Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 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.
19. The figure is kept up. desolate valleys ] rather, precipitous ravines (lit. “valleys of precipices”). upon all thorns bushes ] Render: upon all the thorn-bushes (Isa 55:13) and upon all the pastures. These are the places naturally frequented by insects.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
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; Exo 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 running streams. Virgil, in his directions about selecting a place for an apiary, gives the following among others:
At liquidi fontes, et stagna virentia musco
Adsint, et tennis fugiens per gramina rivus.
Georg. iv. 18, 19.
But there let pools invite with moss arrayed,
Clear fount and rill that purls along the glade.
Sotheby.
In the holes of the rocks – Probably the same image is referred to here. It is well known that in Judea, as well as elsewhere, bees were accustomed to live in the holes or caverns of the rocks. They were very numerous; and the figure here is, that the Assyrians would be numerous as the swarms of bees were in that land, even in the high and inaccessible rocks; compare Isa 2:19-21.
Upon all thorns – The image here is kept up of flies and bees resting on everything. Thorns here refer to those trees and shrubs that were of little value; but even on these they would rest.
All bushes – Hebrew All trees that are commendable, or that are to be praised; see the margin. The word denotes those shrubs and trees that were objects of praise; that is, that were cultivated with great attention and care, in opposition to thorns that grew wild, and without cultivation, and that were of little value. The meaning of the passage is, that the land would be invaded in every part, and that everything, valuable or not, would be laid waste.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 19. Holes of the rocks – “Caverns”] So the Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate, whence Houbigant supposes the true reading to be hannachalolim. One of my oldest MSS. reads hannochalolim.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
They; the flies, and especially the bees.
Shall rest all of them; they shall have an easy victory; few or none of them shall be slain in the attempt.
The desolate valleys; either,
1. Such as were and had long been desolate. So it signifies the vast numbers of their enemies, which filled all places, both such as were well inhabited, and such as were in a great measure desolate. Or,
2. Such as they found very fruitful, but made them desolate.
The rocks; to which possibly the Israelites fled for refuge.
Bushes; which he mentions, partly because flies and bees use frequently to rest there, and partly to intimate that no place should escape the fury of this enemy.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
19. restimage of flies andbees kept up. The enemy shall overspread the land everywhere,even in “desolate valleys.”
thornswild, contrastedwith “bushes,” which were valued and objects of care(see Margin).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
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 cities, and in the clifts of the rocks, and in all deserts full of sedges, and in all houses of praise.”
The sense is, that they should be in all cities, towns, and villages, whether fortified or not, and in all houses of high and low, rich and poor, in cottages and in palaces; there would be no place free from them, nor no escaping out of their hands.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
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 them that they may promote his glory. Therefore, when we see that wicked men throw everything into disorder, let us not think that God has laid the bridle on their neck, that they may rush forward wherever they please; but let us be fully convinced that their violent attacks are under control. From this we ought to derive wonderful consolation amidst those disturbances in which the Christian world is so deeply involved, and by the violence of which it is so powerfully shaken, that almost everything appears to be in a state of confusion. We should consider that the Lord has a concealed bridle by which he restrains furious beasts, so that they cannot break through wherever the madness of their rage drives them, or go beyond the limits which the Lord prescribes to them.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(19) The desolate valleys . . .The Hebrew adjective has rather the meaning of precipitous or steeply walled, and the noun that of torrent valley, like the Arabic wady. The whole verse is a graphic description of the characteristic features of the scenery of Judah.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
19. They shall come The armies “shall come.”
And shall rest all of them They will settle down like bees in one part and like flies in another, in precipitous valleys, clefts of rocks, and in all thorn-hedges and pastures. A frightful figure of the different invasions of the armies of the two great countries, Assyria and Egypt. The great highway of these invaders of each other lay on the plain between the Mediterranean sea and the eastern foothills; but all the hill region also is here represented as covered, first by one army then by the other, but chiefly by the Assyrian and finally by the Babylonian armies.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Isa 7:19. In the desolate valleys, &c. In the waste valleys, and in the holes of the rock, and upon all thorny grounds, and upon all the well-watered places. Schultens.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Isa 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.
Ver. 19. And they shall come, and shall rest all of them. ] As flies do upon flesh, and as bees upon trees. They shall seize all.
In the desolate valleys, &c.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
thorns = the thorn bushes.
bushes = the pastures.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
in the holes: Isa 2:19, Isa 2:21, 2Ch 33:11, Jer 16:16, Mic 7:17
bushes: or, commendable trees
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
7:19 And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the clefts of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all {s} bushes.
(s) Signifying that no place will be free from them.