Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 36:6
Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so [is] Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him.
6. the staff of this broken reed ] For the idea, cf. ch. Isa 30:1-5; for the figure, Eze 29:6-7.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Lo, thou trustest – It is possible that Sennacherib might have been apprised of the attempt which had been made by the Jews to secure the cooperation of Egypt (see the notes at Isa 30:1-7; Isa 31:1 ff), though he might not have been aware that the negotiation was unsuccessful.
In the staff of this broken reed – The same comparison of Egypt with a broken reed, or a reed which broke while they were trusting to it, occurs in Eze 29:6-7. Reeds were doubtless used often for staves, as they are now. They are light and hollow, with long joints. The idea here is, that as a slender reed would break when a man leaned on it, and would pierce his hand, so it would be with Egypt. Their reliance would give way, and their trusting to Egypt would be attended with injury to themselves (compare Isa 30:5, Isa 30:7; Isa 31:3).
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 6. The staff of this broken reed] A weakened, faithless ally.
On Egypt] The Bodl. MS. adds melech, the king of Egypt; and so perhaps the Chaldee might read.
It will go into his hand, and pierce it] Will take subsidy after subsidy, and do nothing for it.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
6. It was a similar alliancewith So (that is, Sabacho, or else Sevechus), the Ethiopian king ofEgypt, which provoked the Assyrian to invade and destroy Israel, thenorthern kingdom, under Hoshea.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt,…. His ally and auxiliary; and which is rightly called “the staff of a broken reed”, if trusted to, and leaned upon, being weak and frail, and an insufficient ground of confidence to depend upon; the allusion seems to be to the cane or reed which grew upon the banks of the river Nile, in Egypt:
whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it; the splinters of the broken reed being leaned on, will enter into a man’s hand, and do him harm, instead of being a help to him to walk with:
so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him; pernicious and harmful, instead of being useful and helpful.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
6. Behold, thou hast trusted in, that broken staff of reed. This is probably separate from the former verse; for, having formerly said that the eloquence by which he flatters the people is all that Hezekiah possesses, and having inferred from this that his confidence is exceedingly foolish, he now comes to other particulars. He employs every method for shaking the hearts of the people, that all, being stunned, may absolutely surrender. Accordingly, after having represented Hezekiah to be contemptible as to his internal resources, he next adds, that the external resources are idle and useless, and says that they are greatly mistaken in expecting any assistance whatever from the Egyptians.
And, first, he compares the Egyptians to “a staff of reed” on account of their weakness; secondly, for the sake of amplification he calls them “a broken staff;” thirdly, he says that it is so far from supporting that it pierces the hands that lean upon it. The meaning may be thus summed up, “the hope which the Jews entertain of receiving aid from the Egyptians is not only false and unfounded, but pernicious.” And indeed with truth might Rabshakeh have said this, if it had been true that Hezekiah relied on the Egyptians; but he slanderously and falsely accuses the pious king of this vain confidence Yet God justly rewarded a rebellious and disobedient people by allowing this filthy dog to reproach them with their wicked revolt. Isaiah had formerly (Isa 30:1, and 31:1, 6) condemned this crime in severe terms, but their deaf ears refused to admit the reproof; and therefore the Jews, who had wickedly despised a Prophet that spoke to them in the name of God, deserved to have Rabshakeh for their instructor.
We are therefore warned by this example, that there is no reason to wonder if unbelievers, who do not obey the counsel of God for their salvation, and reject all prophecies, are subjeered to the jeers of their enemies, as Rabshakeh, the captain of the Assyrian king, now haughtily taunts the rebellious Jews. Yet it is of importance to consider how great a difference there is between the warnings of God and the mockeries of Satan. When God wishes to dissuade us from sinful confidence in the flesh, he declares in general terms, “Cursed be he that trusteth in man,” (Jer 17:5.) that the whole world may be reduced to nothing, and that thus we may be satisfied with himself alone; and therefore, when he has brought us low, he instantly imparts courage to us by holding out a remedy. But when Satan deceitfully blames any vain hope, he drives us to despair, and urges us to many other hopes equally bad or still worse, and tempts us to adopt unlawful methods; as Rabshakeh does not smite the hope which the Jews entertained from the Egyptians, in order that they may rely on God alone, but substitutes the king of Assyria, as if safety ought not to be expected from any other quarter, tie names Pharaoh, but likewise includes the whole nation.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
6. And he in effect continues: “What height of folly in you to trust in this broken reed, Egypt. Leaning on such a staff is only to be pierced by it. Pharaoh has ever proved false to those who have depended on him. He is a reed staff that first pierces, then breaks. His first essays of resistance are daring and sharp, but they soon yield in very weakness.” This may have been conceived by this Assyrian leader as about to follow in the invasion soon to be made upon Egypt by Sennacherib.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“See, you are trusting on the staff of this bruised reed, even on Egypt, on which if a man leans it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to all who trust in him.”
If they are trusting in Egypt let them consider how unreliable Egypt was. His words about Egypt would have gained Isaiah’s approval. That was just what he thought as well. Egypt was but a battered reed, which if a man used it as his stay, would go into his hand and pierce it. There is here both a reflection on Egypt’s comparative weakness (a bruised reed) and on the fact that she tended to let her allies down (piercing the hand that looked for help). In fact, he says, this is what Pharaoh is like, incapable and unreliable, just as he had proved in the past.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Isa 36:6. Lo, thou trusteth in the staff of this broken reed This comparison is excellently adapted to denote an ally, who is not only weak and unable to help, but also dangerous to those who rely upon him for succour; and his representing the power of Egypt to be as brittle as the reeds growing upon the banks of the Nile, (for to these doubtless the Syrian orator alludes) is a great beauty in the similitude. See Eze 29:6.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
man. Hebrew. ‘ish. App-14.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Isa 20:5, Isa 20:6, Isa 30:1-7, Isa 31:3, 2Ki 17:4, 2Ki 18:21, Jer 37:5-8, Eze 29:6, Eze 29:7
Reciprocal: 2Ki 18:24 – thy trust Psa 118:9 – than to put Pro 25:19 – General Son 8:5 – leaning Isa 30:2 – walk Isa 31:1 – to them Isa 36:9 – and put Jer 17:5 – Cursed Eze 17:15 – in Eze 17:17 – shall
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
36:6 Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; on which if a man lean, it will enter his hand, and pierce it: so [is] {g} Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him.
(g) Satan laboured to pull the godly king from one vain confidence to another: that is, from trust in the Egyptians, whose power was weak and would deceive them, to yield himself to the Assyrians, and so not to hope for any help from God.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
He knew that some of the Judean nobles had put their trust in Egypt and had sent ambassadors there to make a treaty (cf. Isa 30:1-7). But he also knew, better than those officials, that Egypt was not only an unreliable ally but a dangerous one, an opinion Isaiah shared (cf. ch. 20; Isa 28:15; Eze 29:6). Sennacherib had already defeated the Egyptians, who for the first and last time had unsuccessfully come to the aid of the Philistines, at Eltekeh northwest of Lachish.