'Who is this that cometh from Edom?' — the LORD treading the winepress of vengeance alone; then the remembrance of His old mercies and the plea, 'Oh that Thou wouldest rend the heavens.'
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
’Who is this that comes from Edom, with crimsoned garments from Bozrah? This that is glorious in his apparel, stately in the greatness of his strength?’— ’I that speak in victory, mighty to save.’—
verse value 2803
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 66 letters. The shortest word is "going·in" (בָּ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "in·his·clothing" (בִּלְבוּשׁ֔וֹ, 6 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "who?·this" (מִי־זֶ֣ה), "from·Edom" (מֵאֱד֗וֹם), "from·Bozrah" (מִבׇּצְרָ֔ה). The root רב appears 2 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "going·in" (root בוא, 120x in Isaiah); "speaking" (root דבר, 88x in Isaiah); "I" (root אני, 76x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·strength', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 5 words.
Rashi
“Who is this coming from Edom?” The prophet prophesied concerning what the Holy One, blessed be He, said He would do, namely, to take vengeance on Edom, and He Himself, in His own honor, will first kill their leader, as it is stated above in chapter 34: “For My sword shall be drunk in the heavens,” and afterward, “it shall come down upon Edom, and upon the people of My ban, for judgment” (Isaiah 34:5). It became known through the anger of His face that He killed them with a great slaughter, and the prophet speaks in the language of human warfare, wearing garments, and when He killed them, their blood splattered upon His garments, for thus is the manner of the Scriptures: they speak of the Divine Presence in the manner of human beings, to break the ear [i.e., to accommodate human comprehension] to what it is capable of hearing. Likewise, “And His voice like the voice of many waters”: the prophet likened His mighty voice to the voice of many waters, to break the ear, as is possible for it to hear, for one cannot understand and attend to the spirit of the might of our God to hear it as it truly is.
“Who is this coming from Edom?” Israel says, “Who is this, etc., and he comes with garments dyed in blood.” And anything that is characterized by a pungent odor and an unappealing appearance is described with the language of “sourness.”
“Her fortress.” Our Sages said that the prince of Seir is destined to make two errors: he assumes that “her fortress” refers to Bezer in the wilderness, which was a city of refuge; and he errs because it admits only those who killed unintentionally, whereas he killed the Israelites intentionally. Furthermore, there is an aggadic midrash on the matter: Bezer was sufficient for the king of Seir at the death of the first king, and Jobab, son of Zerah, from Bezer, reigned in his stead; and Bezer is from Moab, as it is stated: “On Kerioth and on Bezer.”
This. (That was) He who is glorious in his garment, marching forth, and girded with much strength, and the Holy One, blessed be He, answers them: “I am He who appeared before to speak concerning the righteousness of the Patriarchs, and concerning the righteousness of the generation of distress, and My righteousness too is with them, and I revealed Myself to be great to save them; yet they say: ‘Why is your apparel red? Why are your garments red?’”
Ibn Ezra
“Who is this...” Some say that this “one who comes” is the Messiah, and some say that it is Michael. The correct explanation is that it is an allusion to the Exalted Name, and the meaning is regarding the decree that was decreed against Edom, which is the kingdom of Rome and Constantinople. They are called “Edomites” because they entered into the Torah of Edom, and this Torah is named after Edom, for the Edomites initially believed in the Torah of the known man.
“Sour garments.” From the root of “vinegar” (Numbers 6:3):
This is what is meant by "the generation was in its garment." And the reason for how it became defiled:
Tzoe'a. Others [explain it] as [in the phrase] "And I will send to him tzoe'ei" and "tzavo'u" (Jeremiah 48:12), and [as in] "until the abundance of his strength." And Rabbi Moses the Priest, of blessed memory, said that "tzoe'a" is like "Hasten, O Tzoe'a, to open" (Isaiah 51:14), and it is a description of the Name, and it is not an active verb in this place.
And because He said, “Who is this?” He answered, “I am the One who speaks, great to save,” [meaning] great, as in “greater than all his household” (Esther 1:8).
“From its fortress.” It is a proper noun denoting a place, as if [the phrase] derives from that place, and the meaning is “from the people of Tzarah,” namely, Edom, who adhere to their religion wherever they are.
Radak
“Who is this coming from Edom?” This prophecy concerns the future destruction of Edom, as we explained in the portion “Nations have come near to hear.” And God, blessed be He, compared the one who destroys her to a mighty warrior who executes vengeance upon his enemies, whose garments are red with the blood of slaughter. It is as if someone were asking, “Who is this?” and He answers, “I speak in righteousness,” meaning that what I have spoken, I have done to Israel in My righteousness, for “I am mighty to save,” meaning that I possess great power to save Israel, for in the destruction of Edom will be the salvation of Israel, as we explained in that portion.
Chamutz. Red, according to the context of the verse:
“Bozrah.” Bozrah was a large city of Edom; therefore, Edom is referred to by the name Bozrah.
He who dwells in his garment. He who donned garments of vengeance:
Tzoea be-rav kocho. He moves and displaces the nations from one end to the other, and we have already explained this word in the verse “he who hastens to be bent down, to be released” (Isaiah 51:14).
Metzudat David
"Who is this that comes from Edom?" The prophet prophesied that the Holy One, blessed be He, is destined to exact vengeance from Edom, and the ministering angel of Edom will be slain first. The prophet speaks in the language customary among human beings: when people are killed, their blood splatters upon their garments. Therefore, he states as if one were asking: "Who is this that comes from Edom, whose garments are dyed with blood, from the fortified city?" It is a great metropolis, etc.
This is the generation in its garment. Was this not the generation in its splendid garment, and how did it become defiled with blood?
“By the greatness of His strength.” Is it not by the abundance of His strength that He moves and shifts everyone who desires from place to place, and none can stand against Him? What then is this blood upon His garments?
"I speak of charity." This is as if the Holy One, blessed be He, responds, saying: "I am the One who speaks and promises to act charitably toward Israel, and I am the One who abundantly delivers, as I promised."
Metzudat Zion
Chamutz. The matter is of a dyeing, and it has no parallel. And it is possible that it is the reverse of "You trampled your feet in blood" (Psalms 68:24), for a foot dyed with blood appears as if it were wounded.
Mivtzarah. From the language of "fortress":
Hadur. The matter of splendor and beauty. Tzo'ah. The matter of being harried and moved about, as in: “a roving harlot” (Jeremiah 2).
Malbim
“Who is this that comes from Edom, with crimson garments from Bozrah?” Ibn Ezra has already written that Edom is the kingdom of Rome and Constantinople, etc., and Bozrah is the head of their faith. And there (above, chapter 34) I wrote that the Lord will come to Edom to save His people, and to demand an accounting for the evil they did to Israel. And to Bozrah He will come because of the faith, so that they will recognize the true religion. Here he depicts that first He will come to Edom and Bozrah with gentle words, and He compares the Lord to one who walks in clean and pure garments. And after they do not listen to the good, then He will don vengeance to fight against them. “Who is this that comes from Edom, with crimson garments from Bozrah?” — in white and pure garments. “Who is this that comes from Bozrah?” — in his attire. And there is a difference between “garment” (beged) and “attire” (levush): the garments are the general ones, and the attire is specific to a particular matter, such as royal attire, sackcloth attire. From Edom, the Lord desires that they not harm Israel, and the garments He will don are His general garments, which are His attributes with which He conducts Himself toward His creatures: merciful and gracious, abundant in kindness. And He desires from them mercy and compassion. And from Bozrah He desires that they recognize the faith in God and His unity, which is His specific attire, royal attire. He now asks: Who is this that comes in white garments from Edom, and in His specific royal attire from Bozrah? And why is He striding and storming, stirred up with all His might? He answers Him: “The Lord, speaking in righteousness.” This refers to Bozrah: to them I speak righteousness, which is the commandments between man and God, and the true faith. “And mighty to save” — this refers to Edom: to them I have come in order to save Israel.
’Wherefore is Your apparel red, and Your garments like his that treads in the winevat?’—
verse value 1247
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 26 letters. The shortest word is "man" (אָדֹ֖ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "for·your·clothing" (לִלְבוּשֶׁ֑ךָ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 45: man, and·your·clothes. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "for·your·clothing" (לִלְבוּשֶׁ֑ךָ), "and·your·clothes" (וּבְגָדֶ֖יךָ), "as·one·treading" (כְּדֹרֵ֥ךְ). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "as·one·treading" (root דרך, 57x in Isaiah); "man" (root אדם, 30x in Isaiah); "and·your·clothes" (root בגד, 26x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'for·your·clothing', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: מַדּ֥וּעַ [why?] (120) + אָדֹ֖ם [man] (45) + לִלְבוּשֶׁ֑ךָ [for·your·clothing] (388) + וּבְגָדֶ֖יךָ [and·your·clothes] (45) + כְּדֹרֵ֥ךְ [as·one·treading] (244) + בְּגַֽת [in·winepress] (405) = 1247.
Ibn Ezra
Why, etc. According to the opinion that interprets “your garment” as an addition, similar to the interpretation of the third “to Absalom” (1 Chronicles 3:2), the meaning is: the blood that resembles wine.
Radak
Why are your garments red? The letter lamed [in "adom"] is like the lamed in "l'amos" [five cubits], [referring to] the killing of Abner, and the third [instance] of Absalom, and those similar to them, and all of this is metaphorical, as we have explained, that He likened God to a warrior who slays his enemies, and His garments are red with blood. And the Targum [translates]: "What is the decree that the mountains shall be reddened, etc."
