Isaiah 7:19

And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all bushes. THEY ... SHALL REST - image of flies and bees kept up. ALL OF THEM IN THE DESOLATE VALLEYS - the enemy shall overspread the land everywhere, even in "desolate valleys." AND UPON ALL THORNS, AND UPON ALL BUSHES - wild, contrasted with "bushes" which were valued and objects of care (see margin, nahaloliym (H5285) 'commendable trees:' could be from haalal (H1984), to praise). So Chaldaic, 'houses of praise.' There shall be no place of escape; for the enemy shall come down upon the houses of the poor, as well as the places of the great....

19._And they shall come. _He follows out the same metaphor; for bees commonly seek nests for themselves in caverns, or valleys and bushes, and such like places; as if he had said that there would not be a corner in which the enemy would not settle down and dwell. It is unnecessary to give ourselves much trouble in explaining why he speaks of _bushes _and _thorns _rather than of other things, for the language is figurative. And yet I have no doubt that he intended to state, that whether they hide themselves in caverns, or seek concealment in valleys, there will be no escape; for the enemy will take possession of the whole country. Hence we again infer what has been formerly observed, that nothing takes place at random or by chance, but that everything is governed by the hand of God. Again, though wicked men may rage and may be hurried forward in blind attack, still God puts a bridle on th...

17-25 Let those who will not believe the promises of God, expect to hear the alarms of his threatenings; for who can resist or escape his judgments? The Lord shall sweep all away; and whomsoever he employs in any service for him, he will pay. All speaks a sad change of the face of that pleasant land. But what melancholy change is there, which sin will not make with a people? Agriculture would cease. Sorrows of every kind will come upon all who neglect the great salvation. If we remain unfruitful under the means of grace, the Lord will say, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforth for ever....

Verse Isaiah 7:19. _HOLES OF THE ROCKS _- "Caverns"] So the _Septuagint,_ _Syriac_, and _Vulgate_, whence _Houbigant_ supposes the true reading to be הנחללים _hannachalolim_. One of my oldest MSS. reads הנחלולים _hannochalolim_....

AND THEY SHALL COME - The idea in this verse is, that they would spread over the land, and lay it waste. The poetic image of flies and bees is kept up; meaning, that the armies would be so numerous as to occupy and infest all the land. AND SHALL REST - As bees do. Thus the “locusts” are said to have “rested” in all the land of Egypt; Exodus 10:14. IN THE DESOLATE VALLEYS - The word translated “valleys” usually means “a valley with a brook,” or a brook itself. The Chaldee translates it, ‘In the streets of cities.’ But the idea is derived from the habits of flies and bees. The meaning is, that they should fill all the land, as innumerable swarms of flies and bees - would settle down everywhere, and would infest or consume everything. Bees, probably, chose situations near to runn

SECTION IV. PROPHECIES CONNECTED WITH THE SYRO-ISRAELITE WAR (Isaiah 7-10:4). EXPOSITION ISAIAH 7:1 THE PROPHECY GIVEN TO AHAZ AT THE TIME OF THE SYRO-ISRAELITISH WAR. The Syro-Israelitish war is touched on both in Kings and Chronicles. In Kings the alliance between Rezin and Pekah is distinctly declared, as also the fact that they conjointly besieged Jerusalem (2 Kings 16:5). From Chronicles we lear

AND THEY SHALL COME,.... The Egyptian and Assyrian armies, when the Lord calls for them in his providence, and his time is come to make use of them as a scourge to his people: AND SHALL REST ALL OF THEM IN THE DESOLATE VALLEYS: made so by war; this is said in allusion to flies and bees resting on trees and flowers; and signifies that these armies, after long and tedious marches, should all of them, without being diminished by the way, enter the land of Judea, fill all places, and take up their abode there for a while: AND IN THE HOLES OF THE ROCKS. Kimchi thinks that the former phrase designs cities in valleys, and this fortified cities which are upon rocks: AND UPON ALL THORNS, AND UPON ALL BUSHES; in allusion to flies and bees. Kimchi interprets this of unwalled towns and villages. The Targum of the whole verse is, "and they shall all of them come and dwell in the streets of the ci...

CHAPTER 7 The Prophet before King Ahaz 1. _The king in trouble (Isaiah 7:1)_ 2. _Isaiah sent and his message (Isaiah 7:3)_ 3. _A sign offered and refused (Isaiah 7:10)_ 4. _The sign: The virgin birth (Isaiah 7:13)_ 5. _The advent of the Assyrian (Isaiah 7:17)_ Study carefully the historic setting of this chapter and2 Chronicles 28:1-27 7. See lecture on “Messianic Predictions.” In verse 14 the virgin birth of Christ is announced. Much of the controversy is around the word “virgin” (almah), which the critics declare does not m

THE DEVASTATION OF JUDAH. Probably an independent prophecy rather than a continuation of Isaiah 7:2; it strikes a very different note. It may belong to the same date, but may quite well be later. Disaster unparalleled since the revolt of the ten tribes (note the Southern point of view) is coming on Judah, an Assyrian invasion. Yahweh will whistle for the enemy, who will penetrate the most inaccessible retreats of the land, and humiliate and spoil the people. The population that will remain will be so scanty that very few cattle will yield an abundance of milk. The land will not be cultivated; the vineyards, where the most valuable vines grew, those worth a shekel apiece, will be overrun with briers. The thorn thickets will be the lurking-place of wild beasts, and cannot therefore be safely approached without weapons....

THORNS. the thorn bushes. BUSHES. the pastures....