Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 15:9
For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood: for I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land.
9. the waters of Dimon ] Dimon is generally supposed to be another form of Dibon, chosen for the sake of an alliteration with the word for “blood” ( dm). The conjecture may be taken for what it is worth; it has the authority of Jerome, who says, “usque hodie indifferenter et Dimon et Dibon hoc oppidulum dicitur,” and we know of no other place Dimon.
I will bring more (lit. “additional [evils]”) upon Dimon ] This is the first strictly prophetic utterance in the passage; the speaker is Jehovah.
lions upon Moab ] Better: upon the fugitives of Moab (sc. I will bring) a lion. The “lion” is undoubtedly a symbol for a terrible conqueror, though it is difficult to say who is meant. It can hardly be Jeroboam II., who has already done his worst, and it is still less likely that Judah is meant. The peculiar prophetic form of the latter part of the verse has suggested to some commentators that it may have been inserted by Isaiah in the original oracle. In that case the “lion” would almost of necessity denote the Assyrians.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
For the waters of Dimon – Probably the same as Dibon Isa 15:2. Eusobius says it was a large town on the northern bank of the river Arnon. Jerome says that the letters m and b are often interchanged in oriental dialects (see the note at Isa 15:2).
Shall be full of blood – That is, the number of the slain of Moab shall be so great, that the blood shall color the waters of the river – a very common occurrence in times of great slaughter. Perhaps by the waters of Dimon the prophet does not mean the river Arnon, but the small rivulets or streams that might flow into it near to the city of Dibon. Probably there were winter brooks there, which do not run at all seasons. The Chaldee renders it, The waters of Dimon shall be full of blood, because I will place upon Dimon an assembly of armies.
For I will bring more upon Dimon – Hebrew, I will bring additions; that is, I will bring upon it additional calamities. Jerome says, that by those additional calamities, the prophet refers to the lions which are immediately after mentioned. Lions upon him that escapeth of Moab. Wild beasts upon those who escaped from the slaughter, and who took refuge in the wilderness, or on the mountains. The Chaldee renders it, A king shall ascend with an army, and shall destroy the remainder of their land. Aben Ezra interprets it of the king of Assyria; and Jarchi of Nebuchadnezzar, who is called a lion in Jer 4:7. Vitringa also supposes that Nebnchadnezzar is meant. But it is more probable that the prophet refers to wild beasts, which are often referred to in the Scriptures as objects of dread, and as bringing calamities upon nations (see Lev 26:22; Jer 5:6; Jer 15:3; 2Ki 18:25).
Upon the remnant of the land – Upon all those who escaped the desolation of the war. The Septuagint and the Arabic render this, Upon the remnant of Adama, understanding the word rendered land ( ‘adamah), as the name of a city. But it more probably means the land.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 9. The waters of Dimon] Some have Dibon, others have Ribon and Rimon. St. Jerome observes that the same town was called both Dibon and Dimon. The reading is therefore indifferent.
Upon him that escapeth of Moab, c. – “Upon the escaped of Moab, and Ariel, and the remnant of Admah.”] The Septuagint for aryeh read ariel. Ar Moab was called also Ariel or Areopolis, Hieron. and Theodoret. See Cellarius. They make Admah also a proper name. Michaelis thinks that the Moabites might be called the remnant of Admah, as sprung from Lot and his daughters, escaped from the destruction of that and the other cities or, metaphorically, as the Jews are called princes of Sodom, and people of Gomorrah, Isa 1:10. Bibliotheque Orient. Part v., p. 195. The reading of this verse is very doubtful; and the sense, in every way in which it can be read, very obscure. – L. Calmet thinks there may be a reference to 1Ch 11:22, where it is said, “Benaiah slew two lion-like men of Moab,” or the two Ariels of Moab, and would therefore translate, “I will bring down the remnant of Moab like Ariel, (which Benaiah smote,) and them that are escaped like Adamah.” They shall be exterminated, as were the inhabitants of those two cities. Ariel was a double city – the river Arnon dividing it in two. This is the two Ariels of Moab – not two lion-like men, much less two lions. See Calmet on this place.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Dimon: this seems to be the same place with Dibon, mentioned Isa 15:2, here called Dimon for the great bloodshed in it, as it here follows; such changes of a letter being not unusual in proper names, as in Merodach for Berodach, Isa 39:1. More; either,
1. More than upon other parts of the country, that being one of their high places, Isa 15:2; or rather,
2. More than hath been already mentioned.
Lions upon him that escapeth of Moab; God shall send lions to find out those that escape the fury of men.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
9. Dimonsame as Dibon (Isa15:2). Its waters are the Arnon.
full of bloodThe slainof Moab shall be so many.
