Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 21:7
And he saw a chariot [with] a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, [and] a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed:
7. The verse reads: And if he see a troop, horsemen in pairs (1Ki 9:25), a troop of asses, a troop of camels, then let him hearken, hearken hard. This apparently is the expected sign that great events are on foot; when the riders are seen the watchman is to listen intently to discover who they are and what they are doing. The word for “troop” means always “chariot” (usually collective); here it must be used in the sense of “riding train” like the Arab. rakb. The procession represents the Persian army. “Asses” and “camels” are probably introduced as beasts of burden, although both animals are reported to have been used by the Persians in actual battle.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen – This passage is very obscure from the ambiguity of the word rekeb – chariot. Gesenius contends that it should be rendered cavalry, and that it refers to cavalry two abreast hastening to the destruction of the city. The word rekeb denotes properly a chariot or wagon Jdg 5:28; a collection of wagons 2Ch 1:14; 2Ch 8:6; 2Ch 9:25; and sometimes refers to the horses or men attached to a chariot. David houghed all the chariots 2Sa 8:4; that is, all the horses belonging to them. David killed of the Syrians seven hundred chariots 2Sa 10:18; that is, all the men belonging to seven hundred chariots. According to the present Masoretic pointing, the word rekeb does not mean, perhaps, anything else than a chariot strictly, but other forms of the word with the same letters denote riders or cavalry. Thus, the word rakab denotes a horseman 2Ki 9:17; a charioteer or driver of a chariot 1Ki 22:34; Jer 51:21. The verb rabab means to ride, and is usually applied to riding on the backs of horses or camels; and the sense here is, that the watchman saw a riding, or persons riding two abreast; that is, cavalry, or men borne on horses, and camels, and asses, and hastening to attack the city.
With a couple of horsemen – The word couple ( tsemed) means properly a yoke or pair; and it means here that the cavalry was seen in pairs, that is, two abreast.
A chariot of asses – Or rather, as above, a riding on donkeys – an approach of men in this manner to battle. Asses were formerly used in war where horses could not be procured. Thus Strabo (xv. 2, 14) says of the inhabitants of Caramania, Many use donkeys for war in the want of horses. And Herodotus (iv. 129) says expressly that Darius Hystaspes employed donkeys in a battle with the Scythians.
And a chariot of camels – A riding on camels. Camels also were used in war, perhaps usually to carry the baggage (see Diod. ii. 54; iii. 44; Livy, xxxvii. 40; Strabo, xvi. 3). They are used for all purposes of burden in the East, and particularly in Arabia.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 7. And he saw a chariot, c. – “And he saw a chariot with two riders a rider on an ass, a rider on a camel”] This passage is extremely obscure from the ambiguity of the term recheb, which is used three times, and which signifies a chariot, or any other vehicle, or the rider in it; or a rider on a horse, or any other animal; or a company of chariots, or riders. The prophet may possibly mean a cavalry in two parts, with two sorts of riders; riders on asses or mules, and riders on camels; or led on by two riders, one on an ass, and one on a camel. However, so far it is pretty clear, that Darius and Cyrus, the Medes and the Persians, are intended to be distinguished by the two riders on the two sorts of cattle. It appears from Herodotus, i. 80, that the baggage of Cyrus’ army was carried on camels. In his engagement with Croesus, he took off the baggage from the camels, and mounted his horsemen upon them; the enemy’s horses, offended with the smell of the camels, turned back and fled. – L.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
And he saw; a short speech for he told me that he saw.
A chariot, not for burden, but for war, in which chariots were then much used. With a couple of horsemen; attended with two horsemen. So there were both chariots and troops of horsemen. Or,
with a couple of horses, as this word is sometimes used, as 1Sa 8:11; 2Sa 1:6. The chariot was drawn with two horses.
A chariot of asses, and a chariot of camels; two chariots, one drawn by asses, (under which title some understand mules, as being engendered of asses,) and the other by camels; whereby he signifies the variety and abundance of warlike provisions which the Medes and Persians should have for this expedition, and particularly of chariots, whereof some were for the carriage of necessary things, and others for the battle.
