Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 3:8
For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings [are] against the LORD, to provoke the eyes of his glory.
8. Jerusalem is ruined ] A reference to the “ruin,” Isa 3:6.
their tongue and their doings ] In word and deed they defy Jehovah and provoke the eyes of His glory. Cf. Hab 1:13, “of too pure eyes to behold evil.”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
8, 9. The ruin so vividly depicted is to the prophet’s mind as certain as if it had been already accomplished, because the moral condition of the country, and especially of its present rulers, is one that Jehovah cannot tolerate. The perfects in Isa 3:8 are those of prophetic certainty.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
For Jerusalem … – The prophet proceeds to show the cause of this state of things. These are the words of the prophet, and not of him who was chosen leader. – Jerome.
Is ruined – It would be so ruined, and the prospect of preserving it would be so completely taken away, that no one could be induced to undertake to defend and protect it.
Judah – The kingdom of Judah, of which Jerusalem was the capital; Note Isa 1:1.
Is fallen – Hebrew, falls; that is, is about to fall – as a tower or a tree falls to ruin. If the capital fell and was ruined, the kingdom would also fall as a matter of course.
Because their tongue … – This is the reason why Judah was ruined. By word and deed – that is, in every way they opposed God. The tongue here represents their language, their manner of speaking. It was proud, haughty, rebellious, perhaps blasphemous.
To provoke – To irritate; to offend.
The eyes of his glory – This is a Hebrew expression to denote his glorious eyes. The eye quickly expresses anger or indignation. We perceive these passions in the flashing of the eye sooner than in any other part of the countenance. Hence, to provoke the eyes, is an expression signifying simply to excite to anger, or to excite him to punish them. Lowth proposes to render this to provoke the cloud of his glory – referring to the Shekinah or cloud that rested over the ark in the temple. By a slight variation of the Hebrew text, reading anan instead of eney, it may be so read, and the Syriac so translates it: but the change in the Hebrew text does not seem to be authorized.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Isa 3:8
For Jerusalem is ruined
Jerusalem is ruined!–forfeited privilege
What a verse is the eighth! We cannot even now read it without quailing under the awful representation–For Jerusalem is ruined.
We thought Jerusalem never could be ruined: the mountains were round about her, and to the old psalmists those mountains signified the security of the righteous. Is beauty no protection? is ancient history of no account? will not the dead kings of Judah speak for her in the time of her trial? We cannot live upon our past, upon our forefathers, upon our vanished glories; morality must be as fresh as the dew of the morning; our righteousness must be as clear, personal, and definite as the action which we perform at the living moment. A man cannot lay up a character and fall back upon it if his present conduct is out of keeping with it; he himself takes the juice and sap out of the character which he once lived. (J. Parker, D. D.)
The eyes of His glory
The glory of God is that eternal manifestation of His holy nature in its splendour which man pictures to himself anthropomorphically, because he cannot conceive of anything more sublime than the human form. It is in this glorious form that Jehovah looks upon His people. In this is mirrored His condescending yet jealous love, His holy love, which breaks forth into wrath against all who requite His love with hate. (F. Delitzsch.)
The fall of the Campanile at St. Marks, Venice
Latterly it had been ignobly used as an office for the State lotteries which are demoralising Italy. In cutting the wall for the purposes of that office, the whole building had been weakened. The event spoke as a parable whose meaning could not be missed. That great, stately tower, with its history of a thousand years, fell, because of the little lottery office which cut into it and weakened it. There is an application of the parable to our own national life. Is it possible that a great empire like ours can fall through the gambling habit–the lowest and meanest of the vices–insidiously spreading through all classes of the community? Is it possible to conceive that such a vice should so undermine the character of the people, that the stately structure, built by heroic men in the past, shall crash down in swift ruin at the end? (R. F. Horton, D. D.)
Ruinous effect of sin
Its is just like what happens sometimes in a forest. In a calm day, when all else is silent, something crashes heavily through the branches, and we know a tree has fallen, No axe was lifted, no white lightning streamed, there was only a passing breeze. The wind that did but gently sway the little flower, shook down that towering tree, because long before the catastrophe, its vital progress had been disturbed, and millions of foul insects had entered it, which, leaving its bark untouched, and its boughs unshorn of their glory, had slowly, silently, withered its strong fibres and hollowed its core. (C. Stanford.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 8. The eyes – “The cloud”] This word appears to be of very doubtful form, from the printed editions, the MSS., and the ancient versions. The first yod in eyney, which is necessary according to the common interpretation, is in many of them omitted; the two last letters are upon a rasure in two MSS. I think it should be anan, “a cloud,” as the Syriac reads; and the allusion is to the cloud in which the glory of the Lord appeared above the tabernacle; see Ex 16:9-10; Ex 40:34-38; Nu 16:41-42.
Either of the readings gives a very good sense. The allusion may be to the cloud of the Divine presence in the wilderness: or the eyes of the Lord may be meant, as they are in every place beholding the evil and the good. And he cannot look upon iniquity but with abhorrence; therefore, the eyes of his glory might be well provoked by their crimes.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Of his glorious majesty, whom they ought to reverence and adore.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
8. Reason given by the prophet,why all shrink from the government.
eyes of his glorytoprovoke His “glorious” Majesty before His “eyes”(compare Isa 49:5; Hab 1:13).The Syriac and LOWTH,by a slight change of the Hebrew, translate, “the cloudof His glory,” the Shekinah.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen, e.] This is a reason given why the government of them is refused they were fallen into such a ruinous condition, that there was no probability of recovering them. And the reason of this their fall and ruin is,
because their tongue and their doings [are] against the Lord; against the Lord Jesus Christ, whom they reproached and vilified as an impostor, a blasphemer, and a seditious person; and whom they spit upon, buffeted, scourged, and crucified:
to provoke the eyes of his glory; whose glory, as seen by some in the days of his humiliation, was as the glory of the only begotten of the Father; and, upon his ascension, he was crowned with glory and honour: and as his eyes saw, as well as his ears heard, all their blasphemy and wickedness; so they refusing to have him to reign over them, he was provoked to come in his kingdom with power, and cause his wrath to fall upon them to the uttermost, in the destruction of their country, city, and temple.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The prophet then proceeds, in Isa 3:8-12, to describe this deep, tragical misery as a just retribution. ”For Jerusalem is ruined and Judah fallen; because their tongue and their doings (are) against Jehovah, to defy the eyes of His glory.” Jerusalem as a city is feminine, according to the usual personification; Judah as a people is regarded as masculine.
(Note: As a rule, the name of a people (apart from the personification of the people as beth , a house) is only used as a feminine, when the name of the land stands for the nation itself (see Gesenius, Lehrbegr. p. 469).)
The two preterites C as’lah and naphal express the general fact, which occasioned such scenes of misery as the one just described. The second clause, beginning with “because” ( C hi ) , is a substantive clause, and attributes the coming judgment not to future sin, but to sin already existing. “Again Jehovah:” is used to denote a hostile attitude, as in Isa 2:4; Gen 4:8; Num 32:14; Jos 10:6. The capital and the land are against Jehovah both in word and deed, “to defy the eyes of His glory” ( lamroth ene C hebodo ). is equivalent to ; and lamroth is a syncopated hiphil, as in Isa 23:11, and like the niphal in Isa 1:12: we find the same form of the same word in Psa 78:17. The kal m arah , which is also frequently construed with the accusative, signifies to thrust away in a refractory manner; the hiphil himrah , to treat refractorily, literally to set one’s self rigidly in opposition, obniti ; mar , stringere , to draw tightly, with which unquestionably the meaning bitter as an astringent is connected, though it does not follow that m arah , himrah , and hemar (Exo 23:21) can be rendered , as they have been in the Septuagint, since the idea of opposing, resisting, fighting in opposition, is implied in all these roots, with distinct reference to the primary meaning. The Lamed is a shorter expression instead of , which is the term generally employed in such circumstances (Amo 2:7; Jer 7:18; Jer 32:29). But what does the prophet mean by “the eyes of His glory?” Knobel’s assertion, that C habod is used here for the religious glory, i.e., the holiness of God, is a very strange one, since the C habod of God is invariably the fiery, bright doxa which reveals Him as the Holy One. but his remark does not meet the question, inasmuch as it does not settle the point in dispute, whether the expression “the eyes of His glory” implies that the glory itself has eyes, or the glory is a quality of the eyes. The construction is certainly not a different one from “the arm of His glory” in Isa 52:10, so that it is to be taken as an attribute. But this suggests the further question, what does the prophet mean by the glory-eyes or glorious eyes of Jehovah? If we were to say the eyes of Jehovah are His knowledge of the world, it would be impossible to understand how they could be called holy, still less how they could be called glorious. This abstract explanation of the anthropomorphisms cannot be sustained. The state of the case is rather the following. The glory ( C habod ) of God is that eternal and glorious morphe which His holy nature assumes, and which men must picture to themselves anthropomorphically, because they cannot imagine anything superior to the human form. In this glorious form Jehovah looks upon His people with eyes of glory. His pure but yet jealous love, His holy love which breaks out in wrath against all who meet it with hatred instead of with love, is reflected therein.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
8. For Jerusalem is ruined. Lest it should be thought that God is excessively cruel, when he punishes his people with such severity, the Prophet here explains briefly the reason of the calamity; as if he had said that the destruction of that ungodly people is righteous, because in so many ways they have persisted in provoking God. And thus he cuts off all ground of complaint; for we know with what insolent fury the world breaks out, when it is chastised with more than ordinary severity. He says that they were ready, both by words and by actions, to commit every kind of crimes. In speaking of their destruction, he employs such language as if it had already taken place; though the past may be taken for the future, as in many other passages.
To provoke the eyes of his glory. This mode of expression aggravates the crime, as denotes that they had intentionally resolved to insult God; for those things which are done before our eyes, if they are displeasing to us, are the more offensive. It is true that wicked men mock God, as if they were able to deceive him; but as nothing, however it may be concealed, escapes his view, Isaiah brings it as a reproach against them, that they openly and shamelessly, in his very presence, indulged in the commission of crimes. The word glory also deserves our attention; for it is a proof of extraordinary madness, if we have no feeling of reverence, when the majesty of God is presented to our view. If God had so illustriously displayed his glory before the nation of Israel, that they ought justly to have been humbled, if they had any remains of shame or of modesty. Whatever, then, may be the murmurings of wicked men against God, or their complaints of his severity, the cause of all the calamities which they endure will be found to be in their own hands.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(8) For Jerusalem is ruined . . .The outward evils of the kingdom are traced to their true source. Men have provoked, in the prophets bold anthropomorphic language, the eyes of His glory, the manifestation of His being as All-knowing, Almighty, All-holy.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
8. The causes of this ruin are now stated. Its character is implied in its causes. It is moral ruin, drawing after it, of course, ruin political and national. “Jerusalem reels, Judah falls,” all because of their tongue and their doings. They have mocked God in pretended temple worship. They have at the same time insulted him in acts of idolatry among the hills, groves, and gardens. They have provoked the eyes of his glory. They have affronted brazenly faced down “the eyes of glory,” which streamed forth in love for his faithful ones. The eye, as an outward sense, is the quickest to indicate thought and emotion to light up with joy or flash in indignation. The word “glory” is a probable allusion to the shekinah, which, in its shining and its withdrawal, or darkening, gave outward expression to the emotions of Jehovah.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Isa 3:8. For Jerusalem is ruined The fourth member of the second part of this discourse begins here, which contains the justification and explanation of the divine judgment hitherto set forth, and may be thus divided: The first part is general, against the whole people, whose manners are described, Isa 3:8-9 and the event is set forth, Isa 3:10-11. The second is particular, against the rulers of the people, whose state and vices are set forth, Isa 3:12-15. The third taxes the pride, luxury, and softness of the female sex, Isa 3:16 to chap. Isa 4:1. The past tense in this verse, as is very usual in the prophets, is to be understood of the future. See Vitringa, and Bishop Lowth’s Prelections.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Isa 3:8 For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings [are] against the LORD, to provoke the eyes of his glory.
Ver. 8. For Jerusalem is fallen. ] Therefore I will not meddle, since it is a very sad thing to be physician to a dying State, quando conclamatum est, when men are forsaken of their hopes.
Because their tongue and their doings are against the Lord
To provoke the eyes of his glory.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
ruined = overthrown.
the eyes of His glory = His glorious presence, “eyes” being put by Figure of speech Metonymy, for the person as manifested.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Isa 3:8
Isa 3:8
“For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against Jehovah, to provoke the eyes of his glory.”
This is by no stretch of imagination related to any physical destruction of Jerusalem which is alleged to have occurred at any time in the lifetime of Isaiah. No! “The verb tenses which express completed action (as in this verse) are perfects of certainty.” Therefore, Isa 3:8 is a predictive prophecy of what was appointed by God to be executed upon Judah and Jerusalem about a century after Isaiah died.
Another significant revelation of this verse is the reason or cause for all of the wretchedness and incompetence just mentioned. All of it was due to their “tongue and their doings” being against Jehovah. “After the skeptic has had his fling, he is left stranded in the wasteland he has helped to produce.
Archer pointed out that the literal translation here is, “Jerusalem is stumbled and fallen; her coming destruction had already been decided upon by God, even though it was not to be consummated till nearly 150 years afterward.
“To provoke the eyes of his glory …” “This is an unusual metaphor, meaning `provoking God to look on them with anger.’
Isa 3:9
“The show of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have done evll unto themselves.”
“If God is not in the heart, the light of his presence will not be in the countenance. It will be recalled that when the rich young ruler decided not to follow the Lord, “His countenance fell” (Mar 10:22). It does not require a skilled observer, “to detect at a glance the habitual criminal or sensualist. The fallen countenances of wicked men are just another example of the manner in which evil men receive “in themselves that recompense of their error which was due” (Rom 1:27).
Isa 3:10-12
“Say ye of the righteous, that it shall be well with him; for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Woe unto the wicked! it shall be with him; for what his hands have done shall be done unto him. As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they that lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.”
We agree with many commentators who see in these verses the principle of future rewards and punishments. Good deeds tend to ripen into happiness; and evil deeds into misery and wretchedness. Of course, this is to be accomplished in a spiritual sense, and not mechanically.
Isa 3:12 is not a derogatory put down of women but uses the inability, ignorance, and helplessness of that generation of women as a fitting metaphor for the characteristics of the rulers that were mining Israel and Judah. The same principle refers to the use of children as a metaphor.
Isa 3:8-12 THE REASON-THE PEOPLE. In word and in deed–speaking and acting in rebellion against the Lord. It is not out of ignorance they have sinned! It is deliberate sin. They have done it knowing full well the eyes of the Lord of Glory are upon it-their brazenness is like that of Sodom. They boast of their sin (Cf. Jud 1:8-16; 2Pe 2:1-22; 2Ti 4:3-4; Rom 1:32).
By such blatant disregard of the moral and spiritual government of God, they have earned for themselves the consequences of moral and spiritual anarchy. They have cut off their noses to spite their faces. They have done evil to themselves! If man and his universe is to be governed by any moral principles of right and wrong at all, then wrong must be punished. Anyone who deliberately does wrong deserves punishment, he deserves the fruit of his doings.
But God is not unjust or unmerciful to forget the intentions and deeds of the righteous. God is fair! God is merciful! If a man is righteous of heart (wanting to do right) and righteous of deed (doing right-though sometimes sinning ignorantly), God will reward that man with the fruit of his doings, (Cf. Mat 25:31-46). Gods judgment is not indiscriminate-He judges omnisciently as well as omnipotently.
Those who were supposed to lead the people were oppressing them and leading them into abject slavery, morally and politically. Their rulers were capricious as children and vacillating as women. They lacked the stability that grown men naturally had.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Jerusalem: 2Ch 28:5-7, 2Ch 28:18, 2Ch 33:11, 2Ch 36:17-19, Jer 26:6, Jer 26:18, Lam 5:16, Lam 5:17, Mic 3:12
because: Isa 5:18, Isa 5:19, Isa 57:4, Psa 73:8, Psa 73:9, Eze 8:12, Eze 9:9, Hos 7:16, Mal 3:13-15, Mat 12:36, Mat 12:37, Jud 1:15
to provoke: Isa 65:3-5, 2Ch 33:6, 2Ch 33:7, Eze 8:4-6, Eze 8:17, Eze 8:18, Hab 1:13, 1Co 10:22
Reciprocal: Gen 13:13 – before 1Sa 2:17 – before Isa 1:4 – provoked Isa 29:4 – thou shalt Jer 7:18 – that they Jer 23:36 – for every Jer 44:8 – ye provoke Lam 1:9 – came Amo 5:2 – is fallen Zec 1:6 – according to our ways
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
The reason for these conditions is that Israel was already defying Yahweh by depending on humans rather than on Him.