bring morefreshcalamities, namely, the “lions” afterwards mentioned(2Ki 17:25; Jer 5:6;Jer 15:3). VITRINGAunderstands Nebuchadnezzar as meant by “the lion”; but itis plural, “lions.” The “more,” or inHebrew, “additions,” he explains of the additionmade to the waters of Dimon by the streams of blood of theslain.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood,…. Of the slain, as the Targum adds. This was a river in the land of Moab, as say Jarchi and Kimchi; it had its name from the blood of the slain, Some take it to be the name of a city, and the same with Dibon,
Isa 15:2 but, because of the abundance of blood shed in it, got this new name; and the Vulgate Latin version here calls it Dibon; and the Syriac version Ribon; and the Arabic version Remmon:
for I will bring more upon Dimon; or “additions” r, not merely add blood to the waters of the river, as Jarchi and Kimchi; but bring additional evils and plagues, as Aben Ezra. The Targum interprets it,
“the congregation of an army;”
but what these additions were are explained in the next clause:
lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land; or a “lion” s; the meaning is, that such who escaped the sword should be destroyed by lions, or other beasts of prey, which was one of the Lord’s four judgments, Eze 14:21. The Targum is,
“a king shall ascend with his army, and so spoil the remainder of their land;”
and Aben Ezra interprets it of the king of Assyria; and Jarchi of Nebuchadnezzar, who is called a lion, Jer 4:7 and the sense is thought to be this, that whom Sennacherib king of Assyria should leave, Nebuchadnezzar should destroy. The Septuagint and Arabic versions render the last clause, “the remnant of Adama”, a city of Moab; so Cocceius.
r “addita”, Pagninus, Montanus; “additiones”, Vatablus; “additamenta”, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. s “leonem”, Pagninus, Montanus, &c.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
9. For the waters of Dimon shall be filled with blood. (246) Here he describes not only grief and howling, flight or trembling, or the covetousness of enemies in plundering their wealth, but the slaughter of men. How great must this have been, when large and magnificent rivers, such as Dimon was, are filled with blood !
For I will lay upon Dimon additions. (247) By additions he means that the Lord, in whose name he speaks, will multiply the murders; so that the dead bodies shall be heaped up, and there shall be no end to cruelty and slaying. Now, though the Assyrians were cruel in this slaughter, yet the Lord was not cruel; for he justly punished the barbarity of the Moabites which they basely exercised towards the Jews, on whom they ought to have had compassion. It was right that they should suffer the same punishment which they had inflicted on others.
To those who have escaped of Moab lions. These also are the additions of which he spake, or, at least, a part of them. This may be regarded as the copestone of that calamity; so that if any detachments of the enemy attempted to escape, and to rescue themselves from the slaughter, they had to encounter lions (248) and wild beasts, by which they were devoured. “They will, indeed,” says he, “rescue themselves from the slaughter, but they will not on that account be safe, nor will they escape the hand of God.” And this is the true meaning of the Prophet, if we carefully examine the scope of the whole passage; for he intended to deepen the picture of that distressing calamity by adding, that even the small remnant which shall be rescued from the slaughter will fall into the jaws of lions. The hand of the Lord pursues the wicked in such a manner that they cannot in any way escape; for if they avoid one danger, they immediately meet with another. Let us remember that these things are spoken by the Prophet for the consolation of the godly, that they may fortify their minds by some promise against the cruelty of their enemies, who shall at length be destroyed, and shall nowhere find a refuge either in their gods, or in fortresses, or in lurking-places, or in flight.
