Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Isaiah 47:9
But these two [things] shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon thee in their perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, [and] for the great abundance of thine enchantments.
9. widowhood ] is simply a figure for desolation, which is not to be pressed by asking the question, Who was the husband? The reference could hardly be to the king (for which there are no analogies), still less to the foreign nations with whom she trafficked.
in their perfection ] i.e. in their full measure (R.V.).
for the multitude ] Better: in spite of, &c. (as in ch. Isa 5:25 &c., “for all this”). Strict rhythm would here be restored by transposing the two clauses: “for the great abundance for the multitude ”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
In a moment, in one day – This is designed, undoubtedly, to describe the suddenness with which Babylon would be destroyed. It would not decay slowly, and by natural causes, but it would not decay slowly, and by natural causes, but it would be suddenly and unexpectedly destroyed. How strikingly this was fulfilled, it is not needful to pause to state (see Isa. 13, note; Isa 14:1, note) In the single night in which Babylon was taken by Cyrus, a death-blow was given to all her greatness and power, and at that moment a train of causes was originated which did not cease to operate until it became a pile of ruins.
The loss of children, and widowhood – Babylon would be in the situation of a wife and a mother who is instantaneously deprived of her husband, and bereft of all her children.
They shall come upon thee in their perfection – In full measure; completely; entirely. You shall know all that is meant by this condition. The state referred to is that of a wife who is suddenly deprived of her husband, and who, at the same time, and by the same stroke, is bereft of all her children. And the sense is, that Babylon would know all that was meant by such a condition, and would experience the utmost extremity of grief which such a condition involved.
For the multitude of thy sorceries – This was one of the reasons why God would thus destroy her, that sorceries and enchantments abounded there. Lowth, however, renders this, Notwithstanding the multitude of thy sorceries. So Noyes, In spite of thy sorceries. The Hebrew is, in the multitude ( berob) of thy sorceries. Jerome renders it, On account of (propter) the multitude of thy sorceries. The Septuagint: In ( en) thy sorcery. Perhaps the idea is, that sorcery and enchantment abounded, and that these calamities would come notwithstanding all that they could do. They would come in the very midst of the abounding necromancy and enchantments, while the people practiced these arts, and while they depended on them. That this trust in sorcery was one cause why these judgments would come upon them, is apparent from Isa 47:10-11. And that they would not be able to protect the city, or that these judgments would come in spite of all their efforts, is apparent from Isa 47:13. The idea is exactly expressed by a literal translation of the Hebrew. They would come upon her in, that is, in the very midst of the multitude of sorceries and enchantments. The word rendered here sorceries, means magic, incantation, and is applied to the work of magicians (2Ki 9:22; Neh 3:4; Mic 5:11; compare Exo 7:2; Deu 18:10; Dan 2:2; Mal 3:5). Magic, it is well known, abounded in the East, and indeed this may be regarded as the birthplace of the art (see the note at Isa 2:6).
And for the great abundance of thine enchantments – Hebrew, And in the strength; that is, in the full vigor of thine enchantments. While they would abound, and while they would exert their utmost power to preserve the city. The word rendered enchantments, means properly society, company, community – from being associated, or bound together; and then spells, or enchantments, from the notion that they bound or confined the object that was the subject of the charm. The idea was that of controlling, binding, or restraining anyone whom they pleased, by the power of a spell.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 9. These two things shall come to thee in. a moment] That is, suddenly. Belshazzar was slain; thus the city became metaphorically a widow, the husband – the governor of it, being slain. In the time in which the king was slain, the Medes and Persians took the city, and slew many of its inhabitants, see Da 5:30-:31. When Darius took the city, he is said to have crucified three thousand of its principal inhabitants.
In their perfection – “On a sudden”] Instead of bethummam, “in their perfection,” as our translation renders it, the Septuagint and Syriac read, in the copies from which they translated, pithom, suddenly; parallel to rega, in a moment, in the preceding alternate member of the sentence. The concurrent testimony of the Septuagint and Syriac, favoured by the context, may be safely opposed to the authority of the present text.
For the multitude – “Notwithstanding the multitude”] berob. For this sense of the particle beth, see Nu 14:11.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
In their perfection; in the highest degree. Thy king and kingdom shall be utterly and eternally destroyed.
For the multitude of thy sorceries, and for the great abundance of thine enchantments; for thy superstitious and magical practices, which were very frequent there, as we see Isa 47:12,13, and as was observed before. Or, as it is in the Hebrew, in the multitude of thy sorceries, &c.; in the midst of and notwithstanding all thy diabolical artifices, whereby thou thinkest to foresee any dangers, and to secure thyself from them.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
9. in a momentIt should notdecay slowly, but be suddenly and unexpectedly destroyed; in a singlenight it was taken by Cyrus. The prophecy was again literallyfulfilled when Babylon revolted against Darius; and, in order to holdout to the last, each man chose one woman of his family, andstrangled the rest, to save provisions. Darius impaled three thousandof the revolters.
in . . . perfectionthatis, “in full measure.”
for . . . forrather,”notwithstanding the . . . notwithstanding”; “in spiteof” [LOWTH]. So “for”(Nu 14:11). Babylon was famousfor “expiations or sacrifices, and other incantations, wherebythey tried to avert evil and obtain good” [DIODORUSSICULUS].
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
But these two things shall come to thee in a moment on one day,…. Suddenly, at once, at one and the same time. The destruction of Babylon was very sudden; the city was taken by surprise, before the inhabitants were aware of it, while the king and his nobles were regaling themselves at a feast; that very night Belshazzar was slain, and Darius the Mede took the kingdom, Da 5:30 and so those two things she boasted of would never be her lot came upon her together and at once: “the loss of children, and widowhood”; bereaved of her king, and the whole royal family, and of her people in great numbers, who were either slain, or carried captive; or, however, the kingdom was transferred from them to another people. When Babylon was taken by Cyrus, according to Xenophon k, not only the king was slain, but those that were about him; and orders were presently given to the inhabitants to keep within doors, and to slay all that were found without. Though Dr. Prideaux l thinks this prophecy had its accomplishment when Babylon was besieged by Darius, who, to save provisions, slew all their own women, wives, sisters, daughters, and all their children, reserving only one wife and maidservant to a man; and when it was taken, Darius ordered three thousand of the principal inhabitants to be crucified. And in much such language is the destruction of mystical Babylon expressed, when God shall “kill her children with death; her plagues shall come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine”, Re 2:23:
they shall come upon thee in their perfection; those evils and calamities shall be fully accomplished, not in part only, but in whole; she should have no king to govern, nor anything like one; should have no share of government; and her children or subjects should be entirely destroyed:
for the multitude of thy sorceries, and for the great abundance of thine enchantments; which the Chaldeans were very famous for; this is another reason given for their destruction; see Da 2:2, or, “in the multitude of thy sorceries” m, c. notwithstanding these, her destruction should come upon her, which her sorcerers and enchanters could neither foresee nor prevent. Sorceries are ascribed to mystical Babylon, and as the cause of her ruin, Re 9:21.
k Cyropaedia, 1. 7. sect. 23. l Connexion, c. part 1. B. 3. p. 188, 189. m “in multitudine maleficiorum tuorum”, Munster, Montanus “in multitudine praestigiarum”, Cocceius.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
9. But those two things shall suddenly come to thee. Because Babylon supposed that she was beyond the reach of all danger, the Prophet threatens against her very sore distress. When she said that she would neither be “a widow” nor “childless,” he declares on the other hand, that both calamities shall come upon her, so that her miserable destitution shall expose her to the utmost contempt.
In their perfection. That is, “completely,” so that in all points, without any exception, she shall be childless. There is also an implied contrast between moderate punishment, some alleviation of which may be expected, and the dreadful vengeance of God, which has no other end than ruin; for, the greater the confidence with which wicked men are elated, the more severely are they punished.
For the multitude of thy divinations. Some render this term diviners; but I think that it denotes the act or the vice rather than the persons. Some explain ב (beth) to mean “on account of,” and understand it to express a cause; and in this sense it frequently occurs in Scripture. Yet it might be suitably interpreted, that the Babylonians shall derive no aid or relief from the deceitful skill in divinations of which they boasted so much; and so it might be translated notwithstanding; (227) as if he had said, “The abundance of divinations or auguries shall not prevent these things from happening to Babylon.” (228) He ridicules the confidence which they placed in their useless auguries, by which they thought that they foresaw future events; but, as we shall shortly afterwards dwell more largely on this point, I readily admit that it is here reckoned to be one of the causes of the vengeance inflicted on them, that, in consequence of trusting to such delusions, they dreaded nothing. (229)
(227) “Ewald agrees with the English Version and the Vulgate in explaining it to mean propter , ‘on account of,’ and supposing it to be a new specific charge against the Babylonians, by assigning a new cause for their destruction, namely, their cultivation of the occult arts. Gesenius and the other recent writers follow Calvin and Vitringa in making it mean notwithstanding, as in Isa 5:25, and Num 14:11. There is then no new charge or reason assigned, but a simple declaration of the insufficiency of superstitious arts to save them. But a better course than either is to give the particle in its proper sense of in or in the, midst of, which suggests both the other ideas, but expresses more, namely, that they should perish in the very act of using these unlawful and unprofitable means of preservation.” — Alexander.
(228) “ Nonobstant la multitude des derins et augures.” “Notwithstanding the multitude of divinations and auguries.”
(229) “ Ils ont defie tous dangers.” “They defied all dangers.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(9) In their perfection.Better, in their completeness. She should taste the full bitterness of widowhood and bereavement.
For the multitude of thy sorceries.Better, in spite of . . .
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
“But these two things will come to you in a moment in one day,
The loss of children, and widowhood.
They will come on you in their full measure,
In spite of the multitude of your sorceries,
And the great abundance of your enchantments.”
Her claims would be repudiated by events. She would lose her protector and see her children slaughtered. And this would happen in spite of all her multiplied sorceries and enchantments. And Babylon, famous for its priests, its sorcerers and its enchanters who would one day be exclusively given the name of Chaldeans (but not yet), would discover that in the end they could not save her.
‘In a moment, in one day.’ When her judgment came it would come extremely quickly. And in that day she would lose everything.
‘They will come on you in their full measure.’ Not just a normal defeat, but an overwhelming humiliation and end. The idea far exceeds that of Cyrus. The point all the way through is that this Babylon is an unusual case and will be dealt with unusually.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Isa 47:9. These two things shall come to thee This prophesy was twice fulfilled; having been accomplished the very night that Babylon was taken, when the Persian slew the king himself, and a great number of the Babylonians: and it was fulfilled a second time, when besieged by Darius. Being determined to hold out to the last extremity, they took all their women, and each man choosing one of them whom he liked best out of his own family, they strangled all the rest, that unnecessary mouths might not consume their provisions. By means of this shocking expedient they sustained the siege and all the efforts of Darius for twenty months, and the city was at last taken by stratagem. As soon as Darius had made himself master of the place, he ordered 3000 of the principal men to be crucified, and thus this prophesy was signally fulfilled, both by the hands of the Babylonians themselves, and by the cruelties exercised upon them by the conquerors. Bishop Newton. We may render the latter part of the verse, They shall come upon thee in their perfection, notwithstanding the multitude of thy sorceries, and the force of thy enchantments.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Isa 47:9 But these two [things] shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon thee in their perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, [and] for the great abundance of thine enchantments.
Ver. 9. But these two things shall come upon thee in a moment. ] Accidit in puncto, &c. Babylon was suddenly taken in one night, as the prophet had foretold, Isa 21:9 and as the history testifieth Dan 5:30 Periit inter pocula.
For the multitude of thy sorceries.
a Alsted. Encycl., lib. xxx. cap. 10.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
perfection = full measure.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
these two: Isa 51:18, Isa 51:19, Rth 1:5, Rth 1:20, Luk 7:12, Luk 7:13
in a moment: Isa 13:19, Psa 73:19, 1Th 5:3, Rev 18:8-10
they shall come: Isa 13:20-22, Isa 14:22, Isa 14:23, Jer 51:29, Jer 51:62-64, Rev 18:21-23
for the multitude: Isa 47:12, Isa 47:13, Dan 2:2, Dan 4:7, Dan 5:7, Nah 3:4, 2Th 2:9, 2Th 2:10, Rev 9:20, Rev 9:21, Rev 18:23, Rev 21:8, Rev 22:15
Reciprocal: 2Ki 17:17 – used 2Ch 33:6 – he observed Isa 13:15 – General Jer 4:20 – in Jer 15:9 – She that hath Jer 51:8 – suddenly Lam 1:1 – as a Dan 5:8 – but Dan 5:30 – General Amo 5:12 – manifold Act 8:11 – he had Heb 11:25 – the pleasures Rev 18:17 – in one
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Isa 47:9. These two things shall come to thee The very two things that thou didst set at defiance; loss of children and widowhood Both thy princes and thy people shall be cut off, so that thou shalt be no more a government, and no more a nation. They shall come in their perfection In the highest degree: thy king and kingdom shall be utterly and irretrievably destroyed. This prophecy was twice fulfilled; having been accomplished the very night that Babylon was taken, when the Persians slew the king himself and a great number of the Babylonians: it was fulfilled a second time, when that city was besieged by Darius. Being determined to hold out to the last extremity, they took all their women, and each man choosing one of them, whom he liked best, out of his own family, they strangled all the rest, that unnecessary mouths might not consume their provision. By means of this shocking expedient they sustained a siege and all the efforts of Darius for twenty months, and the city was at last taken by stratagem. As soon as Darius made himself master of the place, he ordered three thousand of the principal men to be crucified; and thus this prophecy was signally fulfilled, both by the hands of the Babylonians themselves, and by the cruelties exercised upon them by their conquerors. Bishop Newton. For the multitude of thy sorceries For thy superstitious and magical practices, which were very frequent in Babylon, as we see below, (Isa 47:12-13,) and as has been observed before. Hebrew, in the multitude, &c., or, as Dr. Waterland renders it, Notwithstanding the multitude of thy sorceries, and the force of thy enchantments; notwithstanding all thy diabolical artifices, whereby thou thinkest to foresee all dangers, and to secure thyself from them.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
47:9 But these two [things] shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon thee in their {i} perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, [and] for the great abundance of thy enchantments.
(i) So that your punishment will be so great, as is possible to be imagined.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
She would lose her empire and her population with unexpected suddenness. In spite of the sorcery and magic that Babylon relied on for protection, God would bring judgment on her.
"Babylon was proverbial in the ancient world for its development of the magical arts. So firm was this association that in Daniel, ’Chaldean’ is a term for magician (Isa 1:20; Isa 2:2, 27, etc. . . .). The great Babylonian interest in astronomy was prompted by an even greater interest in astrology. The names given to the astrological constellations today are translations of the ones originated by the Babylonians. More than anything else, magic is engaged in to ensure good fortune and prevent misfortune." [Note: Oswalt, The Book . . . 40-66, p. 249.]