Metzudat David
"Why is your clothing red?" As if they were to ask Him: "Why are there red stains on your clothing and garments?" They are like the garments of one who treads in the winepress to extract the wine from the grapes, upon which there are red stains from the splashing of the wine.
Metzudat Zion
"ללבושך" - "On your garment:"
As your treading. From the language of treading and trampling.
Gat. This is the name of the vessel in which grapes are trodden to extract the wine; and likewise, “the Lord has trodden a winepress” (Lamentations 1:15).
Malbim
"Why? But immediately the questioner will see that his white garments have turned red, and have been dyed with blood, and will ask, 'Why is your special garment red, and your all-encompassing garments appear like your usual attire in the winepress?' (The explanation is that the primary purpose of His coming is for the special garment, which is the recognition of His kingship and divinity; and because they do not recognize this, His garment turns red to take vengeance upon them for this; consequently, the other garments also turn red.)" The Lord answers him.
’I have trodden the winepress alone, and of the peoples there was no man with Me; indeed, I trod them in Mine anger, and trampled them in My fury; and their lifeblood is dashed against My garments, and I have stained all My raiment.
verse value 4350
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 77 letters. Verse gematria: 4350 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "with·me" (אִתִּ֔י, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·all·My·garments" (וְכׇל־מַלְבּוּשַׁ֖י, 9 letters). 10 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "winepress" (פּוּרָ֣ה), "I·trod" (דָּרַ֣כְתִּי), "and·of·peoples" (וּמֵֽעַמִּים֙). The root דרך appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·of·peoples" (root עם, 107x in Isaiah); "and·all·My·garments" (root כל, 93x in Isaiah); "nothing·man" (root אין, 92x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·my·wrath', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Rashi
And from the nations, not a man comes to me. He stands before me to fight:
And their lifeblood spurted forth. Their blood, which is their strength and their victory.
I have stained Myself. Just as it is written, "They were stained with blood" (Lamentations 4:14).
Ibn Ezra
"Fruitful, etc." And behold, this is the answer, the reason: the slaughter of Edom and the destruction of the kingdom of their religion.
And the meaning of “alone.” For thus have I decreed concerning Edom:
"And I will guide them." Even though it appears that it refers to the future, it is a sign of the time that is about to come.
And their blood splattered. Behold, "yaz" is like "wayet" (Exodus 9:23):
Their "eternity" (netzacham) is the blood by which the person will live forever, and it is derived from the root of "eternity" (netzach) as in Isaiah 34:10.
“Agalti.” The aleph is in place of the he of the binyan, and in my opinion it is a compound word from a past and future verb, and the meaning of “agalti” is like “tanuf,” as in “darkness and deep darkness shall stain him” (Job 3:5).
Radak
“Poreh.” And behold, God answers those who inquire, saying, “I trod the winepress alone” (Isaiah 63:3). The winepress is called “poreh” because the grapes are crushed and pulverized within it when they are trodden. The wicked are compared to grapes in the winepress, and God is the One who treads them. As for the phrase “alone, and there was no man to help Me,” this means that there was no merit on the part of Israel that could have served as an aid to God, had they possessed merit. We have already explained this in connection with the verse, “He looked, but there was no man”.
“Also among the nations there is no man” to aid me in taking vengeance upon the enemies of Israel, for they were all their enemies. And I will make the beasts of the field take vengeance, therefore I will tread them in My anger, for I have a grievance against them because they did evil to Israel, exiling them among them, and I was only slightly angry, yet they assisted Me in doing evil.
“Nitzacham.” Their blood will be sprinkled upon the garments; therefore, they are red. And the blood is called “nitzach” because it is the life of a person and his strength.
“I defiled” (agalti). Like “I defiled” (higalti), and the aleph is an interchange for the he, in the pa’al conjugation. And similarly, “Yehoshafat joined” (etchaber) is like “he joined” (hitkhaber). And “agalti” means to defile and make unclean. And similarly, “defiled bread” (lechem megual).
Metzudat David
“Forthwith I trod it alone.” This implies that the Omnipresent would respond by saying, “I alone trod the winepress of the grapes,” meaning: I did not slay the ruler on account of their merit, but rather solely by virtue of My righteousness, in order to extract his blood, just as one treads in the winepress to extract the wine.
And from the nations. There is no one from among the gentiles to stand against me in battle, for I have slain the ministering angel above.
"And I will tread them." If so, I will also tread upon them in My anger, and I will trample them in My wrath.
And their blood spattered. And their blood dripped upon my garments, and I defiled all my clothing; and all of this is metaphorical language, drawn from the expression customary among human beings.
Metzudat Zion
Poreh. The winepress is called "poreh" because there the grapes are crushed to extract the wine. Similarly, "fifty poreh" (Haggai 2:16).
"And I will tread them." And I will trample them - their meaning is one, and the matter is repeated in what is stated:
Vayaz. The word denotes sprinkling and dripping of their "eternity" (netzach). This is the blood, which is the strength and power of a person, and it is derived from the phrase: "And also the Eternal of Israel" (1 Samuel 15).
"Agalti." The matter concerns defilement, similar to "lechem megua'al" (Malachi 1:7), and the aleph is used in place of the he.
Malbim
“I have trodden the winepress alone” (Isaiah 63:3): The one who treads the winepress has the purpose of extracting the wine; so too, the purpose of their being trodden was to bring them back in repentance. But I saw that “from the nations there is no man” (supporting) me, and they refused to return to Me. Therefore, “I have trodden them in My anger, and trampled them in My wrath.” The difference between “anger” (af) and “wrath” (chemah) is that “anger” is external, for show, while “wrath” is the inner anger preserved in the heart. Through My “anger” and the external punishment, My intention was only to tread them, as one who treads in the winepress removes the stalks and skins and extracts the wine; so too, I only wished to remove the wicked. But through My “wrath” that burned within them, because they did not wish to return, I trampled them by way of destruction. And thereby, “their blood is sprinkled upon My garments” (Isaiah 63:3), which includes even all My special garments, as mentioned above.
For the day of vengeance that was in My heart, and My year of redemption are come.
verse value 1134
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 24 letters. Verse gematria: 1134 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֛י, 2 letters) and the longest is "My·redemptions" (גְּאוּלַ֖י, 5 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "in·my·heart" (בְּלִבִּ֑י), "and·year·of" (וּשְׁנַ֥ת). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "for" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah); "day" (root יום, 124x in Isaiah); "went·in" (root בוא, 120x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·my·heart', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: כִּ֛י [for] (30) + י֥וֹם [day] (56) + נָקָ֖ם [vengeance] (190) + בְּלִבִּ֑י [in·my·heart] (44) + וּשְׁנַ֥ת [and·year·of] (756) + גְּאוּלַ֖י [My·redemptions] (50) + בָּֽאָה [went·in] (8) = 1134.
Ibn Ezra
"Ki, etc." – "I will take vengeance on My enemies, and I will redeem My beloved ones." Now, the redeemed are in the passive voice, and the yod is the sign of the speaker, which is the Name.
Radak
"For the day." It was in my heart for a long time, until the year of our redemption comes, and then it will be a day of vengeance against the nations.
Metzudat David
"For the day of vengeance is in My heart." The day of vengeance was long in My heart.
And the year of our redemption has come. The time has come to redeem My people and to execute vengeance.
Malbim
"For, the reason that I hastened to their way and did not prolong my face to them is because the time has arrived: a. This day is the special day of vengeance upon the nations; b. For the year of our redemption has come to redeem Israel."
And I looked, and there was none to help, and I beheld in astonishment, and there was none to uphold; therefore Mine own arm brought salvation to Me, And My fury, it upheld Me.
verse value 3527
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 52 letters. The shortest word is "help" (עֹזֵ֔ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·I·was·astonished" (וְאֶשְׁתּוֹמֵ֖ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 67: and·nothing, and·nothing. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·I·looked" (וְאַבִּיט֙), "and·I·was·astonished" (וְאֶשְׁתּוֹמֵ֖ם), "upholds" (סוֹמֵ֑ךְ). The root אין appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it" (root הוא, 98x in Isaiah); "and·nothing" (root אין, 92x in Isaiah); "and·it·saved·to·Me" (root ישע, 32x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'upholds', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְאַבִּיט֙ [and·I·looked] (28) + וְאֵ֣ין [and·nothing] (67) + עֹזֵ֔ר [help] (277) + וְאֶשְׁתּוֹמֵ֖ם [and·I·was·astonished] (793) + וְאֵ֣ין [and·nothing] (67) + סוֹמֵ֑ךְ [upholds] (126) + וַתּ֤וֹשַֽׁע־לִי֙ [and·it·saved·to·Me] (822) + זְרֹעִ֔י [my·arm] (287) + וַחֲמָתִ֖י [and·my·wrath] (464) + הִ֥יא [it] (16) + סְמָכָֽתְנִי [leaned·me] (580) = 3527.
Rashi
And I looked, and there was no helper. To Israel:
"And he was astonished." This is a term for silence, and I have already explained above regarding "and he was astonished" that it means he did not respond.
"And My anger supported Me": My anger that I have against the nations, because I was only slightly angry with My people, and they assisted in the evil, supported Me—it strengthened My hand and stirred My heart to take vengeance upon them, even though Israel is not worthy or fit for redemption.
Ibn Ezra
"And I looked." A figurative expression, for God has no need [of looking].
"ואשתומם" – like "וַיִּשְׁתַּמֵּם" (Isaiah 59:16), and I have already explained it there.
Radak
"And I will look." We explained this matter in the verse "And He saw that there was no man," and above it says, "His arm and His righteousness," whereas here it says, "My arm and My wrath." "My arm" is as explained there, and "My wrath" refers to the vengeance He will execute upon the wicked at the time of salvation. Therefore, he connects to it, "And I will trample the nations."
Metzudat David
“And I looked.” I was looking to see if I could find a helper, but there was no helper. This means: I looked to see if there was any merit in Israel that would serve as a helper and support for the redemption, but I found no merit in them.
And I was astounded. I stood in amazement and pondered whether I might find in them merit to serve as a support for the Redemption, but there was no support. And this idea is repeated in what is stated:
"And My arm shall save Me." My own arm shall save Me, and if there is no merit in them:
“And My anger.” The anger that I have against the nations will serve as a support for Me to redeem Israel and to take vengeance upon them.
Metzudat Zion
And he was astonished. The matter of astonishment and contemplation; and similarly, "and he was astonished, because there was no one to meet him" (above 29:).
Malbim
And I looked, and there was no helper, for the generation is not deserving; and I was dismayed, and there was no supporter, for there is no righteous person praying on their behalf. And opposite "there was no helper" it says, "My arm delivered me by its own strength." And opposite "there was no supporter" it says, "His anger supported me," referring to the anger against the gentiles, as explained above (Isaiah 59:16); see there. And consequently
And I trod down the peoples in Mine anger, and made them drunk with My fury, and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.’
verse value 2091
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "peoples" (עַמִּים֙, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·I·made·them·drunk" (וַאֲשַׁכְּרֵ֖ם, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·I·will·tread·down" (וְאָב֤וּס), "and·I·made·them·drunk" (וַאֲשַׁכְּרֵ֖ם). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·the·land" (root ארץ, 169x in Isaiah); "peoples" (root עם, 107x in Isaiah); "in·my·anger" (root אף, 39x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·my·wrath', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְאָב֤וּס [and·I·will·tread·down] (75) + עַמִּים֙ [peoples] (160) + בְּאַפִּ֔י [in·my·anger] (93) + וַאֲשַׁכְּרֵ֖ם [and·I·made·them·drunk] (567) + בַּחֲמָתִ֑י [in·my·wrath] (460) + וְאוֹרִ֥יד [and·I·brought·down] (227) + לָאָ֖רֶץ [to·the·land] (321) + נִצְחָֽם [their·juice] (188) = 2091.
Rashi
And "avus." This is a term denoting one who rolls in blood and treads with his feet, as in "drenched in your blood" (Ezekiel 16:6), and as in "they trampled my vineyard" (Jeremiah 12:10).
"Their eternity." The might of their victories:
Ibn Ezra
“And I trample nations.” Others [interpret it as referring to] all the nations except Edom.
"And I will bring down their lifeblood (nitzcham) to the earth." As if to say, "I will pour out their blood upon the earth."
Radak
And "avos." The matter of trampling and treading is like "bosim" in the mud of the streets.
"And I will repay them in My anger." I will make them drink the cup of My anger until they become intoxicated.
“Their strength.” Their strength and their might:
Metzudat David
And I will trample. I will trample the nations in My anger and make them drink from the cup of My wrath (He likened the Omnipresent’s wrath to intoxicating wine that confounds a person’s mind):
And I will bring down their blood to the earth. Their blood I will pour out upon the earth:
Metzudat Zion
And I will trample. The matter of trampling is like "as mighty men trample" (Zechariah 10:3):
“And I will make them drunk.” From the language of drunkenness and confusion of the mind.
Their eternity. He likened it:
Malbim
"And I will make the nations a desolation,"—by My wrath and by My inner fury, I will utterly destroy them and bring their permanence down to the ground, as stated above (verse 3):
I will make mention of the mercies of Hashem, and the praises of Hashem, according to all that Hashem has bestowed on us; and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which He has bestowed on them according to His compassions, and according to the multitude of His mercies.
verse value 4455
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 75 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֤ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "all" (כֹּ֥ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "that·He·bestowed·on·us" (אֲשֶׁר־גְּמָלָ֖נוּ, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 26: Hashem, Hashem, Hashem. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "I·will·mention" (אַזְכִּיר֙), "praises·of" (תְּהִלֹּ֣ת), "that·He·bestowed·on·us" (אֲשֶׁר־גְּמָלָ֖נוּ). The root יהוה appears 3 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "according·to" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "that·He·bestowed·on·us" (root אשר, 176x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 7 words.
Rashi
“The kindnesses of the Lord I will recount.” The prophet said: “I will recount to Israel the kindnesses of the Lord.”
And much good. I will remember the kindness that He showed to the House of Israel in His mercies:
Ibn Ezra
"His steadfast love." Then the wise of Israel shall give thanks for the abundance of steadfast love that God showed Israel in their exodus from Egypt, even in exile, and that He saved them and restored them to their land.
And the meaning of “the praises of the Lord” is that when He recalls the kindnesses of God, this is His praise.
And "Great in Goodness." This is an attribute of God, namely that He is great in goodness.
Radak
“The steadfast love of the Lord.” The prophet spoke concerning the acts of kindness that God showed him He would perform for His people in the future: “I will remember for the children of men the kindnesses that He did for them in the past,” so that they may acknowledge and praise His Name. And he said “steadfast love” alone, because they rebelled against His word, yet He did good to them in every generation. Therefore, he said “the praises of the Lord,” for on account of those kindnesses it is fitting to praise the Lord.
As for all that the Lord has requited us. I will mention those kindnesses just as they were for all that He has requited us:
And great is the goodness. For He did for the House of Israel that which He bestowed upon them according to His mercies and according to the abundance of His kindnesses, not according to their deeds.
Metzudat David
“The kindnesses of the Lord I will recount.” The prophet said: “I will recount the kindnesses of the Lord that He did for Israel.” For it is fitting to multiply the praises of the Lord, as befits His praise, for all the good that the Lord has recompensed us with, and for the abundant goodness bestowed upon Israel, which He recompensed them with according to His mercies and the abundance of His kindnesses, and not on account of our righteousnesses.
Metzudat Zion
"גמלנו" – from the root גמל, meaning recompense and the repayment of a good deed.
Malbim
“I will mention the kindnesses of the Lord” (This begins a new subject, in which he will recount the greatness of how Israel will remember in their distress the wonders He performed for them in ancient times, and they will inquire of their spirit why He has withdrawn His right hand, and they will argue with Him concerning this, and the Lord’s answer to them and comfort regarding the future, and the subject continues until chapter 66). “I will mention the kindnesses of the Lord”—the kindnesses that the Lord performed for us in ancient times, which are the miracles and wonders He performed for us at that time. And through these kindnesses, I will also mention the praises of the Lord, “according to all that the Lord has recompensed us,” I will praise Him according to His recompense upon us (for praising Him for His own sake is impossible except through His kindnesses and deeds, from which aspect we recognize His praises). And do not say that these kindnesses were few, for “He has recompensed the house of Israel with much good,” and that recompense was not on account of our deeds, but rather according to His mercies and His abundant kindnesses (the Merciful One saves because He cannot bear to see the distress of the oppressed and the poor, and He only saves from distress; whereas the Doer of Kindness acts from the breadth of His heart and His generosity, even for those who are not in distress or oppressed, and in addition to saving from distress, He performs other good deeds. Furthermore, the Merciful One does not seek thanks for His goodness, whereas the Doer of Kindness requires that His kindness be thanked). For He saved Israel both from the aspect of mercy for the poor, and from the aspect of His kindness to bestow additional goodness.
For He said: ‘Surely, they are My people, children that will not deal falsely’; so He was their Saviour.
verse value 1759
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 37 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "as·a·savior" (לְמוֹשִֽׁיעַ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 31: not, and·it·was. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "surely·My·people" (אַךְ־עַמִּ֣י), "they·will·deal·falsely" (יְשַׁקֵּ֑רוּ), "as·a·savior" (לְמוֹשִֽׁיעַ). The root הם appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "and·said" (root אמר, 244x in Isaiah); "and·it·was" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·will·deal·falsely', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ [and·said] (257) + אַךְ־עַמִּ֣י [surely·My·people] (141) + הֵ֔מָּה [abundance] (50) + בָּנִ֖ים [son] (102) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + יְשַׁקֵּ֑רוּ [they·will·deal·falsely] (616) + וַיְהִ֥י [and·it·was] (31) + לָהֶ֖ם [to·them] (75) + לְמוֹשִֽׁיעַ [as·a·savior] (456) = 1759.
Rashi
"Yet they are My people." Even though it is revealed before Me that they will betray Me, nevertheless they are My people, and behold, they are before Me like children who do not deceive.
Ibn Ezra
And He said. The meaning is that He said, as a person who thought that the children would be faithful, therefore He saved them.
Radak
“And He said.” Just as He took them to be His people when He brought them out of Egypt, He said, “Surely they are My people,” meaning, “These are My people, whom I have taken from among another nation and taken for Myself as sons, and they shall not deceive Me forever.”
"And He was to them a savior." Once He had been to them a savior, in that He saved them from Egypt, He said that they should never deceive Him again. And the word "only" (ach) serves to confirm the matter, as in "Only My flesh and My body are Yours" (Genesis 29:14), "Only good is God to Israel" (Psalms 73:1), and similar verses.