(246) Bogus footnote
(247) Bogus footnote
(248) Bogus footnote
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
REFLECTIONS
READER, in the history of Moab, behold the history of every man by nature, exposed to the just judgment of God, the curse of his broken law, and all the terrors, which will one day fall upon the wicked! their hatred to God and his Christ, is manifested by their hatred to his people; neither can the malignity he taken out or purged by whole burnt sacrifices. From generation to generation, their anger burns with implacable hatred, neither can anything soften it. And as nothing tends to lessen or remove it, so the causes everlastingly must exist, to increase it more and more! Oh! the awful state of the enemies of God and his Christ!
Reader! can we look back to the days of our dwelling with the Moabs of this world? Can we remember our return, like Ruth and Naomi, from the country of Moab to the land of Bethlehem, even the house of bread, in Jesus, who is himself the bread of life. Oh! the blessedness of such a recovery! Precious Lord Jesus! give us grace to praise thee: let nothing but thy power, in the sweet influences of thy Holy Spirit, could persuade Japheth to dwell in the tents of Shem, or constrain our hearts into the love of God, and info the patient waiting for Jesus Christ. Blessed Lord! since thou hast called us by thy grace, and brought our souls to be savingly acquainted with thy love, oh! help us to live to thy glory, and to cease from all the Moabs, who are the enemies of thy cross, and to come out from among them, and to be separated, and touch not the unclean thing; so wilt thou receive us, and be a Father unto us, and we shall be the sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Isa 15:9 For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood: for I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land.
Ver. 9. For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood. ] Non tingentur solum, sed etiam inundabunt and the bloody enemy shall haply be heard to cry out, as once Hannibal did when he saw a pit full of man’s blood, O formosum spectaculum! O brave sight! The very name Dimon signifieth bloody, so called, as some think, on this occasion instead of Dibon, the old name. Isa 15:2
I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him that escapeth of Moab.
a Additamenta plagarum. – Haymo.
Dimon. Probably Umm Deineh, east of the Dead Sea.
Dimon. blood. Note Figure of speech Paronomasia. Hebrew. Dimon. dam.
more = more [howlings].
lions = a lion. Put by Figure of speech Synecdoche (of Species), for all wild beasts.
Dimon: Some have Dibon; and Jerome says that the same town was called both Dibon and Dimon.
more: Heb. additions, Lev 26:18, Lev 26:21, Lev 26:24, Lev 26:28, Jer 48:43-45
lions: Lev 26:22, 2Ki 17:25, Jer 15:3, Amo 5:19
him: Bp. Lowth, upon the authority of the LXX, renders, “upon the escaped of Moab, and Ariel, and the remnant of Admah.
Reciprocal: Num 21:30 – Dibon
Isa 15:9. For the waters of Dimon This seems to be the same place with Dibon, mentioned Isa 15:2; shall be full of blood This is a third evil, and cause of lamentation; the great slaughter which the enemy should make of the people. For I will bring more upon Dimon Hebrew, I will place, or lay upon Dimon, , accessions, or additions, that is, I will increase those waters by the torrents that shall flow into them from the blood of the slain. The expression is strong and elegant. Bishop Lowth, however, interprets the clause, Yet will I bring more evils upon Dimon, that is, though the waters are full of blood, yet will I bring upon them further and greater evils. Lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, &c. This is the fourth evil, the completion of all the rest, and the severest cause of their lamentation, that God would not even spare a remnant hereafter to restore and renew their fallen state; but would pursue them with his judgments to the last extremity, and send upon them, and on their desolate country, lions and other wild beasts, entirely to destroy all that remained. Vitringa, however, thinks that Nebuchadnezzar is pointed out in this clause; who, after the Moabites, reduced extremely low by the Assyrians, began to recruit themselves, should give the remnant of the nation to destruction, and complete the judgment which the Assyrian had begun: see Jer 4:7; Jer 5:6; Jer 48:40. The Chaldee paraphrast must have so understood it, translating the word, which we render lion, by king: A king with his army to destroy the Moabites.
15:9 For the waters of Dimon shall be full {k} of blood: for I will bring more upon Dimon, lions {l} upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land.
(k) Of them who are slain.
(l) So that by no means would they escape the hand of God: thus will God punish the enemies of his Church.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes