people to the prophets:
“Cease.” From it, a remembrance or a name of the Name:
Radak
“Turn aside from the way” (from the word “minu”). “From the path” (from the word “orach”). In both instances, the nun is vocalized with a tsere. They are saying to the prophets of the Lord: “Depart from this path and from this way that you wish for us to follow, and let us not act according to the desires of our hearts. Cease from before us that which you say to us every day in the name of the Holy One of Israel.”
Metzudat David
"Depart from the way": They said to the prophets of the Lord, "Depart from this way, from this path, which you tell us every day not to follow the desires of our hearts."
“Cease, etc.” – Cease from what you say to us every day in the name of the Holy One of Israel:
Metzudat Zion
"Meni." Like "min," and the yod is an added letter.
"Cause to cease." A term of abolishing:
Malbim
“Depart, (also from these statements they restrict) to the seers they said: Depart yourselves from the path of oppression and robbery, and also lead others astray from their paths. (Also you, depart from the great established path, which are the roots and foundations; and thereby you will lead others astray also from the minor paths. For example, if the judge and teacher assumes the principle that it is permitted to rob and plunder, he has departed from the great established moral path; and if subsequently, by means of this ruling, many are misled in judgments concerning specific matters, they are leading others astray from the particular paths between man and his fellow.) And to the gazers they said: Remove from before us the Holy One of Israel. Behold, all the commandments between man and the Divine are founded upon the principle that God is the Holy One of Israel, and He desires that we sanctify ourselves like Him, to emulate His ways, as it is stated, “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (as stated above, chapter 16). Therefore, remove this Name from before us; do not mention to us anymore the Name of the Holy One of Israel, for there is no benefit to Him in our holiness, nor any bond or connection with us in this holiness.”
Wherefore thus says the Holy One of Israel: Because you despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon;
verse value 3783
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 57 letters. Verse gematria: 3783 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "thus" (כֹּ֤ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·you·trusted" (וַֽתִּבְטְחוּ֙, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "your·rejecting" (מׇאׇסְכֶ֖ם), "and·you·trusted" (וַֽתִּבְטְחוּ֙), "in·oppression" (בְּעֹ֣שֶׁק). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "said" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "upon·him" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "in·the·word" (root דבר, 88x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'this', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 5 words. Full calculation: לָכֵ֗ן [therefore] (100) + כֹּ֤ה [thus] (25) + אָמַר֙ [said] (241) + קְד֣וֹשׁ [holy·one·of] (410) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (541) + יַ֥עַן [because] (130) + מׇאׇסְכֶ֖ם [your·rejecting] (161) + בַּדָּבָ֣ר [in·the·word] (208) + הַזֶּ֑ה [this] (17) + וַֽתִּבְטְחוּ֙ [and·you·trusted] (431) + בְּעֹ֣שֶׁק [in·oppression] (472) + וְנָל֔וֹז [and·perverse] (99) + וַתִּֽשָּׁעֲנ֖וּ [and·you·were·leaned·on] (832) + עָלָֽיו [upon·him] (116) = 3783.
Rashi
"In this matter." In a true prophecy:
And "loz" [a term denoting a contemptible person]: A scoundrel and a mocker.
Ibn Ezra
"In this matter." In prophecy:
And you trusted in oppression. And in wealth:
And "Naluz." It is an adjective, and similarly, "And a loose thing was spoken," as it is written, "For the loathsome thing of the Lord is one who is loose" (Proverbs 3:32), and it is the opposite of that which is upright.
Radak
Therefore. In this matter, in the matter of the prophets of the Lord who rebuke you to walk in the good way:
In robbery and plunder. And you will trust in your wealth, which is [the product of] oppression and theft.
And “v’niluz” – the explanation is “tilted,” meaning a tilted judgment, namely that the judgment for the oppressed in monetary matters is tilted, so that you take from the oppressor, and yet your property is robbery and oppression, and you trust and rely upon it, that you will be saved through it, that you will send a bribe to the king of Egypt to assist you from the hand of the king of Assyria, as it said above, “They shall carry their forces on the shoulders of colts,” and it said, “Holy One of Israel, concerning those who trust in Him, for those who trust in Him and sanctify His Name, He will be their helper, but you, who trust in them, will fall like a broken wall.”
Metzudat David
"In this matter." In the words of the Prophets who say in the name of the Lord:
“Regarding oppression and crookedness.” This refers to the fact that you will oppress the wealthy of the people in order to give bribes and gifts to the crooked one - he is the king of Egypt, who is crooked in his ways.
Metzudat Zion
And "veneloz" – the matter is of deviation from the straight path, as it is written: "and are devious in their paths" (Proverbs 2:15).
And you leaned upon. The meaning is of leaning:
Malbim
Therefore, thus says the Holy One of Israel — He is the Name whom you have despised: Because you have despised this matter, namely the words of the Prophets, and you trusted in oppression—oppression between man and his fellow—and you turned away from the path of the relationship between man and the Divine, and you relied upon Him. Not only did you trust in your hearts in oppression and turning away, but you also relied upon Him as a firm support in actual deed.
Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking comes suddenly at an instant.
verse value 3594
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 57 letters. The shortest word is "therefore" (לָכֵ֗ן, 3 letters) and the longest is "that·suddenly" (אֲשֶׁר־פִּתְאֹ֥ם, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "as·breach" (כְּפֶ֣רֶץ), "sought·out" (נִבְעֶ֖ה), "in·wall" (בְּחוֹמָ֣ה). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it·will·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "that·suddenly" (root אשר, 176x in Isaiah); "will·go·in" (root בוא, 120x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'set·on·high', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 4 words. Full calculation: לָכֵ֗ן [therefore] (100) + יִהְיֶ֤ה [it·will·be] (30) + לָכֶם֙ [to·you] (90) + הֶעָוֺ֣ן [perversity] (131) + הַזֶּ֔ה [this] (17) + כְּפֶ֣רֶץ [as·breach] (390) + נֹפֵ֔ל [prostrate] (160) + נִבְעֶ֖ה [sought·out] (127) + בְּחוֹמָ֣ה [in·wall] (61) + נִשְׂגָּבָ֑ה [set·on·high] (360) + אֲשֶׁר־פִּתְאֹ֥ם [that·suddenly] (1022) + לְפֶ֖תַע [at·an·instant] (580) + יָב֥וֹא [will·go·in] (19) + שִׁבְרָֽהּ [her·breaking] (507) = 3594.
Rashi
“Like a breach.” A breach in a wall that has collapsed.
"It has burst forth through the wall, it has risen high." [This means] it is exposed, so that one may enter within it; "through the walls of your stronghold" [it has burst forth]. The term "burst forth" (נבעה) denotes exposure, as in Obadiah (1:6): "They have burst forth from the north," [which the Targum renders] "they have been revealed from their hiding places." And Donash interpreted "burst forth" as a bulging, whereby the wall becomes like blisters due to the rains and the deterioration of weak mud.
Ibn Ezra
Therefore. The meaning is: "And you will trust in the wealth that you will give to the king of Assyria, and he will not come." This iniquity will destroy you.
As it is written: “A breach has broken through” (Isaiah 30:13). [The word “broken through” implies] that it has fallen and burst forth. Like a tower that collapses or something that bursts forth, and this is derived from the root meaning “swollen,” from the verbal root of “blisters” (Exodus 9:9), or perhaps “burst forth” is an adjective describing “breach.”
“Peta” and “pit'om” are close in meaning [and doubled], as in “admat afar — the dust of the earth” (Daniel 12:2).
Radak
Therefore. The word "breach" is used in the sense of having fallen, for after the structure has collapsed, it is called a breach, since a breach does not "fall"; rather, the term is applied based on its final state. Similarly, [the verse says] "and grind flour." And behold, it explains afterward: "What is the breach?" and answers: "It has broken through the fortified wall."
And it shall burst forth. It is a place that is swollen in the wall, and it is of the matter of a boil, blisters; and when in a wall there is a place that is swollen, it is close to falling. And He said, "in a high wall," because the wall, which is high, will weigh heavily upon the place of the swelling, which is in its middle or below it, and it will fall suddenly and break due to the weight of its height. And just as that swollen place causes the falling of the high wall, so too will this sin of yours, that you seek help from Egypt, cause your downfall—a great falling with a great breaking, from which there is no healing—like the falling of the high wall, whose stones break in its falling because it is battered with much battering due to its height. And similarly, He compared it to another matter: "in a high wall," because Pharaoh, king of Egypt, thought for them that it would be for them like a high wall against the enemy.
Metzudat David
"This sin." The removal of trust in the Lord and reliance on Egypt:
As a breach falls. Like a breach in a wall, where a small part of it has fallen, and like a swollen area resembling blisters found in the wall due to rain damage. Although the breach or swelling is at the edge of the wall, and the construction of the wall is strong, nevertheless, the entire wall will suddenly break and fall because of this.
Metzudat Zion
As a breach. The matter is one of breaking:
Niv'ah. The term is related to "blisters" (avba'ot). Similarly, "the water boils from fire" (below, 64).
Neshagbah. Strong:
“Lifteh.” This is similar to “bipteh.” And likewise, “You have sat upon the throne” (Psalms 40:2) and “His judgment is on the throne,” where the word is doubled with synonymous terms. And likewise, “The land of dust” (Daniel 12:2).
Malbim
Therefore, this sin shall be like a breached wall for you: a wall built without a strong foundation. When its foundation loosens and it begins to sink on one side until the wall cracks in its middle, then the stronger the building is, the more ready it is for collapse and breaking, as is well known. For a wooden structure does not break so quickly, nor is its fall so great. And this is called a “breached wall” [paratz nofal]; it is an adjective describing this building—a breach of a collapsing building—where this breach emerges and is revealed in a lofty and strong wall, the fall of which is magnified in several respects: a) At the time of its collapse, for suddenly and unexpectedly its breaking will come, before they can make any preparations to save anything from it; b) In the nature of its collapse and breaking, for...
And He shall break it as a potter’s vessel is broken, breaking it in pieces without sparing; so that there shall not be found among the pieces thereof a sherd to take fire from the hearth, or to take water out of the cistern.
verse value 5837
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 68 letters. Verse gematria: 5837 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·there·shall·not·be·found" (וְלֹֽא־יִמָּצֵ֤א, 7 letters). 11 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·He·shall·break·it" (וּ֠שְׁבָרָ֠הּ), "breaking" (כְּשֵׁ֨בֶר), "potters" (יוֹצְרִ֛ים). The root שבר appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "water" (root מים, 41x in Isaiah); "potters" (root יצר, 29x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'will·spare', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 9 words.
Rashi
A potter's vessel. A skin of earthenware:
"And he shall not find." [This refers to] breaking its fragments [into pieces] of large earthenware, such that they are fit for kindling fire in them by means of a spark, and for drawing fire from the burning wood; for any drawing of fire is termed "kindling."
“and to uncover water” – meaning, to draw [water]. And similarly, (Haggai 2:16): “to uncover fifty [seahs] of grain.” And similarly, “uncover your sheaves” (below, 47:2), which means: draw water from your path. In the local language, it is called “asphoyesh.”
From a cistern. A cistern full of water:
Ibn Ezra
"And he broke it, etc., a vessel." A vessel made by a potter.
He shall not show pity. To crush it:
“to kindle fire.” Just as it says, “he will kindle” (Proverbs 6:27), “you are kindling coals upon his head” (ibid. 25:22); and it is from the doubled verb forms.
And to uncover. From the root of "the white streak" (Genesis 30:37), "The Lord has uncovered His holy arm" (Isaiah 52:10):
Migba. From the root of "ve-gavaiav" (Ezekiel 47:11), the Targum translates it in Aramaic as "bor," and the meaning is to uncover, to reveal, for the waters are hidden, and this is the meaning of those who descended to Egypt:
Radak
“And He will break it.” God will break down the wall that you are planning to rely upon; He will break it down.
“Like a potter’s vessel that is shattered.” Just as “a potter’s vessel is shattered,” which is an earthenware vessel, for the maker of earthenware vessels is called, in general terms, a potter (yotzer), and this breaking is like how a potter’s vessel is shattered without mercy, meaning that it is not his intention to leave from it even one shard to kindle with it fire in a hearth, or to expose with it water from a puddle; rather, he breaks it until it becomes small, fine fragments. And the place in which the fire is kindled is called a hearth (yiqod). Likewise, in common usage, one takes fire from a hearth with an earthenware shard, and “to kindle” (lechatot) is like “to take.” And similarly, “And shall a man carry fire in his bosom?” (Proverbs 6:27). And “gava” is called a place where a small amount of water collects, and likewise, “their springs and their puddles” (Ezekiel 47:11). And a person cannot take from it with a vessel, except by breaking a vessel, so that he can rest the lips of the breakage on the ground of the puddle and take a small amount of the water therein. And when he takes the water from the puddle, behold, the puddle remains exposed and uncovered. Therefore, it said “and to expose.” And similarly, “to expose” fifty measures from the winepress, meaning to take all the new wine until nothing remains in the vat. And the Targum [translates]: “and to expose and to drain,” referring to the matter of draining water.
Metzudat David
"And he shall break it down." And the breaking down of that wall shall be a shattering, like the shattering of a potters' vessel of clay, which is ground finely and finely, for the grinder will not spare it from being ground, for it is better to return them to dust, to mix them with lime to plaster the houses and the cisterns.
And none shall be found among its crushed pieces. In the broken pieces that are crushed, he shall not find a large shard of pottery that would be fit to draw fire from the hearth with it, or to take water from the cistern with it. And as it says: “If this sin is small in your eyes,” nevertheless, it will be a cause for wondrous destruction.
Metzudat Zion
“Nevel.” Just as it is called “nevel” [a jug] when it is made by the yotzer [maker], so too, “and their nevelim shall be shattered” (Jeremiah 40:8) refers to makers. A potter is called a yotzer.
Kittot. The meaning is crushing and breaking into many pieces:
He will have mercy. The matter of compassion is in his breaking it into pieces.
Kharash. Like "cheres" with a samekh:
To take fire. The meaning is the taking of fire, as it says, “You shall heap coals of fire upon his head” (Proverbs 25:22). And based on this, they call the vessel with which one scoops fire, a “michtah” (ash-pan).
Miqqod. Likewise, the place where the fire is kindled is called a miqqod, as it is written: “on its hearth” (Leviticus 6:2).
And to uncover. The matter of drawing [water] is like “to uncover fifty vats” (Haggai 2:16). *Migvah*. A place where a small amount of water enters, and likewise when it exits, “its *gibbaim*” (Ezekiel 47).
Malbim
“Shivrah” (its breaking) shall be like the breaking of a potter’s vessel: when it breaks, it is crushed without mercy; the potter shows no pity in crushing it until it returns to its dust, so that he may make from it another earthenware vessel. And the crushing will be so complete that not even a single shard will be found among the broken pieces that could be used to kindle a fire, nor even a smaller shard from which one could scoop a little water from a reservoir of collected water. The meaning of the metaphor is that their lofty wall, after they built it upon a weak foundation, namely robbery and immorality, will inevitably fall quickly, and moreover it will break and shatter into dust.
For thus said the Lord Hashem, the Holy One of Israel: In sitting still and rest shall you be saved, in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength; And you would not.
verse value 4978
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 69 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יֱהֹוִ֜ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "your·strength" (גְּבוּרַתְכֶ֑ם, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "in·retirement" (בְּשׁוּבָ֤ה), "you·will·be·saved" (תִּוָּ֣שֵׁע֔וּן), "in·quietness" (בְּהַשְׁקֵט֙). 14 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 'your·strength', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 2 words.
Rashi
"For thus said [the Lord]." The Holy One, blessed be He, [has said] to you for some time now: you need not seek yourselves a stronghold in Egypt and lose your wealth, for in calm and rest shall be your salvation, without any toil — if you listen to Me.
On the word "beshuvah" (in the phrase "When you return"): It is a term denoting settling and tranquility. Similarly, [we read] "O Lord, return, I beseech Thee, to the many thousands of Israel" (Numbers 10:36).
"In quietness." [Tranquility] that shall come to you from Me, and in trust shall be your strength.
Ibn Ezra
“Shuvah” – tranquility. It is akin to “Shuvah, Hashem, to the thousands of the ten thousands of Israel” (Numbers 10:36). The meaning is that there will be salvation for you in your place, and you will not descend to Egypt.
Radak
"For thus said the Lord: In return and in rest." The matter is repeated with different words; similarly, it is repeated again when it says, "In quietness and in trust." He said: I stated, "If you will heed Me, then you will be saved in ease," and you will not need to go and toil to seek help, but rather you will sit in your city, and this will be your strength. That is to say: "The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace."
Metzudat David
"In return for repentance and rest, you shall be saved." If you had trusted in Me and not in Egypt, you would then have been saved with tranquility and rest, without the toil of war.
“Your strength shall be.” You would have overcome the enemy in the tranquility of your dwelling and in the security of the Lord, without toil.
"And you did not heed" – You did not desire this, but only war with the aid of Egypt.
Metzudat Zion
On the word "in returning." The matter is one of tranquility and rest, as it is written: "He restores my soul" (Psalms 23:3).
"And you were not willing." That is, you did not desire.
Malbim
For thus said the Lord: The Lord was willing in His desire to establish for you an institution, a firm institution, and you were unwilling to return with rest. This means that salvation from the enemy will be in two ways: either he alone will be saved and rescued, or he will yet grow strong against the enemy and defeat him. “Return and rest” refers to the resting of the body, that one will rest and do nothing. And “quietness and confidence” refers to the tranquility of the soul and the confidence of the heart in the Lord (see the explanation of the words). The Lord said: If you desire to be saved from the enemy and rescued from Him, this will be through “return and rest,” meaning that you will rest and do nothing, but rely on the Lord; then you will be saved. But if you desire a higher level than this, namely that you will yet grow strong against the enemy with might, this will be through “quietness and confidence,” which means that if you trust with strong confidence in the Lord, both in your heart and in your soul, then this will be your might to perform wonders and subdue the enemy. And you were unwilling to listen, only...
But you said: ‘No, for we will flee upon horses’; Therefore shall you flee; and: ‘We will ride upon the swift’; Therefore shall they that pursue you be swift.
verse value 3026
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 52 letters. The shortest word is "not·burning" (לֹא־כִ֛י, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·you·said" (וַתֹּ֨אמְר֥וּ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 170: therefore, therefore. 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·you·said" (וַתֹּ֨אמְר֥וּ), "not·burning" (לֹא־כִ֛י), "upon·horse" (עַל־ס֥וּס). The root נוס appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not·burning" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "and·you·said" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "therefore" (root על, 200x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'you·will·flee', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַתֹּ֨אמְר֥וּ [and·you·said] (653) + לֹא־כִ֛י [not·burning] (61) + עַל־ס֥וּס [upon·horse] (226) + נָנ֖וּס [we·will·flee] (166) + עַל־כֵּ֣ן [therefore] (170) + תְּנוּס֑וּן [you·will·flee] (572) + וְעַל־קַ֣ל [and·on·the·swift] (236) + נִרְכָּ֔ב [we·will·mount·and·ride] (272) + עַל־כֵּ֖ן [therefore] (170) + יִקַּ֥לּוּ [they·shall·be·swift] (146) + רֹדְפֵיכֶֽם [your·pursuers] (354) = 3026.
Rashi
“On a horse we shall flee.” We shall form alliances with the kings of Egypt and bring from there swift horses for our flight.
Ibn Ezra
And it says, “And you shall flee,” etc. Rabbi Yonah the grammarian said: It is derived from the root *n-s* (to flee), like the form *nirkeiv* (we will mount), which has a vowel after it. And there are those who say that it is according to its plain meaning: You fled, and your pursuers will cause you to flee.
On "qal." It is a descriptive term for a horse, or [should be read: like] a saddle for a camel.
Radak
And you said: “No, for we will flee on horses.” If the enemy comes, we have horses with us, and we will flee upon them from the enemy until he passes, and afterward we will return to our land.
“And upon the swift we shall ride.” A swift horse or camel, and as you say, so shall it be: you will flee, but not the flight that you imagined, that you would escape from the hand of the enemy; rather, if you ride upon the swift, your pursuers will be swifter than you and will overtake you.
Metzudat David
And you said no. You said, "We will not trust in the Lord, but rather this congregation will be exalted by the aid of horses coming from Egypt."
"Therefore you shall flee." Because of this you shall flee from the enemy, and there shall be humiliation for you. And since the term is one that falls upon the term "said," thus:
"And upon the light ones we shall ride." Let us strengthen ourselves in riding upon light horses that come from Egypt.
“Therefore your pursuers shall be swift.” On account of this, the pursuers shall become swift and shall prevail against you.
Metzudat Zion
“Nanos.” From the root *nes*, which means a long beam; its sense is lifting up, as in *nes*, and also to wave, as in *nitnas* (ibid. 60).
They shall flee. From the language of "he fled" and "flight":
Malbim
And you said, (the statements are restrictive) regarding salvation and deliverance from the enemy, you said that this will not be through sitting and resting, but only through, "For on horseback we will flee, and thereby we will be saved from him" (and therefore you went to Egypt for horses and chariots). Therefore, you will indeed flee, just as you said. And regarding valor to conquer the enemy, you said that this will not be through tranquility and confidence, but only through, "For on the light [swift steeds] we will ride to pursue the enemy." Therefore, the opposite will be the case, for your pursuers will be light [swift], until...
One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one, At the rebuke of five shall you flee; Till you be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, And as an ensign on a hill.
verse value 5725
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 66 letters. Notable word values: "one" (אֶחָ֗ד) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "until" (עַ֣ד, 2 letters) and the longest is "if·you·remain" (אִם־נוֹתַרְתֶּ֗ם, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 673: rebuke·of, rebuke·of. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "you·shall·flee" (תָּנֻ֑סוּ), "if·you·remain" (אִם־נוֹתַרְתֶּ֗ם), "as·the·beacon" (כַּתֹּ֙רֶן֙). The root אחד appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "from·face·of" (root פנים, 88x in Isaiah); "hill" (root הר, 37x in Isaiah); "upon·head" (root ראש, 28x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root גערה ("rebuke·of") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'you·shall·flee', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 7 words.
Rashi
One thousand of you shall flee because of the rebuke of one of the enemies; or all of you shall flee because of the rebuke of five.
"If you have remained." Just as it says, "you have remained."
“Like a mast.” A tall tree fixed in the ground, resembling the mast of a ship, which they call “mast” in the vernacular.
"And a pole." Similarly, there is a high pillar that is placed on the top of a hill, and when the lookout sees armies coming, he places a cloth upon it, and the wind carries it away, and this is a sign that they will flee or gather together.
Ibn Ezra
Aleph. It is adjacent to one of them, and it is an adjective for "sar" (prince), and the meaning is that a prince who has a thousand men will flee from the rebuke of a single person.
“Flee.” All of you:
As a remnant. This alludes to the fact that a small number will remain from the many. And the correct explanation in my view is that the phrase "they gathered" refers to those who remained in Jerusalem and did not go down to Egypt.
Radak
“Elef echad.” One said, and although he need not have said so, he did so because the letter aleph is “one” in the fourth level, and “echad” (one) is “one” in the first level; and he said that the many will flee from the few.
“Flee from the rebuke of five.” “All of you”
“Until you are left in small numbers.” The word “if” is used in the place of “where,” as in “for he will be found in the place where,” just as in “Until if I spoke words,” and in the place of “when,” as in “If the Jubilee shall be for the children of Israel,” and “If you make an altar of stones for Me,” and similar cases. He said this to indicate: Flee here and there until those remaining among you are few among many, like a mast on top of a mountain, which appears solitary from afar. And likewise, as in “the signal on the hill,” and the matter is twofold, for behold, they will spread out on the mast.