He hearkened diligently; he carefully observed what he saw, and what he could further discover.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
7. chariot, c.rather, “abody of riders,” namely, some riding in pairs on horses(literally, “pairs of horsemen,” that is, two abreast),others on asses, others on camels (compare Isa 21:9Isa 22:6). “Chariot” isnot appropriate to be joined, as English Version translates,with “asses”; the Hebrew means plainly in Isa21:7, as in Isa 21:9, “abody of men riding.” The Persians used asses and camels for war[MAURER]. HORSLEYtranslates, “One drawn in a car, with a pair of riders, drawn byan ass, drawn by a camel”; Cyrus is the man; the car drawn by acamel and ass yoked together and driven by two postilions, one oneach, is the joint army of Medes and Persians under their respectiveleaders. He thinks the more ancient military cars were driven by menriding on the beasts that drew them; Isa21:9 favors this.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And he saw a chariot [with] a couple of horsemen,…. The drivers of it, or the riders in it; perhaps meaning Cyrus and Darius:
a chariot of asses, [and] a chariot of camels; by the former may be meant the Persians, who very much used mules or asses; and the Medes by the latter, who abounded in camels: the words are in the singular number, and may be rendered, “a rider of an ass, and a rider of a camel” w; and so may describe the couple of riders along with the chariot, which may signify the whole army of the Medes and Persians, chariots being much used in war; and the rider of the ass or mule may design Cyrus, who was called a mule, because of his mixed descent, being a Persian by his father, and a Mede by his mother’s side; so the oracle of Apollo told the Babylonians, that their city should stand, until a mule was king of the Medes; and the rider of the camel may point at Darius:
and he hearkened diligently with much heed; the watchman that was set to watch used the utmost attention to what he saw, and listened diligently to the noise of this chariot and horsemen, as they came nearer.
w , , Sept.; “ascensorem asini, et ascensorem cameli”, V. L. “unum equitantium in asinis, alterum equitantium in camelis”, Piscator.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
What the man upon the watch-tower sees first of all, is a long, long procession, viz., the hostile army advancing quietly, like a caravan, in serried ranks, and with the most perfect self-reliance. “And he saw a procession of cavalry, pairs of horsemen, a procession of asses, a procession of camels; and listened sharply, as sharply as he could listen.” Receb , both here and in Isa 21:9, signifies neither riding-animals nor war-chariots, but a troop seated upon animals – a procession of riders. In front there was a procession of riders arranged two and two, for Persians and Medes fought either on foot or on horseback (the latter, at any rate, from the time of Cyrus; vid., Cyrop. iv 3); and parash signifies a rider on horseback (in Arabic it is used in distinction from rakib , the rider on camels). Then came lines of asses and camels, a large number of which were always taken with the Persian army for different purposes. They not only carried baggage and provisions, but were taken into battle to throw the enemy into confusion. Thus Cyrus gained the victory over the Lydians by means of the great number of his camels (Herod. i. 80), and Darius Hystaspis the victory over the Scythians by means of the number of asses that he employed (Herod. iv 129). Some of the subject tribes rode upon asses and camels instead of horses: the Arabs rode upon camels in the army of Xerxes, and the Caramanians rode upon asses. What the spy saw was therefore, no doubt, the Persian army. But he only saw and listened. It was indeed “listening, greatness of listening,” i.e., he stretched his ear to the utmost ( rab is a substantive, as in Isa 63:7; Psa 145:7; and hikshib , according to its radical notion, signifies to stiffen, viz., the ear);
(Note: Bttcher has very correctly compared kashab ( kasuba ) with kashah ( kasa ), and Fleischer with sarra ( tzar ), which is applied in the kal and hiphil ( asarra ) to any animal (horse, ass, etc.) when it holds its ears straight and erect to listen to any noise ( sarra udhneh , or udhnahu bi – udhneh , or bi – udhnh iv. , asarra bi – udhnh , and also absolutely asarra , exactly like hikshib ).)
but he heard nothing, because the long procession was moving with the stillness of death.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
7. And he saw a chariot. What he now adds contains a lively description of that defeat. Some think that it is told by the king’s messenger. This is a mistake; for the Prophet, on the contrary, foretells what he has learned from the watchman whom he appointed by the command of God. Here he represents the watchman as looking and reporting what he saw. As if at the first glance he had not seen it clearly, he says that there is “a chariot,” and afterwards observing more closely, he says that there is “a couple of horses” in the chariot. At first, on account of the novelty and great distance of the objects, the report given is ambiguous and confused; but afterwards, when a nearer view is obtained, they are better understood. There is no absurdity in applying to prophets or to divine visions what belongs to men; for we know that God, accommodating himself to our feeble capacity, takes upon himself human feelings.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(7) A chariot with a couple of horsemen.Better, a troop, a couple. Both asses and camels were employed in the Persian army (Herod., i. 80, iv. 129). They probably indicate, the former an Arab, the latter a Carmanian contingent. Both are named (11,173 asses, 5,230 camels) among the spoil taken by Sennacherib on the defeat of Merdach-baladan (Bellino Tablet in Records of the Past, i. 26).
He hearkened diligently with much heed.Literally, he listened sharply, listened sharply, with the iteration of intensity. What had met the watchmans eye in his vision had passed by in silence, and had left him in doubt as to its meaning. Was it the symbol of a Babylonian army marching out against rebels, or of a rebel army on the way to attack Babylon? He listened, but no voice came out of the darkness to interpret the vision for him.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
7. Chariot horsemen asses camels The first report is, the approach of a long procession, headed by horsemen, seen in perspective as two, a column of two, or two abreast, then successions of chariots drawn by asses and camels, which animals were used in ancient campaigns for different purposes, as both Herodotus and Xenophon testify of the Persians. (Xenophon, Cyrop., Isa 4:3.) They not only carried baggage and provisions, but were taken into battle to throw the enemy into confusion by fright, etc. The watchman not only saw, but he listened listened with intense listening; yet he heard nothing, so still was the approach.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Isa 21:7 And he saw a chariot [with] a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, [and] a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed:
Ver. 7. And he saw, ] scil., In a vision.
A chariot with a couple of horsemen.
A chariot of asses and a chariot of camels.
And he hearkened diligently, with much heed.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
a chariot = a troop.
a chariot with a couple of horsemen = a troop of horsemen in pairs.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
And he saw: Isa 21:9, Isa 37:24
he hearkened: Heb 2:1
Reciprocal: 1Ch 19:7 – thirty Isa 46:11 – Calling Jer 17:24 – if Jer 50:25 – opened
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Isa 21:7. And he saw a chariot with two riders, &c. This passage, says Bishop Lowth, is extremely obscure from the ambiguity of the term , (here rendered chariot,) which is used three times; and which signifies a chariot, or any other vehicle, or the rider in it; or a rider on a horse, or any other animal; or a company of chariots or riders. The prophet may possibly mean a cavalry in two parts, with two sorts of riders; riders on asses, or mules, and riders on camels: or led on by two riders, one on an ass, and one on a camel. Or, as some think, the verse may be rendered, He saw a cavalcade, two file of horse, ( ,) with ass-carriages, and carriages of camels; and he attended with very close attention. According to this translation, the meaning is, that the watchman saw the army of the Medes and Persians, with their usual cavalcade of horse, (attended by those beasts of burden, asses and camels, which accompanied armies,) moving toward Babylon; upon which he gave the greatest attention possible. Or, according to the common reading, Darius and Cyrus, leading the Medes and Persians, are intended to be distinguished by the two riders, or the two sorts of cattle. The baggage of Cyruss army, Herodotus tells us, was carried on camels.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
21:7 And he saw a chariot [with] a couple of horsemen, a chariot of donkeys, [and] {k} a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed:
(k) Meaning, chariots of men of war, and others that carried the baggage.