Metzudat David
"And He said." When He brought them out of Egypt, He said: "Only they are My people; in them have I chosen from among all the nations, and they shall be counted as sons to Me, and they shall not deceive Me by abandoning Me." Therefore He became their Savior.
Malbim
"And He said" — in contrast to His mercies, it explains that He said, "Surely they are My people," and it is fitting that I show mercy to the afflicted; and in contrast to the multitude of His kindnesses, He said, "Are they not My sons?" which is a higher rank, because for this reason they are worthy of great kindnesses, to perform for them signs and wonders, as a father does for his sons, because they will not deceive. And they will serve Me and know Me because of that good, and therefore He will be to them a Savior always. Now it explains how He was to them a Savior, for this was in two ways: 1.
In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the angel of His presence saved them; in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; And He bore them, and carried them all the days of old. .
verse value 3615
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 69 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֣וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "not" ((לא), 2 letters) and the longest is "in·all·their·affliction" (בְּֽכׇל־צָרָתָ֣ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 146: his·face, ever. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "in·all·their·affliction" (בְּֽכׇל־צָרָתָ֣ם), "and·messenger·of" (וּמַלְאַ֤ךְ), "saved·them" (הוֹשִׁיעָ֔ם). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "all·days·of" (root יום, 124x in Isaiah); "He" (root הוא, 98x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'redeemed·them', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 4 words.
Rashi
"In all their distress." That He brought upon them:
"He was not an adversary (lo tzar)." He did not distress them according to their deeds, though they deserved to be punished. Rather, it was the angel before His face, Michael, the prince of the presence, who served before Him, that always saved them by the commission of the Omnipresent.
Ibn Ezra
It is not "distress." The truth is that it is written with a vav, like the sense of "and his soul was shortened" (Judges 10:15), as a parable to help the listeners understand, as if He too was in distress; therefore, He hastened to save them.
And the angel of His countenance saved them. And so it is written, “He sent an angel and brought him out from Egypt” (Numbers 21:19), and it is not Moses at all.
"And He took them." Just as it says, "And He took the dust" (Proverbs 27:3). And the meaning is that He redeemed them from Egypt and carried them into their land; therefore, He said, "all the days of the world," meaning all the days that they were in their land.
Radak
"In all their affliction He was not afflicted." It is written with an aleph and read with a vav. The meaning of the written text is that He did not multiply their affliction, for He saved them from it. The meaning of the vocalized text is that He was in distress over their affliction, akin to the verse "His soul was pained with the labor of Israel." All of this is metaphorical, for the Torah speaks in the language of human beings. And the Targum translates: "In every generation they oppressed them, etc." Our Sages of blessed memory wrote regarding the verse "Though He slay me, I will hope in Him," which is also a case of a discrepancy between the written and vocalized text, that they said: Let us see this matter: whether it is written with a lamed and an aleph, or whether it is written with a lamed and a vav. And wherever it is written with lamed-alef, it means "not." But if that is so, then "In all their affliction lo tzar," which is written with lamed-alef, should likewise mean "not"! You might say: It is indeed so, yet it is written, "And the angel of His countenance saved them." Rather, the implication is both this and that: "And the angel of His countenance saved them" means that He arranged the causes for their salvation, and these causes proceeded from before Him, so that they were not mere chance occurrences. And the cause is called an angel. He redeemed them from the affliction in which they were, and thus He will do with them in every generation and every generation. This is what is stated: "All the days of the world."
“And He took them, and He lifted them up.” A repetition of the same idea expressed in different words:
Metzudat David
"In all their distress." In every time that they were in distress, He was in distress.
“And the angel of His countenance.” The angel who serves before Him saved them by the agency of the Omnipresent.
"In His love." Because of His love for them and His compassion upon them, He redeemed them from the coming distress.
"And He took them." He bore their burden, to provide for all their needs throughout all generations, throughout all the years of the generations.
Metzudat Zion
And in His compassion. From the language of pity and mercy:
"And he took them up." The meaning is that he bore the burden, as it is said, "For He has taken up" (Lamentations 3). And to further clarify, it says, "And he carried them."
Malbim
"In all their distress" — at the time they were in distress in exile — He was distressed for them, similar to a father whose son's distress is distressing to him as if it were his own distress. And therefore, "the Angel of His Face" saved them; He saved them always through an agent of His Face and His providence, because His providence was constantly attached to them. When the time of their redemption from distress and exile arrived, then, out of His love and compassion, He Himself redeemed them. Then He no longer redeemed them through the Angel of His Face, the agent of His providence, which is appropriate for hidden miracles, where providence is concealed behind the veil of nature. Rather, He Himself redeemed them through open and public miracles, not subject at all to the laws of nature. This redemption was through His love and His compassion: love arises from the inherent qualities that the lover finds in the beloved, and compassion arises from the lowliness of the power of the one pitied and their weakness. For these two reasons He redeemed Israel: on account of their merits and on account of their weakness. "And God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant, and God saw the children of Israel." And therefore, "He took them" — He lifted them up from distress (through His compassion) — and "He bore them" — He raised them to the highest position in honor and importance (through His love). This continues throughout all days of the world, that He is always their Savior in these two ways.
But they rebelled, and grieved His holy spirit; therefore He was turned to be their enemy, Himself fought against them.
verse value 1928
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 43 letters. The shortest word is "they·was·contentious" (מָר֥וּ, 3 letters) and the longest is "fought·against·them" (נִלְחַם־בָּֽם, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "they·was·contentious" (מָר֥וּ), "and·grieved" (וְעִצְּב֖וּ), "and·turned" (וַיֵּהָפֵ֥ךְ). The root הם appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "He" (root הוא, 98x in Isaiah); "and·they" (root הם, 49x in Isaiah); "spirit" (root רוח, 44x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'His·holiness', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְהֵ֛מָּה [and·they] (56) + מָר֥וּ [they·was·contentious] (246) + וְעִצְּב֖וּ [and·grieved] (174) + אֶת־ר֣וּחַ [spirit] (615) + קׇדְשׁ֑וֹ [His·holiness] (410) + וַיֵּהָפֵ֥ךְ [and·turned] (121) + לָהֶ֛ם [to·them] (75) + לְאוֹיֵ֖ב [for·enemy] (49) + ה֥וּא [He] (12) + נִלְחַם־בָּֽם [fought·against·them] (170) = 1928.
Rashi
And they were rebellious. They provoked [Him], as it were, like those who are rebellious.
Ibn Ezra
"And they rebelled and were grieved." This is derived from the root of "Do not be distressed" (Genesis 45:5), as a metaphor; and there are those who say that His Holy Spirit is the angel of Glory, and He fought against them until they went out of His land.
Radak
And they were rebellious. The matter of "rebellious" is like "you rebelled."
"And they provoked Him to anger." This refers to the matter of angering Him. Likewise, "How often they rebelled against Him" (Isaiah 63:13), etc. It states that after He had redeemed them from distress, they returned and rebelled against His word, did not heed His voice, nor His Holy Spirit—namely, the words of His prophets, which were spoken through the Holy Spirit. And so too does the Targum translate.
"And He turned to be their enemy." "Turned" [indicates that] He who redeemed them from the hand of an enemy now fought against them, and their affairs came to them in a bad way, until they would say, "From the hand of God is this."
Metzudat David
And they have rebelled. This means that it was not so as he had supposed, that they would not deal falsely with Him; for they have indeed rebelled against Him and grieved His Holy Spirit.
"And He turned." Then He turned against them into an enemy to bring upon them evils, and He fought against them; it did not happen by chance.
Metzudat Zion
Maru. From the language of "meri" and "mered," meaning rebellion and revolt.
Malbim
But they rebelled, and did not keep [their duty] to thank the Lord for His kindness; rather, they rebelled against Him and exchanged His commandments. And behold, initially they grieved His Holy Spirit, in that by what they caused through their murmuring, that He would punish them, His Holy Spirit was grieved over this. This is depicted as the pain of a father who is grieved when he strikes his beloved son. But afterwards, He turned against them as an enemy, until He rejoiced at their misfortune (as it is stated: “And it shall be, just as the Lord rejoiced over you to do you good... so shall He rejoice to destroy you”), and afterwards He Himself fought against them. And not only did He abandon them into the hand of the enemy and rejoice at their misfortune, but He fought against them in actuality and harmed them with His own hands, until their punishment was not natural but rather providential (as stated in the commentary on the verse: “For their Rock has sold them, and the Lord has given them up”; see there).
Then His people remembered the days of old, the days of Moses: ‘Where is He that brought them up out of the sea With the shepherds of His flock? Where is He that put His holy spirit In the midst of them?
verse value 3725
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 58 letters. The shortest word is "Moses" (מֹשֶׁ֣ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "days·of·old" (יְמֵֽי־עוֹלָ֖ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 345: Moses, name. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "and·remembered" (וַיִּזְכֹּ֥ר), "days·of·old" (יְמֵֽי־עוֹלָ֖ם), "that·brought-up·them" (הַֽמַּעֲלֵ֣ם). The root אי appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "his·people" (root עם, 107x in Isaiah); "name" (root שם, 83x in Isaiah); "that·brought-up·them" (root עלה, 49x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·people', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 11 words.
Rashi
“And He remembered the days of old, Moses and His people.” The prophet laments, saying in a language of supplication: “Today, in exile, He remembers His people’s days of eternity—the days of Moses.” And in his distress, he says: “Where is Moses, our shepherd, who brought us up from the Sea of Reeds?”
“The shepherds of His flock.” The likeness is to a shepherd who leads his flock: Where is He who placed His Holy Spirit within Israel and taught us statutes and ordinances?
Ibn Ezra
"And He remembered the days of old" – that He had passed.
[Moshe imo]. The days of Moshe and his people, like the sun and the moon stood still (Habakkuk 3:11). And it is possible that Moshe is the subject (poel), because he draws (moshe) Israel out. But the first interpretation is the correct one.
“Where is the One who raised them?” The meaning is: Now the nations will say, “Where is the One who raised them from the Sea of Reeds?”
“The shepherd of His flock.” With Moses, who is the shepherd of Israel:
"Where is His name?"—Among Moses. And some say: With the Divine Presence that was among Israel.
Radak
“And He remembered the days of old.” Israel in exile, in times of distress, remembers the days of yore; these are the “days of old.” When Moses was sent to them, the word “them” (וְעַמּוֹ) is spelled defectively, lacking the final mem, like “and he came to Jerusalem” and similar cases. The prophet speaks prophetically, saying that Israel in exile recalls those days and says: “Behold, Israel in Egypt were many, among them were worshippers of foreign gods, as is stated explicitly in the book of Ezekiel. Nevertheless, when He saw their poverty, He had compassion on them, and said: ‘God heard their groaning, and appeared to Moses, saying, “I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt,” and sent them, and performed signs and wonders among them, and brought them out of Egypt and redeemed them.’ Nevertheless, when the Egyptians pursued them, they did not remember the wonders He had performed for them, and said, ‘Are there no graves in Egypt?’ Nevertheless, He led them through the sea on dry land, and brought them up from the sea, and the waters covered their enemies. Therefore, they are astonished in exile and say, ‘Where is He who brought them up from the sea?’”
"The shepherds of His flock." With the shepherds of His flock, namely Moses and Aaron. And even though we have sinned before Him, did not our forefathers also sin, and yet He saved them in their time of distress? Why has this exile been prolonged for us so greatly, to the point that we must ask, "Where is He who saved our forefathers?" as if He were not found today.
Where is the Name? He caused His Holy Spirit to rest within them. He sent upon them the spirit of prophecy. Besides Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, there were seventy elders upon whom the spirit of prophecy rested. Even on the day of the Standing at Mount Sinai, they were all prophets. And where is He now, He who did all this with them? Behold, now the spirit of prophecy has departed since the death of Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. Had they been with us as prophets, they would have informed us of the end of the redemption, and we would have had joy of spirit in this. But we, for many years, are in exile, and we have no prophet, nor is there anyone with us who knows until when.
"Who hides [Himself]." It is written with a tzere-yod and the custom for the pa'al conjugation is with a qamats and the mem of the verbs, such as "we do not want." And the commentators explained that "He remembered" refers to God, blessed be He, and in this manner Jonathan translated:
Metzudat David
"And He will remember." In exile, Israel will remember the days of long ago, from of old, when He sent Moses to his people. And the word "his people" lacks the connecting lamed prefix (i.e., it should be read as though it said 'to his people').
"Where is the One who brought them up from the sea?" This means: They will say, "Where is He who brought them up from the sea with His shepherd leading His flock?" This refers to Moses, who led his people, as if they were saying, "Why does He not do such a thing for us today as well?"
"Where is the Name, etc." – "Where is He?" – He is the One who placed the spirit of prophecy within Moses.
Malbim
"And He remembered" — and then He will remember with them the days of long ago (the days) of Moses. For when they begin to recall in their hearts the miracles He performed for them in the days of long ago, in every generation and generation, until they come to the first generation to recall the days of Moses, they begin to ask: "Where is the One who parted the waters?" For at that time, the Lord was concealed from them in two matters: 1. In the miracles and wonders He performed for them; 2. In prophecy, the Divine Spirit, and the indwelling of the Divine Presence among them (as it is stated, "Hear, O people, the voice of the living God," or "Has God ever gone to take a nation from the midst of another nation by trials, by signs, and by wonders..."). And these two things were lost to them, as it is stated, "We have not seen our signs; there is no longer a prophet." And now they will ask: 1. "Where is the One who parted the waters, the Shepherd of His flock?" For Moses was then like the shepherd of the Lord's flock, just as the Master guards the shepherd for the sake of the flock, and the flock for the sake of being His possession, so too did the Lord conduct Himself in guarding them at that time. 2. "Where is He who placed it within him" (within the people mentioned above), His Holy Spirit, which is prophecy and the Divine Spirit?
That caused His glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses? That divided the water before them, To make Himself an everlasting name?
verse value 3782
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 49 letters. Notable word values: "for·himself" (ל֖וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "for·himself" (ל֖וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "his·glory" (תִּפְאַרְתּ֑וֹ, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "leading" (מוֹלִיךְ֙), "at·the·right·hand·of" (לִימִ֣ין), "cleaves" (בּ֤וֹקֵֽעַ). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·do" (root עשה, 101x in Isaiah); "from·their·face" (root פנים, 88x in Isaiah); "name·of" (root שם, 83x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·glory', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: מוֹלִיךְ֙ [leading] (106) + לִימִ֣ין [at·the·right·hand·of] (140) + מֹשֶׁ֔ה [Moses] (345) + זְר֖וֹעַ [arm·of] (283) + תִּפְאַרְתּ֑וֹ [his·glory] (1087) + בּ֤וֹקֵֽעַ [cleaves] (178) + מַ֙יִם֙ [water] (90) + מִפְּנֵיהֶ֔ם [from·their·face] (225) + לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת [to·do] (806) + ל֖וֹ [for·himself] (36) + שֵׁ֥ם [name·of] (340) + עוֹלָֽם [ever] (146) = 3782.
Rashi
"He leads to the right hand of Moses, the arm of His glory." The Holy One, blessed be He, would bring the arm of His might to the right hand of Moses. Whenever he required the aid of the Holy One, blessed be He, His arm was ready at his right hand.
Ibn Ezra
“He who leads.” “The arm of His glory” – this is the Angel of the Lord, who went before the camp of Israel (Exodus 14:19):
"Splitting [the waters] of the sea:"
Radak
He led with the right hand of Moses. Now, recount how He concealed the waters and how they descended into the sea. And even though this is well known, he states it thus in order to magnify the narrative and to give thanks to God, blessed be He, for it was through a great miracle and a wondrous marvel that He extended His glorious arm to the right hand of Moses, in whose right hand was the staff. And how did the sea split from there? Rather, God extended His glorious arm to his right hand, and the sea split before them—that is, before Israel—so that they might pass through it.
"To make for Him an eternal name" — that all the nations should remember Him for this great matter and stand in awe of Him, as it is said, "Let the peoples hear and tremble" (Psalm 76:9). For He did not need to cause Israel to cross to the opposite shore; from the very shore they entered, they could have exited. Rather, He did this to demonstrate His mighty hand and to show that everything is in His power, even to reverse the fundamental laws of nature. And this is His glory and His eternal name. And all of this He demonstrated through Moses and Israel, His people, out of His love for them.
Metzudat David
"Who leads." This is dependent on the word "Where is," to say: "Where is He who leads to the right hand of Moses His arm of splendor," meaning: the strength of the Lord was prepared for Moses at every time of his desire.
Who cleaves. Where is the One who cleaves before them the waters of the sea and the Jordan, to make for Himself a name of might forever?
Malbim
“Molich” [He leads]—this indicates that the miracles performed through Moses were superior in four respects: 1. The miracles were constant; at any time the Faithful Shepherd desired, He would perform them. And this is the meaning of “Molech” [He leads]: that He kept the miraculous arm constantly at His disposal, to be used whenever He wished. 2. The miracles were not performed through an angel or an intermediary; rather, He brought them to the right hand of Moses, meaning that the miraculous arm stood directly at his right hand, without any intermediary between them. 3. The miracles were not performed through the deeds of Israel or their merit, but solely through the power of the Lord and His will. And this is the meaning of “zeroa” [arm], for I have explained many times that “the arm of the Lord” denotes the power that performs signs and wonders without assistance from the actions of those below, and this is the difference between it and “the hand of the Lord.” 4. The miracles were not bound by nature, but were great and renowned miracles. And this is the meaning of “tiferato” [His glory]: to glorify Himself before all eyes.
“Cleaving the waters before them”: That He cleaved the waters before them was not solely for the purpose of saving them, for He could have saved them without such a miracle, in a natural manner; rather, His ultimate purpose was to establish for Himself a name throughout the world, as it is stated, “Let the peoples hear and tremble.”
That led them through the deep, as a horse in the wilderness, without stumbling?
verse value 1790
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 28 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֥א, 2 letters) and the longest is "leading·them" (מוֹלִיכָ֖ם, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 146: leading·them, as·the·horse. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "leading·them" (מוֹלִיכָ֖ם), "in·the·depths" (בַּתְּהֹמ֑וֹת). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "leading·them" (root הלך, 60x in Isaiah); "in·the·wilderness" (root מדבר, 20x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·depths', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 4 words. Full calculation: מוֹלִיכָ֖ם [leading·them] (146) + בַּתְּהֹמ֑וֹת [in·the·depths] (853) + כַּסּ֥וּס [as·the·horse] (146) + בַּמִּדְבָּ֖ר [in·the·wilderness] (248) + לֹ֥א [not] (31) + יִכָּשֵֽׁלוּ [they·stumble] (366) = 1790.
Rashi
“Like a horse in the wilderness.” Just as a horse does not stumble because the land is smooth, so too they did not stumble in the deep.
Ibn Ezra
He leads them through the abysses. The sea:
"Like a horse in the wilderness." And it refers to the dry land.
Radak
"Leading them." Furthermore, the greatness of the miracle is recounted: do not say that although the seabed was dry, it was not so dry that they could walk upon it firmly or run upon it. Therefore, it states, "He led them through the depths like a horse in the wilderness." He led them through those depths just as a horse runs in the wilderness, which is level ground where there is neither stone nor mud to cause a stumble. So too, they were able to run upon that seabed; the ground in the sea had hardened instantly, and they did not stumble upon it.
Metzudat David
“Who led them.” Where is it stated that He led them through the depths of the sea? Just as a horse galloping in a desert on a straight and level path does not stumble in its running, so too they did not stumble when they walked through the depths of the sea, for the place was level and straight.
Metzudat Zion
“in the deep places.” The depth of the sea.
Malbim
He led them through the sea; the splitting of the Red Sea contained within it several additional miracles, as it is stated, "Ten miracles were performed at the sea." And I have explained in my commentary on the Torah that there was yet another miracle: the depths dried up, and all stumbling stones were removed from them, and they became like a smooth pavement. This was done solely to increase the number of miracles and to ease their passage, for they already could have crossed since the waters had been removed. And this is what it says, "He led them through the depths like a horse in the wilderness, which has no obstacle before it," and this is what is meant by "lest they stumble."
As the cattle that go down into the valley, the spirit of Hashem caused them to rest; So did you lead Your people, To make Thyself a glorious name.’
verse value 4554
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 49 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 4554 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "so" (כֵּ֚ן, 2 letters) and the longest is "caused·them·to·rest" (תְּנִיחֶ֑נּוּ, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "as·the·cattle" (כַּבְּהֵמָה֙), "valley" (בַּבִּקְעָ֣ה), "caused·them·to·rest" (תְּנִיחֶ֑נּוּ). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "your·people" (root עם, 107x in Isaiah); "to·do" (root עשה, 101x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'caused·them·to·rest', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 7 words. Full calculation: כַּבְּהֵמָה֙ [as·the·cattle] (72) + בַּבִּקְעָ֣ה [valley] (179) + תֵרֵ֔ד [will·go·down] (604) + ר֥וּחַ [spirit·of] (214) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + תְּנִיחֶ֑נּוּ [caused·them·to·rest] (524) + כֵּ֚ן [so] (70) + נִהַ֣גְתָּ [you·led] (458) + עַמְּךָ֔ [your·people] (130) + לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת [to·do] (806) + לְךָ֖ [to·you] (50) + שֵׁ֥ם [name·of] (340) + תִּפְאָֽרֶת [beauty] (1081) = 4554.
Rashi
“Like a beast.” [This teaches that] it will descend into the valley, and the valley is a level land in which there are no stumbling blocks; in Old French it is called “kannafani.”
"Yered." It means "will spread out," just as it is said above (in the previous passage), "Let the nations come down before Him," so too "the Spirit of the Lord will lay Him low in the abyss and make for Him a beaten path."
Thus You dealt with Your people. Thus was everything as we said: You dealt with Your people.
Ibn Ezra
"As a beast, etc." And after they went out from the sea, God led them through the wilderness, like a beast that descends into the valley slowly; so too, the Spirit of God rested upon Israel.
And behold, "tanchennu" stands in place of "tanichem." And the correct view is that the vav in "tanchenu" refers back to Moses, and he added, "Thus You have dealt with Your people," and behold, Moses and Israel.
Radak
“Like cattle.” And He further compared them to a stain on the seabed, saying that they descended into the sea just as cattle descend into a valley without toil, for the descent is slight and walking in a valley is easy, since it is a level path.
“The Spirit of the Lord let them down.” The pronoun [referring to] “your people,” which is mentioned subsequently, is like [the construction in] “and she saw the child,” and similar cases. [The commentator] said: “The Spirit of the Lord let down your people from his adversaries and from those pursuing them.” And “The Spirit of the Lord” is like “Your Spirit.” Likewise, [in the verse] “And to Moses He said, ‘Go up to the Lord.’” And the word “so” [in the phrase “so as a beast”] refers back to the beast mentioned [in the preceding clause]. The meaning of the verse is: “So as a beast goes down into the valley, so You have dealt with Your people, and the Spirit of the Lord let them down.” And Jonathan [ben Uzziel] translated “let them down” as “guided them,” from [the root meaning] “to guide the people,” [rendering it]: “As cattle in the plain, from the wilderness, the word of the Lord guided them.”
A glorious name. A name that will be for you glory and honor forever. And behold, all this You did in ancient days, and now You have abandoned us in this exile for many years.
Metzudat David
"As a beast goes down into the valley." Just as an animal that descends to walk in the valley finds it easier than if it were to ascend and walk on the mountain, so too did the Spirit of the Lord guide Israel with ease.
Thus You have dealt with Your people. This means that everything was as we have stated: in this manner You dealt with Your people, to make for Yourself a proclamation of the glory of Your Name.
Metzudat Zion
Taniheinu. The matter of "guidance" is akin to "He led them like a flock" (Psalms 76).
Malbim
“Like an animal,” there was yet another miracle: the valley of the sea was raised upward and became a straight path, so that they would not need to descend into the deep. And this is what is stated: “Like an animal in the valley it shall go down,” meaning a valley that is straight and level; so too did the Spirit of the Lord settle them. Immediately upon their descent into the sea, the abyss was raised and floated above, becoming a valley. Thus You dealt with Your people, in order to establish for Yourself a name of glory through many frequent miracles, which none but You, the Creator of all, alone could perform.
Look down from heaven, and see, even from Your holy and glorious habitation; Where is Your zeal and Your mighty acts, The yearning of Your heart and Your compassions, Now restrained toward me?
verse value 4650
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 65 letters. Verse gematria: 4650 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "look" (הַבֵּ֤ט, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·your·glory" (וְתִפְאַרְתֶּ֑ךָ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 16: look, where?. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "look" (הַבֵּ֤ט), "from·a·dwelling" (מִזְּבֻ֥ל), "and·your·glory" (וְתִפְאַרְתֶּ֑ךָ). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·me" (root אל, 95x in Isaiah); "and·see" (root ראה, 83x in Isaiah); "from·heaven" (root שמים, 35x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·your·glory', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 8 words. Full calculation: הַבֵּ֤ט [look] (16) + מִשָּׁמַ֙יִם֙ [from·heaven] (430) + וּרְאֵ֔ה [and·see] (212) + מִזְּבֻ֥ל [from·a·dwelling] (79) + קׇדְשְׁךָ֖ [your·holiness] (424) + וְתִפְאַרְתֶּ֑ךָ [and·your·glory] (1107) + אַיֵּ֤ה [where?] (16) + קִנְאָֽתְךָ֙ [your·jealousy] (571) + וּגְב֣וּרֹתֶ֔ךָ [and·your·mighty·acts] (637) + הֲמ֥וֹן [multitude·of] (101) + מֵעֶ֛יךָ [your·bowels] (140) + וְֽרַחֲמֶ֖יךָ [and·your·compassions] (284) + אֵלַ֥י [to·me] (41) + הִתְאַפָּֽקוּ [restrained-themselves] (592) = 4650.
Rashi
"Where is your zeal?" The first [instance]:
"The multitude of your bowels." They were accustomed to be stirred up against us, as in the matter stated: "Therefore shall my bowels be troubled within me" (Jeremiah 31:20). And the multitude of Your first mercies toward us—now restrain Yourself, guard Yourself from being stirred up against us as in those days.
“Be patient.” This is similar to the verse “And he restrained himself and said, ‘Put the bread in the sacks’” (Genesis 43:31). He restrained himself, and they did not recognize that his heart had been moved with compassion for his brothers.
Ibn Ezra
"Behold, etc." The prophet will recount the prayer of the wise ones in exile, for he is attached to them, as it says above (verse 10), "He is fighting against them."
Mizbol, like a dwelling, and similarly, “my husband will dwell with me” (Genesis 30:21), and behold, the meaning is double:
"Be restrained." Now, just as it says, "And Joseph could not restrain himself" (Genesis 45:1):
Radak
Behold. In accordance with the interpretation of “For the Lord is high, yet He regards the lowly” (Psalms 138:6), and “In the heavens is His holy dwelling-place and His splendor, for there He displays His might, for they stand forever and ever in their strength; they do not change nor are they replaced.”
"Where is Your zeal and Your might? You used to be zealous upon seeing the poverty of Your people, and You displayed Your might among the nations; where are they now?"
"The multitude of your entrails." Where is the multitude of your entrails and your compassion, of which You said, "I will have compassion on him, says the Lord"? Where is the multitude of the entrails, and where are the mercies?
"Toward me, they held back." I see that You have restrained Yourself and strengthened Yourself; Your mercies toward me have not been moved to hasten to have mercy on me. How was this?
Metzudat David
“Look down from heaven.” This means: Since You acted thus in days of old, therefore also now, look down from heaven and see from Your holy dwelling place.
"Where is Your zeal? Where is the zeal and might that You displayed in Egypt in ancient days?"
"The multitude of your bowels." Just as in the first days your bowels were stirred up toward Me, and you had compassion on Me, behold, now they have hardened against Me, for you have hardened your heart and refuse to have compassion.
Metzudat Zion
Mizbol. The meaning is a dwelling, as it is said, “a house of dwelling for You” (1 Kings 8).
"Your zeal." The matter is one of anger and fury, as it is written: "He was zealous with My zeal" (Numbers 25:11).
"The multitude of your bowels." This refers to the matter of the stirring [i.e., kindling] of mercy and compassion. And accordingly, it is stated: "His bowels yearned for him" (Jeremiah 38).
"Be strong." The matter refers to strengthening and fortifying the heart. Likewise, "And he restrained himself and said, 'Set the bread before me'" (Genesis 43:31).
Malbim
“Look down from heaven”: After all the miracles and wonders that You performed for us in ancient times, look down from heaven how now it has been the opposite. And He says, “Look down from heaven and behold Your holy sanctuary,” for through the heavens the Lord conducts His constant, natural governance, which is attributed to the heavens; and “sanctuary” denotes the place of the dwelling of His might and His providence, where He conducts His wondrous, miraculous governance. There is a difference between “seeing” and “looking”: “seeing” is physical, sensory sight, whereas “looking” is directing one’s heart and attention to the matter. He is saying: Although the natural providence even now guides us through hidden miracles, and to the physical eye it may seem that in this governance the present time has not changed from ancient days, nevertheless, if You look down from heaven and pay careful attention, You will see that even this governance has now changed from what it was in ancient times. And “behold Your holy sanctuary” in the miraculous governance that existed in Your holy sanctuary requires no special looking at all, for this one sees immediately: “Where is Your zeal and Your might?” They are not the same as they were in ancient days. “Where is Your zeal?” The miracles that the Lord performed in ancient days were for two purposes: 1. For the sake of the sanctity of His Name, to demonstrate His might, or because He was zealous for His profaned Name; and against this he says, “Where is Your zeal and Your might?” 2. For the sake of Israel, because He had compassion on His people; and against this he says, “Your tender mercies and Your compassion toward me, with which You had compassion on me in ancient times, how have they now restrained themselves, and why do You not have compassion?”
For You are our Father; for Abraham knows us not, and Israel does not acknowledge us; You, O Hashem, are our Father, Our Redeemer from everlasting is Your name.
verse value 2965
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 63 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·Israel" (וְיִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 69: our·father, our·father. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "acknowledges·us" (יַכִּירָ֑נוּ). The root אתה appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "not" (root לא, 286x in Isaiah); "for" (root כי, 221x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'acknowledges·us', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 6 words.
Rashi
"For You are our Father. And upon You it is incumbent to look and see into our distresses:"
For Abraham did not know us. In the distress of Egypt:
And Israel did not recognize us. In the wilderness, for they have already departed from the world:
"And You, O Lord, are our Father." In all of them You have become a Father to us, and our Sages expounded upon it, just as they expounded in the tractate Shabbat.
Ibn Ezra
For, etc. The meaning is: You are our Father and we are Your children, and You are a Father who will be found forever.
And he mentioned Abraham, who was the first with whom God cut a covenant to be God to him and to his children; and he also mentioned Jacob, who is the end of the Patriarchs, and he alone was the root of the nation.
"He will know us." Just as it is written, "He will separate us" (Isaiah 56:4).
Radak
"For You are our Father." And a father does not restrain himself from his son, but rather immediately shows compassion for him.
For Abraham does not know us. In the manner of “My father and my mother have forsaken me, but the Lord will gather me,” for even though our father Abraham has been dead for many generations, and a mortal father does not know his son or his grandson except during his lifetime, yet You are our Father, living and enduring from everlasting to everlasting, and we have none to cry out to but to You. In all the generations that have passed and that will come, You are our Father and You are our Redeemer from every distress, and from of old Your name has been upon us. And he remembered Abraham, for he is the head of the patriarchs. Moreover, God said to him, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named,” and He said, “And I will give him Isaac,” and did not say Ishmael, just as He said, “And I will give to Isaac Jacob and Esau.” And he remembered Israel, for all his offspring is true seed, unlike Isaac, from whom Esau came forth, as it is said, “And Isaac loved Esau.”
Metzudat David
For You are our Father. And it is fitting for a father to have compassion on his children:
"For Abraham did not know us." He acted as though he did not know us; even though He had revealed Himself to him in the Covenant, he did not pray on our behalf.
"And Israel did not recognize Him." He behaved as though He did not recognize us, for when He saw a ladder set upon the earth, with the angels of God ascending and descending upon it—who are the princes of the nations, one ascending and one descending—He did not direct His heart to pray for us.
"You are the Lord, our Father. In all days when You set Your heart upon us, it is like the way a father sets his heart on the welfare of his son."
Our Redeemer from of old is Your Name. From the days of eternity, Your Name is our redemption, for in every instance it is You who redeems us.
Malbim
For You, [the verse] begins to argue against these two points: 1. Against the complaint regarding how Your compassion and mercy have restrained themselves at this time. It says: Are You not our Father? Do we not have another Father besides You? For “Abraham knows us not,” and how could a father not have compassion on his son? (“Abraham knows us not, and Israel does not recognize us”: knowledge is through intellect, whereas recognition is through sensory perception. It says that Abraham did not know us at all, for from his loins also came Ishmael and Esau, and he did not know that we would be God’s people exclusively. And as for Israel, although he already knew us, in that he knew that his sons would be the tribes of God, nevertheless he did not recognize us with his own eyes.) 2. And against the complaint regarding “Where is Your zeal and Your might?” it argues: Are You not the Lord, our Father, our Redeemer from of old? Is it not by Your Name, by which You have been known from of old, that You are our Father and our Redeemer? Is it not only by this Name that You are known as the Father of Israel and their Redeemer? And what will You do for the sake of this great Name of Yours? Where is Your zeal for this Name of Yours, which is currently being desecrated by the nations saying that You are powerless?
O Hashem, why do you make us to err from Your ways, And harden our heart from Your fear? Return for Your servants’sake, The tribes of Your inheritance.
verse value 4331
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 54 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "why" (לָ֣מָּה, 3 letters) and the longest is "from·your·ways" (מִדְּרָכֶ֔יךָ, 6 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "you·make·us·err" (תַתְעֵ֤נוּ), "from·your·ways" (מִדְּרָכֶ֔יךָ), "you·harden" (תַּקְשִׁ֥יחַ). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 449x in Isaiah); "from·your·ways" (root דרך, 57x in Isaiah); "return" (root שוב, 51x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·your·fear', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 5 words. Full calculation: לָ֣מָּה [why] (75) + תַתְעֵ֤נוּ [you·make·us·err] (926) + יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (26) + מִדְּרָכֶ֔יךָ [from·your·ways] (294) + תַּקְשִׁ֥יחַ [you·harden] (818) + לִבֵּ֖נוּ [our·heart] (88) + מִיִּרְאָתֶ֑ךָ [from·your·fear] (671) + שׁ֚וּב [return] (308) + לְמַ֣עַן [for·the·sake·of] (190) + עֲבָדֶ֔יךָ [your·servants] (106) + שִׁבְטֵ֖י [tribes·of] (321) + נַחֲלָתֶֽךָ [your·inheritance] (508) = 4331.
Rashi
"Why do You make us stray?" For it is in Your power to remove the evil inclination, as it is stated: "Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel" (Jeremiah 18:4), and it is also stated: "I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh" (Ezekiel 36:26).
"Be firm." The language of strengthening the heart:
Ibn Ezra
"Why do You make us stray..." – Because the Name is the supreme cause, the First, it says, "Why do You make us stray?" And some answer that this is in the sense of what our Sages of blessed memory said: "One does not assist him in doing repentance." And others say that the verse speaks against their thoughts. And there are those who say, because we are in exile, we are unable to perform all the commandments that are dependent on the Land.
"Make it hard." According to the reading of "remove," and similarly, "He hardened his children without mercy" (Job 30:16).
“Return for the sake of Your servants”—these are the Patriarchs; “and for the sake of the tribes of Your inheritance”—these are the Tribes.
Radak
“Why do You afflict us, O Lord?” When we see the prosperity of the wicked, the lengthening of our exile, and the constant afflictions upon us, behold, we have strayed from Your ways and say, “There is no hope anymore,” as if You are afflicting us by prolonging our exile. And in saying “You afflict us,” [the verse implies] You harden our hearts. It does not refer to all of them, but rather to many in Israel who have despaired of redemption due to the length of the exile. Since there are some among them, He speaks in the language of the general [collective]. And so the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws?” (Exodus 16:28), because of a few of the people who went out on the Sabbath to gather manna. And so too Daniel said, “We have sinned and acted wickedly, and we have rebelled” (Daniel 9:5).
"Make your heart hard." This refers to cruelty and the distancing of the heart from the beloved matter; likewise, "she is hardened against her young, as though they were not hers" (Job 39:16).
“Return for the sake of Your servants.” Return from Your anger, O Lord, and if not for our sake, since we are sinners, then return for the sake of Your servants, who are the Patriarchs, and for the sake of the tribes of Your inheritance, who are the twelve tribes. And the meaning of “Your inheritance” is that they were an inheritance to You, as it is written: “Jacob is the cord of His inheritance.”
Metzudat David
"For what cause do we fast?" This means: Because of the peace of the nations and the length of the exile, we have strayed from the fear of You, and it is as if You are leading us astray.
“Harden our heart.” For this reason, You harden our heart and seal it against the fear [of Heaven], as if it came from Your hand. And this is a double expression of what was stated.
"Return." Therefore, return to us to cause Your Divine Presence to rest among us as in times past. And if we do not merit it through our deeds, do so for the sake of Your servants, the Patriarchs, and for the sake of the tribes which You have allotted to Yourself as an inheritance.
Metzudat Zion
"You go astray." From the root meaning "to err" (tovah):
"Taqshich." This is a compound word from "kashah" (hard) and "sach" (to divert), meaning: "Make difficult and divert our heart." And similarly, "ve-hiqshich banav" (Job 39:4). Although the latter is spelled with a shin, this is due to the word "kashah."
Malbim
"Why are You angry, O Lord?" He further argues: "Surely You need to do this for our sake, because: 1. By showing us Your abundant compassion and mercy, we learn Your ways—that You are compassionate and gracious. But since Your abundant compassion and mercy toward us have been restrained, are You not thereby deviating from these ways of Yours, in that we do not see Your compassion and grace? 2. Surely by showing Your zeal and might in punishing the sinners, we learn the fear of the Lord, for thereby we are awed by Your punishments. But by not showing Your zeal and might, are You not thereby hardening our hearts against the fear of You? And if so, return for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your inheritance (who serve You and are the people You chose as an inheritance for Yourself)."
Your holy people they have well nigh driven out, Our adversaries have trodden down Your sanctuary.
verse value 2434
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 30 letters. The shortest word is "they·possessed" (יָרְשׁ֖וּ, 4 letters) and the longest is "people·of·your·holiness" (עַם־קׇדְשֶׁ֑ךָ, 6 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "to·the·little" (לַמִּצְעָ֕ר), "they·possessed" (יָרְשׁ֖וּ), "people·of·your·holiness" (עַם־קׇדְשֶׁ֑ךָ). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "people·of·your·holiness" (root קדש, 32x in Isaiah); "our·adversaries" (root צר, 21x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'people·of·your·holiness', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: לַמִּצְעָ֕ר [to·the·little] (430) + יָרְשׁ֖וּ [they·possessed] (516) + עַם־קׇדְשֶׁ֑ךָ [people·of·your·holiness] (534) + צָרֵ֕ינוּ [our·adversaries] (356) + בּוֹסְס֖וּ [have·trodden-down] (134) + מִקְדָּשֶֽׁךָ [Your·sanctuary] (464) = 2434.
Rashi
"To the afflicted they shall inherit Your holy people." Their greatness and their inheritance were but for a short time.
"Busso. Doshsho:"
Ibn Ezra
For a short while: A short time.
Your holy people inherited it. [Referring to] the land, and behold the enemies have trampled it; and there are those who say: for a small matter did Your holy people, the heirs, inherit it; or for a short time, and this is correct.
Radak
"Lamtzar" – for a short time. They will inherit Your holy land, which You gave them as a heritage, for only a brief period will they dwell in it, and then they will be exiled from it, for they were in it only four hundred and ten years at first, and the majority of Israel never returned to it again.
“Enemies have trampled Your holy places.” A time of distress came, and our enemies arrived and drove us out from it; moreover, they trampled and crushed Your Temple, which was a place of honor, into which only select individuals used to enter.
Metzudat David
"Lamtzar" (to distress). [This refers to the idea that] for a short time Your holy people possessed the Temple, and now they are distressing us; behold, they have trampled and crushed Your Temple.
Metzudat Zion
למצער. To diminish time, as it is stated: “Is not this place too small?” (Genesis 19:20).
“Bosse.” The meaning is trampling, as in “Yavos tzareinu” (Psalms 60).
Malbim
At the very least, this means: “Return, for the sake of Your servants, to the distress that they have inherited with Your holy portion”—that is, to the small and diminished portion that they have inherited with Your holy portion. Return to this distressed portion. That is to say, we do not ask for anything other than that You return to the Holy City and the Temple; only this matter of distress do we request: that it not become a desolation. The primary source of our anguish and the reason we plead before You is solely that the foundations of Your Temple have been undermined. We do not grieve and cry out over the loss of fields and vineyards, but only over the Holy Place and the Temple, and over the desecration of Your great Name, for
We are become as they over whom You never bore rule, As they that were not called by Your name. Oh, that You would rend the heavens, that You would come down, That the mountains might quake at Your presence,
verse value 4366
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 60 letters. The shortest word is "in·them" (בָּ֔ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "oh-that·You·would-rend" (לֽוּא־קָרַ֤עְתָּ, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Isaiah. Unique to this verse in Isaiah (hapax): "not·You·ruled" (לֹא־מָשַׁ֣לְתָּ), "not·was·called" (לֹֽא־נִקְרָ֥א), "oh-that·You·would-rend" (לֽוּא־קָרַ֤עְתָּ). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "we·were" (root היה, 213x in Isaiah); "upon·them" (root על, 200x in Isaiah); "from·your·face" (root פנים, 88x in Isaiah). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'upon·them', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: הָיִ֗ינוּ [we·were] (81) + מֵֽעוֹלָם֙ [from·ever] (186) + לֹא־מָשַׁ֣לְתָּ [not·You·ruled] (801) + בָּ֔ם [in·them] (42) + לֹֽא־נִקְרָ֥א [not·was·called] (382) + שִׁמְךָ֖ [your·name] (360) + עֲלֵיהֶ֑ם [upon·them] (155) + לֽוּא־קָרַ֤עְתָּ [oh-that·You·would-rend] (807) + שָׁמַ֙יִם֙ [heaven] (390) + יָרַ֔דְתָּ [you·came·down] (614) + מִפָּנֶ֖יךָ [from·your·face] (200) + הָרִ֥ים [mountains] (255) + נָזֹֽלּוּ [they·were·quaked] (93) = 4366.
Rashi
That is to say, Now, as a people whom You have never chosen, for example, and as if Your Name had not been invoked upon them.
"If only You would tear the heavens and come down to save us, now as You came down to save us from the hand of Egypt, when before You the mountains melted away, trembling and sweating."
Ibn Ezra
We were: like people over whom you have never had dominion.
“Would that You would rend the heavens.” Some say this refers to the Giving of the Torah, as if to say, “Would that You had not rent the heavens.” But the truth is that it is according to its plain meaning, like “Oh, that My people would hearken to Me” (Psalms 81:14). And this is the sense: If You would rend the heavens and come down, then the mountains would drip because of You. The sense is that the kings sitting in security [would be shaken].
And the lamed is dagesh in the word "nezolo" because it is the end of the verse, on the pattern of "ve'lo yikolu" (Exodus 8:14).
Radak
“‘We have been from of old.’ ‘We have been’—that is, we have been under Your dominion; not our enemies, for You did not rule over them, nor was Your Name invoked upon them. How, then, have they come to rule over us in the land of our inheritance?”
“Would that You would tear open the heavens and come down.” This is a rhetorical question, implying: Perhaps You would tear open the heavens and come down to speak with them, as You did for us? And perhaps, because of You, the mountains would flow with water on their account, just as they did for our sake? This occurred on the day of the standing at Mount Sinai, when His Glory descended upon Mount Sinai, and there was fire and cloud, and the mountain trembled and quaked. It, along with the other mountains that were close to it, such as Mount Seir and Mount Paran, also had water flowing from the cloud that rested upon them. However, the primary event took place at Mount Sinai; therefore, only Mount Sinai is mentioned in the Torah. And behold, the mountain was burning with fire and flowing with water, because both the fire and the cloud were upon it.
“Tore the heavens.” This is a metaphor, like “and the gates of the heavens are opened,” and “heavens” refers to the atmosphere.
“Nizlu.” The dagesh in the lamed is for the sake of the beauty of the reading, due to the pause.
Metzudat David
“‘They were from of old’—does this not mean that we, from of old, were your people under your dominion, whereas you do not rule over the nations? And it goes on to explain: ‘Your name was not called upon them’ as it was called upon us, to be called ‘God of Israel.’”
"Lo, You have rent the heavens." Did You rend the heavens for their sake, so that it would open and You would descend upon the earth, to give the Torah, causing the mountains to quake and tremble, so that sweat would drip from them due to the great terror, just as You descended for our sake to give us the Torah? Therefore, now too, deal with us as [You did] of old.
Metzudat Zion
Lo. "It" is like "im." And similarly, "lo" in the verse "you had kept them alive" (Judges 8:19):
Nizolo. The meaning of "drop" is like [the verse] "He shall drip water from his buckets" (Numbers 24:7):
Malbim
This means: “We have never been ruled over by You,” that is to say, “Would that we were like another nation whom You have never ruled over, for then Your Name would not be called upon them, and there would be no desecration of the Divine Name in this matter. But now that You have ruled over us, Your Name is called upon us; how then can it now be profaned?” The seer, as he spoke this, was stirred by a very terrible emotion. He turned his face to the Lord and said, “Alas, Lord God, You have distanced Yourself greatly from us; the heavens are like a wall of iron between us and You. If only You would rend the heavens and descend, so that the mountains would melt and flow away before You.” The intercessor became dumb and silent, overwhelmed by his emotions, and he fainted and fell silent, until his spirit returned to him and his soul was stirred within him in the next chapter.
Rashi
Ibn Ezra
Radak
Metzudat David
Metzudat Zion
Malbim