Metzudat David
One thousand. One thousand people from among you, each of whom will be unique:
“Because of.” This returns to the word “flee” to say: A thousand of you shall flee because of the rebuke of one enemy, and because of the rebuke of five, you shall all flee.
“Until you are scattered.” You will be scattered until you remain as individuals, like the mast of a ship, when it is placed on the top of a mountain, visible from afar as a solitary object, because there is nothing else visible alongside it.
Metzudat Zion
"Rebuke." The meaning of "rebuke" is a reprimand.
"Like a mast." This is the tall, upright tree that stands on the ship. And similarly, "They shall not strengthen their mast" (below, 33).
And the banner. It is a long pole made for hanging a cloth on it as a sign for the soldiers to gather and come.
Malbim
“Alf echad” – one thousand; from you, one thousand will flee from the rebuke of a single enemy, and from the rebuke of five enemies, you will all flee, until you remain like a mast on the top of a mountain. The mountain is higher than a hill, and the “toren” (mast) is the tall tree on a ship that is visible from afar, and the “nes” (sail/flag) is the curtain that is spread out upon the mast. The mast signifies solitude, just as the mast is a solitary tree on the ship, and the sail/flag signifies the signal for gathering for war, for they raise the flag as a signal for assembly for war everywhere. Based on this, it says: If you flee to the tops of the high mountains and the rocks of the gazelles, there you will stand alone, solitary like a mast. But when you descend from the mountain to the hill beside it, you will already be like a sail/flag for nations, that they will gather against you for war, until you will need to resemble a gazelle or a young goat on the mountains of Ba’ter.
And therefore will Hashem wait, that He may be gracious to you, And therefore will He be exalted, that He may have compassion upon you; For Hashem is a God of justice, Happy are all they that wait for Him.
verse value 2245
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for·him" (לֽוֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·be·gracious·to·you" (לַחֲנַנְכֶ֔ם, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 106: and·therefore, and·therefore. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "He·will·wait" (יְחַכֶּ֤ה), "to·be·gracious·to·you" (לַחֲנַנְכֶ֔ם), "to·have·compassion·on·you" (לְרַחֶמְכֶ֑ם). The root כן appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "for·the·God·of" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah); "happiness" (root אשר, 176x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·have·compassion·on·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְלָכֵ֞ן [and·therefore] (106) + יְחַכֶּ֤ה [He·will·wait] (43) + יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (26) + לַחֲנַנְכֶ֔ם [to·be·gracious·to·you] (198) + וְלָכֵ֥ן [and·therefore] (106) + יָר֖וּם [shall·rise] (256) + לְרַחֶמְכֶ֑ם [to·have·compassion·on·you] (338) + כִּֽי־אֱלֹהֵ֤י [for·the·God·of] (76) + מִשְׁפָּט֙ [judgment] (429) + יְהֹוָ֔ה [Hashem] (26) + אַשְׁרֵ֖י [happiness] (511) + כׇּל־ח֥וֹכֵי [all·who·wait·for] (94) + לֽוֹ [for·him] (36) = 2245.
Rashi
And therefore. Because you did not heed:
"The Lord will wait to be gracious to you." He does not leap over the evil decree that was decreed upon you in order to hasten and bring the good; rather, He waits and remains until its appointed time arrives.
And therefore, "He shall be exalted, to have mercy on you." He shall delay, in order to have mercy on you.
"For the Lord is a God of judgment." And He will exact vengeance from those who rebel against Him.
“Happy is everyone who waits for Him.” This refers to the consolations with which He promised that not a single word will fall to the ground.
Ibn Ezra
And therefore, the Lord will wait. According to the manner of human speech:
"To grant you favor." [The verb] is a doubled form, on the pattern of "there is no coal to warm" (Isaiah 47:14), from the simple binyan, on the measure of "to lie with the daughter of Jacob"; and if they are grammatically foreign [i.e., irregular].
And therefore He is exalted to have mercy on you, for God will do justice for you from Assyria.
Radak
And therefore the Lord will wait to be gracious to you. "Yechakkeh" is a transitive verb; that is, He will give you hope, that you will wait for Him to be gracious to you, for He will yet show mercy to you and aid you. And in this sense is "wherein You have made me hope" (Psalms 119:49). As for this verse, some commentators interpret this verse together with the subsequent passage. However, the correct interpretation is that it pertains to the current passage, which speaks about the generation of Hezekiah and the wicked among them who seek help from Egypt; this interpretation applies up to this verse. This verse, however, corresponds to the righteous ones—Hezekiah and his followers.
"To be gracious to you (lachanankhem)." To show favor to you; "lachanan" is on the pattern of [lachmam in] "there shall not be a coal to warm at" (Isaiah 47:14).
“Exalted be Your mercy.” Exalted and lifted high above the camp of Assyria, to have mercy on you.
For the Lord is a God of justice; He will not sweep away the righteous with the wicked.
Happy are all those who wait for Him, for they shall be saved.
Metzudat David
And therefore. Since you did not wish to listen:
"He shall wait, etc." He shall not skip over the evil decree to hasten the bringing of the good, but rather he shall wait and remain until its appointed time arrives.
“He will be exalted.” He withdraws and holds Himself aloof [only] in order to have mercy upon you:
"For the God of justice is the Lord. And therefore He will first take vengeance upon those who rebel against Him:"
“Happy are they, etc.” But “Happy are all those who wait for Him” for the consolations that He promised, for “not a word of His shall fall to the ground.”
Metzudat Zion
He will wait. The sense is delay, for one waits and hopes for that which is delayed.
"To grant you grace." From the root of "grace" (ḥanah):
"Yarum." From the language of lifting up high:
Chochi. The matter of hope:
Malbim
Therefore, because you did not heed His voice, the Lord will wait and delay for a long time before bestowing favor upon you; He will not grant you favor quickly, but only after a long period. Moreover, not only will He withhold favor from you on the grounds of grace and mercy, but He will also exalt Himself above your pleas for mercy. Even when many evils and afflictions befall you—times when it is His way to show mercy, for He cannot bear to see the distress of His people, and He is afflicted by their affliction—nevertheless, He will rise to the heights of heaven and avert His eyes from you, so that He need not be compelled to have mercy on you (like one who cannot bear to see the distress of his beloved friend, yet nonetheless does not wish to save him and hides His face so as not to see him). The reason that He waits and delays in granting favor and mercy is that the Lord is a God of justice, and necessarily you must first receive the judgment of punishment for your iniquity. Nevertheless, blessed is everyone who waits for Him; whoever waits and delays until the salvation of the Lord will ultimately be saved, as is explained below:
For, O people that dwell in Zion at Jerusalem, You shall weep no more; He will surely be gracious to you at the voice of your cry, When He shall hear, He will answer you.
verse value 3225
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 53 letters. The shortest word is "will·dwell" (יֵשֵׁ֖ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·Jerusalem" (בִּירוּשָׁלִָ֑ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 140: for·people, answered·you. 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "for·people" (כִּי־עַ֛ם), "bitterly" (בָּכ֣וֹ), "not·you·shall·weep" (לֹֽא־תִבְכֶּ֗ה). The root בכה appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "for·people" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah); "when·he·heard" (root שמע, 106x in Isaiah); "will·dwell" (root ישב, 71x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·Jerusalem', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 8 words. Full calculation: כִּי־עַ֛ם [for·people] (140) + בְּצִיּ֥וֹן [in·Zion] (158) + יֵשֵׁ֖ב [will·dwell] (312) + בִּירוּשָׁלִָ֑ם [in·Jerusalem] (588) + בָּכ֣וֹ [bitterly] (28) + לֹֽא־תִבְכֶּ֗ה [not·you·shall·weep] (458) + חָנ֤וֹן [gracious] (114) + יׇחְנְךָ֙ [He·will·be·gracious·to·you] (88) + לְק֣וֹל [to·voice·of] (166) + זַעֲקֶ֔ךָ [cry] (197) + כְּשׇׁמְעָת֖וֹ [when·he·heard] (836) + עָנָֽךְ [answered·you] (140) = 3225.
Rashi
"For." More days are coming when there shall remain dwelling in Zion and in Jerusalem the righteous.
"In that time, you shall not weep." You will not need to make your request to the Holy One, Blessed be He, with weeping, for He will answer your cry.
Ibn Ezra
"Ki am." "You shall not weep," etc. These are the words of the prophet, for God will have mercy on you.
And he came to the sound of the letter lamed, because he cried out to Him.
"He answered you" – a word foreign to the rules of grammar. And similarly, "for your adornment" (Isaiah 55:5).
Radak
"For a people shall dwell in Zion." Not like the other cities of Judah, which were captured by the hand of the king of Assyria, because they did not seek refuge in God.
In Jerusalem you shall not weep. You, the people who are in Jerusalem, from whom no one went out to seek help from Egypt—you shall not weep like the others who were captured, for God will have mercy on you at the sound of your cry.
"When He heard, He answered you." Just as He heard your cry, He answered you. This is what is meant by the verse: "And Hezekiah tore his garments, and covered himself with sackcloth, and came into the house of the Lord, and prayed there, and God answered him through Isaiah the prophet, saying, 'Do not fear because of the words that you have heard...'"
Metzudat David
"For a people in Zion." In the days to come, the remnant of the people who remain in Zion and the people who dwell in Jerusalem will not need to ask or request anything through weeping, for He will have mercy on them and hear the voice of their cry, even if it is without weeping.
When He hears it. Immediately upon hearing the voice, he will answer you:
Malbim
“Yet a remnant shall dwell in Zion,” even though you do not wish to heed the call to dwell in tranquility and rest, and to do nothing [to provoke disaster], nevertheless, there will be found a remnant in Zion who dwell in tranquility and rest, as the word of the Lord commanded, and they will not rely on the aid of Egypt. And not only in Zion, the seat of the monarchy, but also in Jerusalem, throughout the entire city, shall this people dwell and not flee from the enemy; and this is the people of Hezekiah. And whereas the Lord will not have compassion on you, to this people He says: “Weep not.” They will not need to weep until they arouse His compassion, for He will also show them favor from the aspect of graciousness, at the mere sound of your cry. “When He hears, He will answer you,” meaning, He will not wait at all for the cry; rather, the moment you cry out, He will hasten to answer, as it is said, “Before they call, I will answer.” To the extent that the people’s cry will seem as if they are merely responding to the voice of the Lord, which preceded their cry, and it will seem to the Lord, “When He hears,” as if He is hearing your answer and your response, like the echo that answers the word of the Lord.
And though the Lord give you sparing bread and scant water, Yet shall not your Teacher hide Himself any more, But your eyes shall see your Teacher;
verse value 3277
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 58 letters. The shortest word is "distress" (צָ֖ר, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·shall·not·hide·Himself" (וְלֹא־יִכָּנֵ֥ף, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·shall·not·hide·Himself" (וְלֹא־יִכָּנֵ֥ף), "your·teachers" (מוֹרֶ֔יךָ), "your·Teacher" (אֶת־מוֹרֶֽיךָ). The root ירה appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "are·seeing" (root ראה, 83x in Isaiah); "my·lord" (root אדון, 64x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'oppression', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְנָתַ֨ן [and·will·give] (506) + לָכֶ֧ם [to·you] (90) + אֲדֹנָ֛י [my·lord] (65) + לֶ֥חֶם [bread] (78) + צָ֖ר [distress] (290) + וּמַ֣יִם [and·water] (96) + לָ֑חַץ [oppression] (128) + וְלֹא־יִכָּנֵ֥ף [and·shall·not·hide·Himself] (197) + עוֹד֙ [anymore] (80) + מוֹרֶ֔יךָ [your·teachers] (276) + וְהָי֥וּ [and·they·shall·be] (27) + עֵינֶ֖יךָ [your·eyes] (160) + רֹא֥וֹת [are·seeing] (607) + אֶת־מוֹרֶֽיךָ [your·Teacher] (677) = 3277.
Rashi
"Bread of affliction and water of distress." Do not be attached to pleasures as you are now, as it is stated: "Who drink wine in bowls" (Amos 6:6); behold, joy and gladness (above 22).
"And he shall not cover himself." He shall not cover himself from you with the corner of his garment, meaning: he shall not hide his face from you.
"Your teachers." The Holy One, blessed be He, who teaches you to benefit [others].
Ibn Ezra
"And He gave them bread of affliction and water of affliction." [This refers to the fact that they were in a state of famine, as I have explained in the verse, "And he returned to Lebanon, to Carmel," and the word "waters" is not in the construct state; thus it is [to be read as] "and waters, waters of affliction," similar to the phrase "the tent of Sarah, his mother" (Genesis 24:67).]
"And he shall not withdraw into a corner." He shall distance himself, so that he be at the corner of the land.
Your teachers. On the straight path, and they are Hezekiah and his officers.
"And your eyes shall behold." It is doubled in meaning, as is the rule:
Radak
"And the Lord will give you." The commentators explained it as if it were "if He gives," similar to "for you shall not go out," which means "if you do not go out," and "permanently and you shall go," and "if permanently and you shall go," and those similar to them. And according to this interpretation, the vav [of "v'lo yiknaf"] does not turn into a pe, like the "pe" in the language of Ishmael [Arabic]. He said: "If until now He gave you bread of affliction and water of distress, this shall not be so anymore, for your Teacher shall no longer 'spread wings' [yiknaf]." And "your Teacher" is like "your rain" from "yoreh" and "malkosh" [the early and latter rains]. And the meaning of "shall not spread wings" is "shall not gather" or "shall not withhold." And similar to this in the words of our Sages of blessed memory is "kenofia" [a band/group], referring to the gathering of the people and their assembly. And then, in the days of Hezekiah, they had a famine, and he announced to them tidings of plenty, as it says: "Eat in the first year the aftergrowth, and in the second year what grows of itself, and in the third year sow and reap..." Or the interpretation is: "and shall not spread wings" means "shall not hover with wings over the land," meaning that the rain shall not be distant from you, but near, so that your eyes shall always see it. And one may interpret "your Teacher" from "and I did not hear the voice of my Teacher." And he said this regarding Hezekiah. And if the yod in "your Teacher" is plural, it refers to Hezekiah and his officers. Meaning that he shall not send envoys to the ends of the earth, as Ahaz did, who sent to the king of Assyria to help him in the war against Rezin and Pekah. But Hezekiah shall be secure in his place and shall not need human aid, and your eyes shall always see Him in Jerusalem, that He shall teach you the good and straight way. And Jonathan [the Aramaic translator] interpreted the verse regarding the camp of Assyria, translating the verse thus: "And the Lord will give you the possessions of hatred," and so on. And his interpretation is correct.
"And water of distress." It comes with the letter mem in close apposition, just as the mem in "birkayim" (knees):
Metzudat David
"And He shall give..." – This means that the Holy One, blessed be He, will place it in your hearts to be content with bread of affliction and water under pressure, as if the bread and water were scarce for you, and you will not be immersed in pleasures as you are now.
"And your Teacher will no longer hide His face from you." The Holy One, blessed be He, who teaches you to benefit, will not hide His face from you. And he grasps the parable: like a person who covers his face with the corner of his garment so that it will not be seen.
"And your eyes shall see." When He does not hide His face, then your eyes shall see Him; that is to say, you will be able to ask for all your needs, for He will fulfill your desires.
Metzudat Zion
Tzar. Pressure. One interpretation of them is from the concept of distress.
Yiknaf. From the language of "kanaf" (wing/corner) of a garment, which is the corners of the garment. “Morekha.” Your teacher; as in “shall he teach knowledge (yoreh de’ah)” (above, 28):
Malbim
And it shall give, according to the interpretation of what the prophet said to Hezekiah (below, chapter 37): “In the first year you shall eat what grows of itself, and in the second year what grows of itself; but in the third year sow and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.” And this is what it says at the beginning: “The Lord shall give you bread of affliction and water of scarcity,” due to the restriction, because the enemies destroyed all fields of grain. Nevertheless, “your moreh shall not take wing and fly off” — the early rain (yoreh) and the latter rain shall not flee on their wings from your land during the time of famine, for rains shall come in their season, and the blessing shall return. And “your eyes shall see your teachers,” the prophet who instructs you in the straight path; you shall no longer avert your eyes from him, as it is stated above: “They said to those who see, ‘You shall not see’; only look to Him, to walk in His ways.”
And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying: ‘This is the way, walk you in it, When you turn to the right hand, and when you turn to the left.’
verse value 3380
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 54 letters. Notable word values: "and·when" (וְכִ֥י) = 36, double chai. Verse gematria: 3380 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "this" (זֶ֤ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "you·turn·left" (תַשְׂמְאִֽילוּ, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·Your·ears" (וְאׇזְנֶ֙יךָ֙), "shall·hear" (תִּשְׁמַ֣עְנָה), "from·behind·you" (מֵאַחֲרֶ֖יךָ). The root כי appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "saying" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "when" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah); "shall·hear" (root שמע, 106x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'saying', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 8 words. Full calculation: וְאׇזְנֶ֙יךָ֙ [and·Your·ears] (94) + תִּשְׁמַ֣עְנָה [shall·hear] (865) + דָבָ֔ר [word] (206) + מֵאַחֲרֶ֖יךָ [from·behind·you] (279) + לֵאמֹ֑ר [saying] (271) + זֶ֤ה [this] (12) + הַדֶּ֙רֶךְ֙ [way] (229) + לְכ֣וּ [walk] (56) + ב֔וֹ [in·him] (8) + כִּ֥י [when] (30) + תַאֲמִ֖ינוּ [you·turn·right] (507) + וְכִ֥י [and·when] (36) + תַשְׂמְאִֽילוּ [you·turn·left] (787) = 3380.
Rashi
“And your ears shall hear the word behind you” (Isaiah 30:21). This is not like what you are doing now, that you are disgusted with His word and say, “Let not clear visions be shown to us” (Isaiah 30:10); rather, then your ears shall be inclined behind you, to hear a word from Me—perhaps a prophet will come and teach you the way to go, distinguishing between right and left.
Ibn Ezra
"And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ when you turn to the right hand or when you turn to the left." The meaning is that in your eyes you will see your teacher before you, and likewise from behind you you will hear the words of the prophets and those who admonish. And there are those who say that this is a metaphor for the vision of the heart and its perception.
"When you turn right (ta'aminu)" – the aleph stands in place of the yod of "yamin" (right), and there are many like it. The meaning: if you turn right or turn left from the straight path, you will hear in your ears your teacher speaking the good way.
Radak
"And your ears." Even if your teacher calls you from behind you and says to you, "This is the way, go in it," your ears will hear and pay attention; all the more so when he instructs you face-to-face. This means that the generation of Hezekiah in those days desired to observe the Torah and the commandments and listened to the voice of their teachers, even if they called them from behind.
"When you turn to the right and when you turn to the left." When you desire to turn to the right or to the left, you shall not do so, but rather walk in the straight path before your eyes; do not turn to the right or to the left from the commandments of the Torah. "Believe" [ta'aminu]—like "when you incline" [ki te'iminu], where the aleph is in place of the yod.
Metzudat David
“And your ears” etc. Not as you are now disgusted with My words and say, “Do not prophesy to us what is right,” but then your ears will be inclined backward, to hear a word from Me, which will say, “This is the way; walk in it.”
"When you believe": Whether you intend to go to the right or to the left, you shall be eager to hear the word of the Lord, if the matter is correct.
Metzudat Zion
“Believe.” The word is from the term yamin (right), and the aleph comes in place of the yod.
Malbim
And your ears: The verse depicts how the guide, who is the prophet, will go before them to lead them in the way of the Lord, and the people will walk after him, observing his path. And if at times the guide himself should err, turning to the right or to the left from the straight path, then your ears shall hear a word from behind you at the time that you incline to the right or to the left, to err from the straight path. For He will say to you, "This is the way, walk in it," because the Lord will watch over you in particular detail, so that you do not go astray due to the prophet’s error, and He Himself will rouse you to the straight path. Then:
And you shall defile your graven images overlaid with silver, And your molten images covered with gold; You shall put them far away as one unclean; You shall say to it: ‘Get you hence.’
verse value 4395
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 54 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (לֽוֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "go·out" (צֵ֖א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·covering" (וְאֶת־אֲפֻדַּ֖ת, 7 letters). 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·you·will·defile" (וְטִמֵּאתֶ֗ם), "plating" (אֶת־צִפּוּי֙), "images" (פְּסִילֵ֣י). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "you·shall·say" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "go·out" (root יצא, 42x in Isaiah). First appearance of the root זרה ("you·will·scatter·them") in Isaiah. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·gold', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְטִמֵּאתֶ֗ם [and·you·will·defile] (496) + אֶת־צִפּוּי֙ [plating] (587) + פְּסִילֵ֣י [images] (190) + כַסְפֶּ֔ךָ [your·silver] (180) + וְאֶת־אֲפֻדַּ֖ת [and·covering] (892) + מַסֵּכַ֣ת [molten·image·of] (520) + זְהָבֶ֑ךָ [your·gold] (34) + תִּזְרֵם֙ [you·will·scatter·them] (647) + כְּמ֣וֹ [like] (66) + דָוָ֔ה [faint] (15) + צֵ֖א [go·out] (91) + תֹּ֥אמַר [you·shall·say] (641) + לֽוֹ [to·him] (36) = 4395.
Rashi
Adornment.
"Like a menstruant." “They shall be detestable in your eyes as a menstruant.”
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make them unclean." It refers to the plating (overlay), as mentioned there:
Ephod. A precious covering for the image:
Tezarem. For they are forbidden in deriving benefit:
Like a woman who is in a state of impurity, such that a ritually pure person must not touch her.
Radak
"And you shall make them unclean." When He speaks concerning the people, He sometimes uses the singular form as a generalization, and sometimes the plural form as a specification. The meaning of "and you shall make them unclean" is that you shall render them as if they were unclean. For thus did Hezekiah say regarding the disqualified idols which Ahaz his father had made: [The text] says to the Levites, "Remove the impurity from the Holy Place," and it also says, "And they removed all the impurity that they found in the Temple of the Lord," and it says, "And the Levites received [the task] to remove [them] outside to the Kidron Valley." The "impurity" and the "uncleanness" refer to the disqualified idols and the masks.
"[Its] band/overlay." Like "and the woven band of the ephod" (Exodus 28:8), as its Targum renders it: a matter of ornamentation/fitting.
You shall scatter it. You shall scatter it to a distant place:
Like a menstruant woman. Just as a menstruant woman sits in a place distant from her husband during the days of her menstrual impurity, so too...
“Go out and say to him.” “Say to the idol: ‘Go out to the outside.’” And some say that “go out” is like “excrement,” and you shall cast it outside; and so it is in the Masorah, the sole occurrence, a term of defilement.
Metzudat David
"And you shall make them unclean..." – This means that in your eyes, the plating of the silver idols and the gold ephod girdle shall be considered unclean.
“tizrem” is like “doheh.” “Tafzarem” means to scatter them and cast them far away, like the woman who is distant from her husband during the days of her menstrual impurity, “doheh.”
“Go out,” you say to him. “Say about him, ‘Go out outside.’” And so said Chizkiyah: “And they brought out the menstruant woman from the Holy Place” (2 Chronicles 29). And regarding the idol, it says:
Metzudat Zion
Tzafui. The matter of covering and concealment:
"afedet." A girdle, as it is written: "and you shall gird him with the ephod" (Exodus 29:5).
Masekhet. A molten idol, cast from metal, and likewise "the molten image" (Exodus 34:17):
"tzarom." The meaning is "scattered far away," and likewise, "zarah halah" [scatter it far away] (Numbers 17).
Doh. Thus, the niddah is called "doh," as it is written: "for the days of her niddah, her doh" (Leviticus 12:2).
Malbim
And you shall make them unclean: you shall regard them as something unclean. And the ephod, even though it is merely an ornament of idolatry, and its decorations, which are not so severe, you shall scatter; they shall be alien to you, like a woman with a discharge who renders impure according to the law of the Torah. And not only this, but also excrement and filth: you shall say to him that they shall be detestable in your eyes, like excrement, which nature finds repulsive.
And He will give the rain for your seed, wherewith you sow the ground, And bread of the increase of the ground, and it shall be fat and plenteous; In that day shall your cattle feed in large pastures.
verse value 5470
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 73 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "howdah" (כַּ֥ר, 2 letters) and the longest is "that·you·sow" (אֲשֶׁר־תִּזְרַ֣ע, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 220: your·livestock, howdah. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "that·you·sow" (אֲשֶׁר־תִּזְרַ֣ע), "the·ground" (אֶת־הָאֲדָמָ֗ה), "produce" (תְּבוּאַ֣ת). The root אדמה appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "that·you·sow" (root אשר, 176x in Isaiah); "in·the·day" (root יום, 124x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·fat', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 6 words.
Rashi
"And He shall give." The Holy One, blessed be He, shall give the rain of your seed:
“Ve-shemen.” This is the language of “something oily” and not the language of “oil.” Therefore, its accent is on the final syllable, and it is vocalized with a qamats.
A wide couch. Until the couches are broad and spacious.
"A flatland": Another interpretation is that it refers to a broad, level plain, as in (Genesis 12:5) "the plain of the Jordan," and as in (Leviticus 23:10) "the sheaf from your harvest," where "harvest" (karmel) denotes a field full of grain.
Ibn Ezra
And He shall give. That which you sow. After the death of the king of Assyria:
Kaf-reish. Like "the plain of the Jordan" (Genesis 13:10), and similarly "daughter of eyes" (Psalms 18:7) is written without a bet; so too will the seed and the plant be abundant.
Radak
"And He shall give": He shall give you rain for the sake of your seed which you shall sow; likewise He shall give you bread, the produce of the land, for neither blight nor mildew shall come upon it, nor shall locusts devour it; furthermore, the bread of your land shall be rich and oily, and even your livestock shall graze similarly.
A spacious pasture. For everything will be filled with grain, and the livestock will graze widely; pasture is a place of grazing.
“Your cattle.” It is written with a yod; it is possible that it is in the plural, or it is a substitute for the lamed of the root.
Metzudat David
"And He will give the rain of thy seed". God, blessed be He, will give rain for the sake of your seed, etc. And likewise, He will give you bread from the produce of the earth, for blight and mildew will not come, and the locust will not eat it.
"And it shall be fat and rich." Your land shall be fat and rich, to grow excellent fruits.
He shall graze. Each one of your livestock shall graze in good pasture, until each one of the choicest animals is fat and well-fleshed.
Metzudat Zion
Deshe. Its meaning is like that of shemen (oil).
Kar. "A fat lamb," and so too they sent a kar (above, 15):
Malbim
"And He shall give"; and accordingly, "He shall give the rain of your seed," as it is stated: "If you will heed My commandments... and I shall give the rain of your land in its season" (Deuteronomy 11:14), lest your heart be enticed, and you serve other gods, and He withhold the rain, etc.
The rain of your seed will give to each individual rain separately, according as he needs for his field; and also “that you sow the earth,” meaning that He will give him rain according to the seed and according to the earth, for there are seeds that require more rain than others, and likewise there are fields that require more rain than others. “The bread of the produce of the earth” alludes to the fertile field from which the plants draw nourishment, which is the bread and sustenance of the crop, for the plant takes its bread from the richness of the earth and its moisture, and the Lord will give to the plant its bread and sustenance until the plant becomes rich and fertile (see the commentary on the words). “Your livestock will graze” — even your livestock that graze in the pasture will graze on that day immediately and forthwith. “A wide pasture and on a great plain,” for the grazing of the animals will immediately expand, and He said “wide,” because until now the animals were hidden in a narrow place on account of the enemy.
The oxen likewise and the young asses that till the ground shall eat savoury provender, which has been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan.
verse value 2524
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 52 letters. Notable word values: "slave" (עֹֽבְדֵי֙) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "slave" (עֹֽבְדֵי֙, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·the·cattle" (וְהָאֲלָפִ֣ים, 7 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·the·cattle" (וְהָאֲלָפִ֣ים), "and·he-ass" (וְהָעֲיָרִ֗ים), "seasoned" (חָמִ֖יץ). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·is·winnowed" (root אשר, 176x in Isaiah); "eat" (root אכל, 55x in Isaiah); "slave" (root עבד, 48x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'eat', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְהָאֲלָפִ֣ים [and·the·cattle] (172) + וְהָעֲיָרִ֗ים [and·he-ass] (341) + עֹֽבְדֵי֙ [slave] (86) + הָאֲדָמָ֔ה [ground] (55) + בְּלִ֥יל [night] (72) + חָמִ֖יץ [seasoned] (148) + יֹאכֵ֑לוּ [eat] (67) + אֲשֶׁר־זֹרֶ֥ה [that·is·winnowed] (713) + בָרַ֖חַת [with·the·shovel] (610) + וּבַמִּזְרֶֽה [and·with·the·pitchfork] (260) = 2524.
Rashi
And the thousands: oxen.
"Sour fodder-mash." Just as it is written (Job 7:5) "on his leavening," [referring to] husks and straw that are sour and hardened within the grain, which are eaten.
“Which is winnowed.” The grain is winnowed twice, once with a shovel and once with a winnowing fork, in order to clean the grain. Therefore, the chaff is mixed with the grain that is winnowed with a winnowing fork, among the hard stalks.
Shovel. "Pila" in the vernacular:
The winnowing fork. Yon in the vernacular, and in the Aggadic Midrash it is interpreted as "blul," meaning that the food should be mixed with straw.
Ibn Ezra
"And the thousands." The oxen that will plow like them, and so too the donkeys, as it is said, "Your thousands" (Deuteronomy 7:13).
"בליל" – as in "Does the ox low over his fodder" (Job 6:5).
Chamitz. Both “chamitz” and “chametz” are equivalent:
Which was winnowed. That one:
“ברחת” – from the root רוח (wind), and it is a vessel; and with the winnowing fork:
Radak
And the oxen. The oxen, as in the phrase "the offspring of your cattle."
And the young donkeys. They are the offspring of the donkeys:
“Those who serve the earth.” That is, those who till the earth.
Fermented fodder they shall eat. From the abundance of grain that they will have, they will feed the oxen and the donkeys. They will clean the chaff for them, winnowing and sifting it, just as one does with wheat for human consumption.
"בליל" refers to fodder, as in the phrase "if an ox has labored over its fodder."
Chametz. It is pure according to its context, and it also has a cognate in Arabic. And the Targum renders it as fattened cattle:
Zoreh. It is a participle of the conjugation whose agent is not named [the passive] of the dagesh-conjugation [pu'al]; therefore it has a segol.
“Barachta.” “Rachata” is derived from the word “ruach” (wind), because they winnow it with the wind and separate the chaff from the grain.
Metzudat David
"Those who work the soil." For it is they who plow the field for sowing.
"They shall eat fermented fodder [belil chamitz]." Their food shall be grain mixed with chaff, which is retained when grain is abundant.
"Which is winnowed": This means that the chaff will be strengthened in the mixture of clean grain, which is scattered by the wind through winnowing with a winnowing shovel and a fan to remove the chaff, because due to the abundance of blessing, they will even feed clean grain to the animals.
Metzudat Zion
"And the alafim [oxen]." [These are] the oxen, as it is stated: "the offspring of your oxen" (Deuteronomy 6). "And the ayarim." Thus donkeys are called [ayarim] while they are still young.
Belil. The word is related to confusion and mixing:
Chametz. The word is chametz, and that is to say it is strengthened, like something that causes leavening.
Zoreh. The meaning is: scattering the grain into the wind to winnow out the chaff; and likewise, “he winnows the threshing floor” (Ruth 3:2). Barchat. The name of a vessel in which they winnow the grain, and it is called so because they toss it into the wind.
And in the winnowing fork. It too is the name of a vessel made for winnowing the grain in it.
Malbim
And the oxen, they are the large oxen that are servants of the earth, and it is impossible to see them grazing, for they are needed for work. (And even the donkeys and small mules, whose need for work is not so great as that of the oxen,) fermented fodder, they shall eat clean grain, which is winnowed with the fan and the sieve from the chaff and refuse, and this will be due to the abundance of blessing.
And there shall be upon every lofty mountain, and upon every high hill Streams and watercourses, In the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.
verse value 2045
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 57 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֣ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "many" (רָ֔ב, 2 letters) and the longest is "streams·of·water" (יִבְלֵי־מָ֑יִם, 7 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "upon·all·hill" (עַל־כׇּל־הַ֣ר), "all·hill" (כׇּל־גִּבְעָ֣ה), "lifted" (נִשָּׂאָ֔ה). The root על appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "upon·all·hill" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "in·day·of" (root יום, 124x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'streams·of·water', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְהָיָ֣ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + עַל־כׇּל־הַ֣ר [upon·all·hill] (355) + גָּבֹ֗הַּ [high] (10) + וְעַל֙ [and·upon] (106) + כׇּל־גִּבְעָ֣ה [all·hill] (130) + נִשָּׂאָ֔ה [lifted] (356) + פְּלָגִ֖ים [channels] (163) + יִבְלֵי־מָ֑יִם [streams·of·water] (142) + בְּיוֹם֙ [in·day·of] (58) + הֶ֣רֶג [slaughter] (208) + רָ֔ב [many] (202) + בִּנְפֹ֖ל [when·fall] (162) + מִגְדָּלִֽים [towers] (127) = 2045.
Rashi
“Yevalei mayim.” Rivers of water, like (Jeremiah 17:8) “and by a stream it shall send out its roots.”
"On the day of great slaughter" – that there be a great massacre (in the land of Ashur). And the Targum translates: "On the day of great killing, in the fall of the mighty ones."
Ibn Ezra
"And it shall be upon every high mountain." Streams shall be channels of water. Just as it says, "and upon the brook it shall send forth its roots" (Jeremiah 17:8), and the meaning is: abundant rain, so that it shall stand upon the mountains.
"On the day that many are slain, etc." — This refers to people dying when towers collapse. And this is a source of comfort, for if ten die, myriads will live. For because a wall might fall upon a widow, God does not withhold the rain from being sent in order to sustain the many, for rain has no discernment to fall upon one place and not upon another alongside it.
Radak
“And it shall come to pass.” Regarding the matter that He said He will give rain upon the face of the earth, it says: so great shall be the abundance of water that the mountains and the hills shall be filled with water, and this shall be on the day of great slaughter, when the towers fall.
“On the day” – like “at the time,” as in “On the day when He struck every firstborn” (Exodus 12:29), and “In the day of my cry I called to You” (Psalms 3:5), and likewise all instances of “on that day” which refer to the future.
"הרג רב" – this refers to the great multitude that God struck down in the camp of Assyria, for afterward God blessed the inhabitants of Jerusalem and Judah with every good thing. And the phrase "when towers fall" refers to mighty princes, as the Targum renders it "rabbim" (many/great ones), just as it says, "He destroyed every mighty warrior and every leader in the camp of Assyria."
Metzudat David
“And it shall be upon every mountain and every hill” – “streams” [refers to] the channels formed by the abundance of rain.
"On the day of great slaughter." All this good will be at the time when there will be great slaughter in the camp of Assyria by the angel who strikes them.
When towers fall. In the destruction of the great princes among them:
Metzudat Zion
Plegim: The water channels that divide and separate in this direction and that direction.
“Yevlei mayim.” This, too, pertains to the matter of streams, as it is written, “and by the stream shall he send forth his roots” (Jeremiah 17:8). The doubling of the word with synonymous terms is also seen in “admat afar” (Daniel 12).
Malbim
And it shall be: whereas initially they sealed all the springs of water and gathered the water into the canal and the pool, so that the enemy would not find water to drink, as mentioned (in II Chronicles 2), now on every mountain, and even on every hill where it is not customary for springs to be found, there shall be streams of water. And this will be on the day of great slaughter, when the enemy will be slain and they will no longer fear him. And the towers built for war will fall, for they will no longer be needed.
Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, And the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of the seven days, In the day that Hashem binds up the bruise of His people, And heals the stroke of their wound.
verse value 5151
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 82 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֤ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "bind" (חֲבֹ֤שׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "light·of·the·moon" (אוֹר־הַלְּבָנָה֙, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 227: like·light·of, like·light·of. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "light·of·the·moon" (אוֹר־הַלְּבָנָה֙), "sevenfold" (שִׁבְעָתַ֔יִם), "seven" (שִׁבְעַ֣ת). The root אור appears 3 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "day" (root יום, 124x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'day', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 8 words.
Rashi
“Seven times as the light of the seven days.” Seven times seven sevens, as the light of the seven days—this makes forty-nine sevens, which amount to three hundred and forty-three.
Ibn Ezra
“And it shall come to pass, etc.” All the commentators said that this verse refers to the future, and the meaning of the passage concerns the war of Gog and Magog. Only Rabbi Moses the Cohen said that it is entirely connected. And behold, after it, it says, “Woe to those who go down to Egypt,” and likewise before it:
And the meaning of “the light of the moon” is that God will strengthen the light of the moon and the sun after the abundant rain, and this is a wondrous thing.
Seven times. Explanation: As the prophet explained, "as the light of seven days," and the meaning is that "as the light of seven days" is connected [as a single phrase].
"On the day when the Lord binds up." This refers to the time when the Lord will heal the wound of Israel, either in the days of Gog or in the days of Assyria.
Radak
“And the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun.” Most of the commentators interpreted this verse as referring to the future. Some interpreted it according to its plain meaning, but this is not correct. Others interpreted it as an allegory for the great goodness that will exist in the future during the days of the Messiah. This is indeed so. However, it is also possible to interpret it as an allegory for the days of Hezekiah, for they would experience great goodness after the death of the Assyrian camp, and their deliverance from him was great. Just as he calls the distress “darkness and gloom,” as it says, “The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withhold their shining,” and verses similar to these, so too he calls the deliverance “light,” as it says, “For the Jews there was light and gladness,” meaning that the light of the sun and the light of the moon were not added to them, but rather the salvation itself is the light. Similarly, “Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon be withdrawn,” and verses similar to these. “Seven times” means many great lights, as in “Sevenfold shall vengeance be taken on Cain,” which means many acts of vengeance, not merely two times seven. For the calculation of seven and seven serves to magnify the number, as in “A righteous man falls seven times and rises,” “Seven times for your sins,” and verses similar to these.
As the light of the seven days. This is a parable: as if the light of the seven days of the week were all combined into one, with each day adding to the other.
"On the day that the Lord binds up the breach of His people" – whether this refers to the future, on the day of the ingathering of the exiles, or after the war of Gog and Magog, and this interpretation is applied to the preceding verse, "On the day He slays many," meaning that after that war there will be no further affliction in the world, and it will be as if the entire world were filled with light; or whether it refers to the days of Hezekiah, after the destruction of the Assyrian camp. Regarding these passages, both before the following verses and after them, this matter appears to have occurred in the days of Hezekiah, as explained. This is also the opinion of the great Rabbi Moses Maimonides, of blessed memory. And the meaning of "as light for seven days" is: the seven days of the dedication of Solomon’s Temple.
Metzudat David
As the light of the sun. Her radiance will shine like the light of the sun:
"Let it be seven times as bright, etc." – Let it be seven times so, and he returned to explain that it should be as bright as the light of the seven days combined. This is a parable regarding the abundance of goodness, in contrast to what is stated: "In the day of evil, the sun and the moon are darkened" (Joel 2:10).
"On the day of binding" – this refers to the good that will be at the time when their brokenness is healed and their wound is cured; that is to say, after the downfall of Assyria, when He will strike them.
Metzudat Zion
Ḥavush. The matter refers to the binding of a cloth strip on the place of the fracture, as it is stated above (1): “and they did not bind it.”
"ve-machats." The meaning is a blow and a wound, as in "the crushing of the head" (Psalms 110).
Malbim
And it is known that distress is likened to night, and the time of relief is likened to day. The relief that comes to a person during a time of distress is likened to the light of the moon shining in the middle of the night. However, the success that shines upon his head during a time of goodness and tranquility is likened to the light of the sun. Based on this, the commentator suggests that even the light of the moon, which is the beginning of salvation that will come after the great troubles and this dark night, will shine with a great light like the light of the sun, until the troubles will be forgotten immediately, and it will be as if there had been no night or distress at all. And the light of the sun, namely at the time of success thereafter, will be the light seven times greater, meaning many times more, until it will resemble the light of the seven days known, which are the seven days of Creation, when the light shone upon existence, which was entirely renewed in those days, and it will illuminate a new world and new creations. So too, the light of success will shine now upon a new world that will be renewed for them in its beauty and splendor, as if all of existence was renewed for them due to the abundance of good. And this will be on the day that the Lord binds up the brokenness of His people. He likens the people at that time to one whose bones are broken, and upon the break he was struck with pains and wounds. And one must first bind up the break, and afterwards heal the wound of the strike from the outside. So too, He will bind up the internal break, and He will heal the external wound, which is the restoration of their spiritual and physical success.
Behold, the name of Hashem comes from far, With His anger burning, and in thick uplifting of smoke; His lips are full of indignation, And His tongue is as a devouring fire;
verse value 3714
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 55 letters. The shortest word is "went·in" (בָּ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "name·of·Hashem" (שֵׁם־יְהֹוָה֙, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "the uplifted" (מַשָּׂאָ֑הֿ), "and·his·tongue" (וּלְשׁוֹנ֖וֹ), "eating" (אֹכָֽלֶת). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "name·of·Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "went·in" (root בוא, 120x in Isaiah); "they" (root הן, 86x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the uplifted', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 6 words. Full calculation: הִנֵּ֤ה [they] (60) + שֵׁם־יְהֹוָה֙ [name·of·Hashem] (366) + בָּ֣א [went·in] (3) + מִמֶּרְחָ֔ק [from·afar] (388) + בֹּעֵ֣ר [burning] (272) + אַפּ֔וֹ [his·anger] (87) + וְכֹ֖בֶד [and·heavy] (32) + מַשָּׂאָ֑הֿ [the uplifted] (346) + שְׂפָתָיו֙ [his·lips] (796) + מָ֣לְאוּ [they·filled] (77) + זַ֔עַם [indignation] (117) + וּלְשׁוֹנ֖וֹ [and·his·tongue] (398) + כְּאֵ֥שׁ [as·fire] (321) + אֹכָֽלֶת [eating] (451) = 3714.
Rashi
There, "the Name of the Lord": His might shall be for Him as a name, for what Sennacherib will do.
He came from afar. To believe what he had promised many days ago:
“His burden.” The final heh is superfluous, and the word is equivalent to “burden” (messa); therefore, it is marked with a rafe dot.
Ibn Ezra
"Behold, the Name." The meaning of "the Name" is that the deeds of the Name will be heard in the camp of Assyria.
And the meaning of "from afar from the heavens" is on account of the descending of the angel:
"And a heavy rising [of smoke]." Just as it says, "and the column began to rise" (Judges 20:40), for there are many names for smoke.
Radak
"Behold, the name of the Lord." The name of the Lord that the messengers of the king of Assyria blasphemed—behold, He is coming to take vengeance upon them. And as for what is stated, "from afar," this is because the king of Assyria thought that God was as if He were distant from him, and thus unable to harm him. Therefore, it is stated that behold, He is coming from afar.
“His nostrils are kindled.” His nostrils are kindled against the king of Assyria and against his camp.
"And the burden shall be heavy." The final he is not a feminine pronoun, for it is soft (rafeh). Rather, the phrase "the burden shall be heavy" means that it shall be heavy for them to bear that heavy burden which God will place upon them.
“His lips were full of indignation.” And “his tongue,” etc.: The matter is repeated in different words, and “his lips” and “his tongue” refer to the words of prophecy that the prophet prophesied concerning them.
Metzudat David
“Behold, the name of the Lord.” The downfall of Assyria, which is the name of His might, behold, that downfall came from afar, meaning from heaven, through the angel who struck them.
“His wrath is kindled.” The kindling of His wrath and the heavy burden laden upon Assyria come from afar, from the heavens.
His lips. The lips of the Lord, and it refers to the words of prophecy concerning the downfall of Assyria.
And his tongue, etc. The duplication of the matter in what is stated:
Metzudat Zion
Ze'am. Anger and fury:
“Consumes.” It burns.
Malbim
Behold, now it will relate to depict the matter of Assyria, its coming and its downfall, in a depiction of exalted rhetoric, depicting the Lord who brought this enemy, the rod of His anger, upon Jerusalem, in two depictions that contradict each other: one depiction as if He is entirely filled with fire and smoke, judgment, and wrath, for such was His outward appearance, that He came to destroy Israel in His anger and fury; and another depiction of how, in His innermost essence, He is entirely filled with mercy and compassion, and strives to extinguish the fire and wrath with the waters of kindness. It says there, "The name of the Lord comes from afar" (which is an allusion to the coming of Sennacherib by the Lord, who brought him), "His anger burns like fire." It depicts Him in a manner of anthropomorphism, as if the nostrils of His nose are burning, and heavy is the burden of the smoke issuing from the burning nostrils. Also, His lips are full of indignation and curse, not only that His anger burned, but He also uttered the curse with His lips. And His tongue, inside, beneath the lip, burns like a consuming fire, due to the abundance of anger.
And His breath is as an overflowing stream, That divides even to the neck, To sift the nations with the sieve of destruction; And a bridle that causes to err shall be in the jaws of the peoples.
verse value 3430
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 57 letters. The shortest word is "upon" (עַ֖ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "until·the·neck" (עַד־צַוָּ֣אר, 6 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "will·divide" (יֶחֱצֶ֔ה), "to·sift" (לַהֲנָפָ֥ה), "in·a·lofty·place" (בְּנָ֣פַת). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "upon" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "peoples" (root עם, 107x in Isaiah); "nations" (root גוי, 65x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'emptiness', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְרוּח֞וֹ [and·His·breath] (226) + כְּנַ֤חַל [as·wadi] (108) + שׁוֹטֵף֙ [washing] (395) + עַד־צַוָּ֣אר [until·the·neck] (371) + יֶחֱצֶ֔ה [will·divide] (113) + לַהֲנָפָ֥ה [to·sift] (170) + גוֹיִ֖ם [nations] (59) + בְּנָ֣פַת [in·a·lofty·place] (532) + שָׁ֑וְא [emptiness] (307) + וְרֶ֣סֶן [and·bridle] (316) + מַתְעֶ֔ה [errs] (515) + עַ֖ל [upon] (100) + לְחָיֵ֥י [cheeks·of] (58) + עַמִּֽים [peoples] (160) = 3430.
Rashi
“Like a rushing torrent.” He who passes through it wades in it up to his neck, for it has no power to withstand the flood of the waters.
Concerning the waving: To wave. The vernacular term is "oven," in the vernacular.
With a sieve of falsehood. It does not benefit them, yet they assume that it does benefit them.
Reins. In the language of the nations: frenum and frein (i.e., the word for reins).
Ibn Ezra
And his spirit. The breath that goes forth from his mouth, by way of a parable, referring to the matter of the angel.
“L’hanafah.” The majority of the commentators say that “l’hanafah” is like “lehanif” (to wave). And Rabbi Moses the Priest said that it is like “resen” (a bridle). And behold, this wind is like a wind of falsehood, as Micaiah prophesied concerning it (I Kings 22:19). And this is the correct explanation. And the reason is that the bridle is placed on the jaws of the horse to lead it on the straight path, and this wind places a misleading bridle. And similar to it is “banafat shav” (a wind of vanity). And behold, the meaning of “l’hanafah” is like “kashar” (to bind).
Radak
And His spirit. And His word; likewise the Targum [renders it] "and His utterances," just as it said "His lips and His tongue," so too it says "and His spirit." Or perhaps the explanation of "and His spirit" is "His angel," namely the angel who struck the camp of the Assyrians, [who] will be for them like a sweeping flood that will sweep them away.
“Until the neck it shall divide.” This is like the waters of a river that have reached a man up to his neck, such that he has no way to escape them except to drown in them, or he is close to drowning. So too, the camp of Assyria was almost entirely destroyed, for only a few remained, like the size of the head in relation to the body.
"To wave the nations with a futile waving." The root is like "to wave," meaning that His Spirit will come to wave the nations that are in the camp of Assyria with a futile waving. A winnowing fan is the sieve in which one winnows the grain, and that one is not futile, but rather serves to separate the good grain from the chaff. But this winnowing fan with which God will wave the nations will be a futile winnowing fan, in which nothing of value will be preserved, but everything will go to futility and destruction. And it will also be that His Spirit toward these nations will be like a deceptive bridle, for the bridle that is placed in the mouth of the beast is to straighten the beast, so that it will go a straight path to the place that the rider desires. But this bridle, God will place upon the jaws of the nations to mislead them, not to straighten them, and He will lead them to destruction.
Metzudat David
And his spirit. The breath of his mouth is like a torrent that flows with force, reaching up to the neck; from there, the body is divided, with part above the water and part in the water. That is to say: just as there is danger in waters that come and flow at this measure, so too will the camp of Assyria be endangered and fall.
"To fan the nations. The Spirit of the Lord has spoken to fan the peoples who are in the camp of Assyria, with a fan of emptiness, for the fan was made to separate the grain from the chaff. But a bad fan, whose holes are coarse, is of no use, for everything falls through the holes. So too, the camp of Assyria will be fanned with a fan of emptiness, for they will all be destroyed, and no remnant will remain."
And the bridle will mislead them. For the bridle that is placed on the jaws of an animal straightens it, to guide it along the straight path so that it will not stray; but the bridle that the Almighty places on the jaws of those nations to lead them to Jerusalem—this bridle will mislead them, for they will go to their destruction. That is to say, God will place it in their hearts to go to Jerusalem, to their own detriment.
Metzudat Zion
And His spirit. The matter of speech that comes through the blowing of the breath.
Shoteif. The matter of swiftness in walking:
יחצה. The meaning is division, as in: "And it shall be divided into the four winds of the heavens" (Daniel 11:4).
Regarding "winnowing" (hanafah): It means to move the grain back and forth and to scatter it within the winnowing basket, which is similar to a sieve. And our Sages of blessed memory stated: "A sieve is that which brings out the flour" (Pirkei Avot 5).
Shav. This means: evil.
"ורסן" – this is the device by which one leads an animal, as it is said, "with a bit and a bridle" (Psalms 32).
“Deceives.” The verbal form is from the root *t.u.a.h* (to stray/go astray).
"Lechi [cheek]." This is the place adjacent to the eye:
Malbim
And His spirit, but all this was in the exterior of the body, but His inner spirit is like a rushing stream to extinguish the burning fire, and this spirit will divide up to the neck, depicting it as a body that up to the neck is a rushing stream, and from the neck and above is a burning flame and smoke, and up to the very place of the neck itself it will divide and separate between its half of fire above and its half of water below, and the intent is that even though the Lord appears as if He were angry with Israel, His inner spirit and His thought were only good and kindness, and the portion of God is full of rain of gifts to extinguish the fire and the heat, “to sift the nations,” until what appeared to be coming in fire and heat was only to the eyes, to deceive the nations, who are the camp of Sennacherib, that it seemed to them that He wished to transplant and settle them in a landscape (nof) of vanityscape and climate, which is Jerusalem, beautiful in landscape, which was truly vain for them, and it was only a deceptive bridle on their cheeks that led them to emptiness, not the way.
You shall have a song As in the night when a feast is hallowed; And gladness of heart, as when one goes with the pipe To come into the mountain of Hashem, to the Rock of Israel.
verse value 3634
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 61 letters. The shortest word is "to·you" (לָכֶ֔ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "hallowed·feast" (הִתְקַדֶּשׁ־חָ֑ג, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 90: to·you, as·the·night·of. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "the·song" (הַשִּׁיר֙), "hallowed·feast" (הִתְקַדֶּשׁ־חָ֑ג), "as·the·one·going" (כַּהוֹלֵךְ֙). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·the·mountain·of·Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "it·will·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "to·come" (root בוא, 120x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'hallowed·feast', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 8 words. Full calculation: הַשִּׁיר֙ [the·song] (515) + יִהְיֶ֣ה [it·will·be] (30) + לָכֶ֔ם [to·you] (90) + כְּלֵ֖יל [as·the·night·of] (90) + הִתְקַדֶּשׁ־חָ֑ג [hallowed·feast] (820) + וְשִׂמְחַ֣ת [and·gladness·of] (754) + לֵבָ֗ב [heart] (34) + כַּהוֹלֵךְ֙ [as·the·one·going] (81) + בֶּחָלִ֔יל [with·the·pipe] (80) + לָב֥וֹא [to·come] (39) + בְהַר־יְהֹוָ֖ה [in·the·mountain·of·Hashem] (233) + אֶל־צ֥וּר [to·the·Rock·of] (327) + יִשְׂרָאֵֽל [Israel] (541) = 3634.
Rashi
"The song shall be for you." On the night of Passover, this joy shall come to you.
The festival was sanctified in its entirety. Just as you stated that the Song of the Passover offerings was recited in Egypt, and this verse appears to come to teach about Sennacherib, yet it taught about Pharaoh, regarding whom they said that the Hallel was recited on the night of eating the Passover offering, as explained in the Midrash on Psalms.
Like one who walks with a flute. And they rejoiced at the downfall of Sennacherib with the joy of those who bring the firstfruits, for the flute was played before them as they came up to the Temple Mount, as we learned in the Mishnah in the tractate Bikkurim.
Ibn Ezra
"The Song, etc." The kaph is directed toward Judah.
"The complete sanctification of the festival. The night of Passover; therefore, the ancients of blessed memory said that on the night of Passover, the camp of Assyria was utterly destroyed."
"To come to the mountain of the Lord." It speaks of [them] as of one walking [in procession]:
Radak
“The song.” On that day, when the plague will be in the camp of Assyria, there will be for you, inhabitants of Jerusalem, a song and joy, like the night in which the festival is sanctified, and it is the night of the festival in which they rejoice and recite songs. So it will be for you on the day of the defeat of the camp of Assyria: you will rejoice, sing, and praise God who performed for you a great miracle. And this song is with the mouth, and the joy is in the heart; therefore it says, “and joy of heart,” and it says, “like one walking with a flute,” for indeed one who walks with a flute has joy of heart. And it says “walking,” because the dance is that many people walk, each holding his companion’s hand, going around in a circle, and the flute plays among them.
"To come to the mountain of the Lord" – that they should come to the mountain of the Lord, which is the Temple, to sing and praise there the God, the Rock of Israel, who was their Rock and their strength against the king of Assyria. And our Sages of blessed memory explained that on the night of Passover the plague struck the camp of Assyria, as it is stated: "The song shall be for you as in the night when the festival is sanctified," referring to that in which they recite song and Hallel, which is the night of Passover.
Metzudat David
"The song shall be for you": At the time when the camp of Sennacherib falls, there will be for you a song like the song that was in Egypt on the night which was sanctified to be a festival, and it is the night of Passover.
"And the joy of your heart." There shall be for you the joy of heart like the joy of those who bring the first fruits, when the flute played before them as they came up to the mountain of the Lord, which is the Temple Mount.
Metzudat Zion
Be sanctified. The word is derived from the root kodesh (holiness).
"Upon the flute." The name of a musical instrument:
Rock. Strength and fortress:
Malbim
“The song” — The downfall of Sennacherib’s camp occurred on the night of Passover, at the time when Israel recited the Hallel in the Temple over the eating of the Passover sacrifice. It depicts that just as the joy of Israel increased then in the recitation of Hallel and thanksgiving for their Passover offerings, so too did the tumult increase in the camp of Assyria. “When it shall be for you a song” — “A complete song,” meaning that the festival was sanctified in its entirety. Then the Lord caused His glorious voice to be heard, etc. “Complete” — There is joy on account of the time itself, such as the joy of the pilgrimage festival; and there is joy on account of the matters associated with the time, such as the joy of going up for the pilgrimage in order to be seen by the face of the Lord God. He says that the joy was twofold: 1. “A complete song,” meaning the festival was sanctified in its entirety; 2. “And the joy of the heart,” like one walking with a flute, going up to the mountain of the Lord in his pilgrimage to be seen then by the Rock of Israel. Behold, at the time that this song and this joy began, then:
And Hashem will cause His glorious voice to be heard, And will show the lighting down of His arm, With furious anger, and the flame of a devouring fire, With a bursting of clouds, and a storm of rain, and hailstones.
verse value 3368
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 63 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֜ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "anger" (אַ֔ף, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·he·will·proclaim" (וְהִשְׁמִ֨יעַ, 6 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·he·will·proclaim" (וְהִשְׁמִ֨יעַ), "the·majesty·of" (אֶת־ה֣וֹד), "his·arm" (זְרוֹעוֹ֙). 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "and·he·will·proclaim" (root שמע, 106x in Isaiah); "will·show" (root ראה, 83x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'eating', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 4 words.
Rashi
"And his arm shall rest." This is not the language of "rest" (as in ceasing from labor), but rather the language of "relaxation" or "loosening," *Puschemnant* in the vernacular, like "and he rested in every border of Egypt" (Exodus 17:8). The relaxing of His mighty arm will be seen in the flame of fire in which the inhabitants of Sennacherib were burned.
Nafats. A term denoting a more thorough crushing:
"And a torrent." A stream of rain that sweeps along:
Ibn Ezra
And He caused to be heard. The majestic voice, as one who hears the voice of thunder is afraid:
"And He descended." Descent, as in "and You laid me low" (Psalms 38:3):
Yera'eh (will be shown). Always:
The letter bet in "be-za'af" (in wrath) governs the word that follows it as well.
“be-shatter” is from the root of “they shall shatter them” (Psalms 2:9):
"And a stone of hail." This is a metaphorical expression.
Radak
"And the Lord caused His voice to be heard." When the angel of the Lord came, he came with the voice of thunder, which terrified them, and their souls departed.
"And the descending (ve-nachat)." [The Hebrew] "and he went down" is rendered in the Targum "u-nechat"; "nachat" is the noun of descent, meaning that God will bring down His arm upon them — that is, His blow.
"And the flame of the fire consumed it." Our Sages of blessed memory explained that the soul was burned, while the body remained intact, as we explained regarding the verse, "and instead of his glory, a flame shall burn."
"Nafatz and zeram." It is as if lightning bolts had descended upon them, shattering and breaking, and a torrent of rain and hailstones; thus were they swiftly destroyed.
Metzudat David
"And the Lord made Himself heard..." He employed a parable based on the custom of people who fight, who raise their voice in a shout to intimidate their opponent.
“And His arm shall be laid bare.” The laying bare of His arm to strike them will be seen with great wrath, and with a devouring flame, and with a tempest, and with torrential rain, and with hailstones—meaning that no remnant of them will remain, as if He had brought upon them all these plagues.
Metzudat Zion
Hod. Splendor and beauty:
Ve-nachat. The word is in the sense of "placing" or "setting down."
“With fury and anger.” The repetition of the word in synonymous terms:
Nafatz. The meaning is crushing accompanied by scattering, as in “and they shattered the pitchers” (Judges 7).
“and it flowed.” The matter of the rushing of the waters:
"And a stone of hail." This means hail that is hard and heavy.
Malbim
"And the Lord made heard the voice of His glory, to terrify the camp of Assyria with His voice; and also the resting of His arm He will show; He had not yet struck them with His arm, but rather He showed them the resting of His arm, to frighten them with the anger of His wrath, etc.:"
For through the voice of Hashem shall Asshur be dismayed, The rod with which He smote.
verse value 1505
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 24 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "fear" (יֵחַ֣ת, 3 letters) and the longest is "for·through·voice·of" (כִּֽי־מִקּ֥וֹל, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "for·through·voice·of" (כִּֽי־מִקּ֥וֹל), "he·shall·strike" (יַכֶּֽה). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "Asshur" (root אשור, 43x in Isaiah); "for·through·voice·of" (root קול, 35x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Asshur', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 2 words. Full calculation: כִּֽי־מִקּ֥וֹל [for·through·voice·of] (206) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + יֵחַ֣ת [fear] (418) + אַשּׁ֑וּר [Asshur] (507) + בַּשֵּׁ֖בֶט [in·the·rod] (313) + יַכֶּֽה [he·shall·strike] (35) = 1505.
Rashi
"From the voice of the Lord, Assyria shall be broken." He opened their ears and they heard song from the mouths of the celestial creatures, and they died - [as told] in Aggadat Chelek.
"With a rod He will strike." Assyria, which was accustomed to striking you with its rod:
Ibn Ezra
"With a rod He will strike." As if to say, "With a rod He will be struck," or perhaps, "With a rod God will strike them."
Radak
"For from the voice of the Lord. With a rod He will strike" – meaning that God will strike him with His rod. Alternatively, the explanation is that Assyria, which used to strike with a rod, will now be subdued and broken, for Scripture calls it a "rod," as it says, "Ah, Assyria, the rod of My anger," and so too does the Targum.
Metzudat David
"For at the voice of the Lord"—by the rebuke of the Lord, Assyria will be broken, as if He had struck him with a rod of breaking.
Metzudat Zion
Yachat. The meaning of "breaking" is like [the verse] "They have broken their bows" (Jeremiah 51:56):
Malbim
“Behold, only from the voice of the Lord, which terrified them at that time, it was already sufficient that Assyria was broken, which He strikes with a rod (as stated above, ‘with a rod He will strike you’). That very voice which the Lord made heard when Israel began the song, at the time the festival was sanctified—because of it too, Assyria already fell and was broken; this was the beginning. But afterwards:”
And in every place where the appointed staff shall pass, Which Hashem shall lay upon him, It shall be with tabrets and harps; And in battles of wielding will He fight with them.
verse value 3744
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 66 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֗ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 3744 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "all" (כֹּ֚ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·in·wars·of" (וּבְמִלְחֲמ֥וֹת, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 532: with·hand-drums, and·in·wars·of. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "foundation" (מֽוּסָדָ֔הֿ), "would·let·down" (יָנִ֤יחַ), "with·hand-drums" (בְּתֻפִּ֖ים). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "upon·him" (root על, 200x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·in·harps', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 4 words.
Rashi
"And it shall be that every passing of the appointed rod shall be upon its foundation." Every passing [of the rod]-the might of the foundations of its multitudes, all the places which they passed through and destroyed. And on the day of their downfall the Lord will lay it upon them, in connection with the report of their downfall, and it shall be with timbrels and lyres. And thus is the resolution of the verse when read in transposed order: And it shall be with timbrels and lyres, every passing of the appointed rod which the Lord shall lay upon it. And in the wars of futile brandishing, up and down, the Holy One, blessed be He, fights against them. And the Aggadic midrash teaches: the waving of the Omer harvest stood in Israel's merit in that war, for it was the night of the sixteenth of Nisan.
Ibn Ezra
"And it shall be that every place where the staff of his resting place passes." It is a po'el form from the heavy, augmented binyan, for behold, "matteh" is in the feminine gender, as it is said, "Hear, O staff, and attend, O rod" [Micah 6:9]. The meaning is: every place that this rod passes over, (and likewise the staff) upon which the Lord will rest, it shall not be for the sake of toil, but rather it shall strike, and the striking is the angel, who rejoices as with timbrels and harps.
And in the wars, a brandishing. A brandishing of the hand for the musician:
Radak
“And every passage of the appointed staff.” In every place where the staff that God ordained for him passes through the camp — [the staff] that He will now lay upon the king of Assyria — [it shall be] with timbrels and with harps; and the war that the Lord fights for him shall be with timbrels and with harps, not with weapons of war. And why does it say “with timbrels and with harps”? Because when the wicked perish, there is rejoicing. It is as if the angel plays music at the time he strikes them down.
And in the wars of the uplift. This is a double expression, for the musician waves his hand.
Its establishment. There, the letter he is soft (rafe).
“[He shall fight against it.]” “It” is written, meaning the camp, since it is in the feminine gender, as in “the one camp” and “If a camp encamps upon you.” And “them” is read, meaning the men of the camp.
Metzudat David
“And it shall be that every passing, etc.” The explanation of the verse is as if it said: “And it shall be, with timbrels and with harps, every passing of the settled camp, which the Lord shall place upon it, and in battles of waving they shall fight with them.” This means: One shall be glad to play on timbrels and harps at every place where the camp of Assyria, which is like a settled camp, passes by on its way, and it is destroyed. And the joy shall be upon hearing that the Lord has placed His arm upon it to strike it, and they shall fight with them in battles of vain waving, for all of them are consumed and no remnant remains, as stated above: “For the waving of nations with a vain waving.”
Metzudat Zion
Ma'avar. From the root "avar":
Its foundation. The word derives from "foundation" and "strength."
“With timbrels and with harps.” These are the names of musical instruments:
Tenufah. The word is derived from the root n-f-h, and it is like a sieve.
Malbim
And it shall be, at the time that every crossing of the camp shall be established, meaning all the crossings and places of the camp, and the tribe that is established and strong, which is all the places of the tribe of Judah, upon which the Lord (His might) shall rest upon this strong tribe, at the time that all the crossings and places of the camp of Judah were with timbrels and harps, due to the great joy of the Passover, for they rejoiced in all the streets and markets over the joy of the festival, then likewise also the Lord shall fight against them in the battle of Assyria with a mighty arm, whereas previously, at the time that they sang the song of the festival in Jerusalem alone, He had not yet fought against Assyria, but only rebuked them with His voice; now, at the time that the joy of the sacrifice spread throughout all the streets of Jerusalem (for they were reciting the Hallel in all the places and groups where they ate the Passover), also the Lord increased His battle against Assyria.
For a hearth is ordered of old; Indeed, for the king it is prepared, Deep and large; The pile thereof is fire and much wood; The breath of Hashem, like a stream of brimstone, does kindle it.
verse value 5719
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 80 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "fire" (אֵ֤שׁ, 2 letters) and the longest is "for·ordered" (כִּֽי־עָר֤וּךְ, 6 letters). 12 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "for·ordered" (כִּֽי־עָר֤וּךְ), "from·yesterday" (מֵֽאֶתְמוּל֙), "Topheth" (תׇּפְתֶּ֔ה). The root הוא appears 2 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "it·also" (root הוא, 98x in Isaiah); "to·the·king" (root מלך, 73x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'made·wide', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 10 words.
Rashi
"For it is prepared from yesterday." The second day of the creation of the world, a day that has a "yesterday" but no "day before yesterday."
"Will seduce." Gehinnom, for whoever is seduced by his evil inclination falls there.
"Prepared for the king." For the sake of Sennacherib and his army.
Her bonfire. The term denotes a rising fire; a pile of wood arranged around a fire is called a bonfire.
The soul of the Lord. The blowing of His spirit:
Bo'erah. Burning:
Ibn Ezra
"Ki." From yesterday. And if it is with a shureq, it is like a holam, and the meaning of "etmol" is "from before."
Tefetah. A place name, a filthy area surrounding Jerusalem, where all refuse was thrown, and smoke would rise from it; and the meaning is that God prepared it for the camp of Assyria.
He too was prepared for the king. The reason is that every leader and prince had perished. And there is one who says that it is an allusion to the king of Assyria.
“Her brazier.” From the root of “brazier” (Ezekiel 24:9), a place where the fire is contained.
The breath of the Lord. That which goes forth swiftly: this is a parable for the decrees that come swiftly.
Radak
"For it is prepared from yesterday." With a shureq, just as [it is read] with a cholam.
"Topheth" refers to Gehinnom. This teaches that it is prepared for them from yesterday, prior to their death, for the prophet prophesied before the decree concerning their downfall came into effect; and when their bodies die, their souls too die and enter Gehinnom. And regarding "topheth," its memory in the verse is expressed in both the masculine and the feminine gender.
He too was prepared for the king. He was prepared even for the king of Assyria; he was seduced, even though he was arrogant and haughty in himself, saying, “By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I am wise.” Therefore, it is also said: “The Lord has deepened and widened [the trap]” – He deepened and widened it to seduce this great multitude, so that they would all enter there.
"Her bonfire." The bonfire of Topheth will be great to burn up the souls of those wicked ones, for there is there fire and many woods, and the soul of the Lord, which is like a stream of sulfur to them, they are there like a bonfire that burns in it so that it will not be extinguished.
bo'era. It is burning. And the explanation is: the soul of the Lord, the breath that exits from the mouth, which is called "breathing."
And likewise He said, “His soul is like burning coals.” And all of this matter is an allegory for the severe and harsh decree that the Almighty brought upon them. And likewise He said concerning the destruction of the souls of the wicked: “their pyre is fire and much wood.” And He elaborated and expanded upon all of this through allegory.
Metzudat David
“For Topheth is prepared from yesterday.” Gehinnom burns with great intensity, as if it had been prepared yesterday; that is to say, from a recent time, so that its arrangement has not yet become disordered.
Also she was prepared for the king: for the sake of Sennacherib and his army.
"He deepened and expanded." God deepened and expanded Gehinnom to contain the entire great host of Assyria.
“Her brazier is fire and many pieces of wood.” The brazier of Gehinnom is coals of fire and a flame from many pieces of wood.
“The breath of the Lord.” The vapor that issues from the mouth of the Lord which is like a stream of burning, blazing sulfur there in Gehinnom; and all of this is a metaphor for the multitude of afflictions.
Metzudat Zion
Aruch. The matter of arranging:
From yesterday. This means from a recent time. And similarly, “And yesterday My people rose up as an enemy” (Micah 2:8).
“Tefatah.” Thus is Gehinnom called by this name, because anyone who is seduced by his evil inclination falls into it. And similarly, “and I am become an open abhorring (tofet) before them” (Job 17:6).
“Hukhan.” From the language of preparation:
Her brazier. The meaning is a burning fire, as in “I will enlarge the brazier” (Ezekiel 24:9).
Neshamah: The matter of the blowing of the breath of the mouth, as it is said, “By the breath of God ice is given” (Job 37:10). Bo’erah: Burning.
Malbim
“Behold, Topheth is prepared from of old for the king.” And if you ask, “What was the ultimate fate of King Sennacherib himself?” the answer is: “Behold, Topheth is prepared from of old for the king,” for his sons struck him with the sword. Our Sages of blessed memory received the tradition regarding this (Sanhedrin 95) that he had prepared his sons to be sacrificed to idolatry, and therefore they hastened to kill him. Now, the place where the sons were to be sacrificed to idolatry was called Topheth, as it is stated (Jeremiah 7:31): “And they built the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire.” It relates that this Topheth which Sennacherib prepared for his sons was ultimately prepared for himself, for through it he was put to death. This is the meaning of “Behold, Topheth is prepared from of old for the king”: it was the place where he intended to burn his sons for idolatry, but it was also prepared for the king, for which reason his sons killed him—namely, for the king who had deepened and expanded the Topheth. Although its pyre consisted of fire and much wood, intended to burn his sons for idolatry, the Spirit of the Lord and His will burned within it like a stream of sulfur, until the very maker of the pyre was consumed in it, like a stream that flows and burns far away.
Rashi
Ibn Ezra
Radak
Metzudat David
Metzudat Zion
Malbim