הוֹי בָּנִים סוֹרְרִים נְאֻם ה'לַעֲשׂוֹת עֵצָה וְלֹא מִנִּי וְלִנְסֹךְ מַסֵּכָה וְלֹא רוּחִי לְמַעַן סְפוֹת חַטָּאת עַל חַטָּאת

Woe, wayward sons – the utterance of the Lord – who wish to act upon counsel, but not from Me, and who cast an image, but not My spirit, so that they may add sin upon sin. It is likely that the prophet is not referring to the making of actual idols but to the fashioning of plans and the establishment of patterns that are not in accordance with the will of God.

הַהֹלְכִים לָרֶדֶת מִצְרַיִם ופִי לֹא שָׁאָלוּ לָעוֹז בְּמָעוֹז פַּרְעֹה וְלַחְסוֹת בְּצֵל מִצְרָיִם

The prophet explains his intent in greater detail: Those people who go down to Egypt for political negotiations, but did not consult with Me; they do so in order to seek strength in the stronghold of Pharaoh, drawing a sense of security from him, and to take shelter in the shadow of Egypt. However, Egypt’s assurances will ultimately disappoint.

וְהָיָה לָכֶם מָעוֹז פַּרְעֹה לְבֹשֶׁת וְהֶחָסוּת בְּצֵל מִצְרַיִם לִכְלִמָּה

Therefore, the stronghold of Pharaoh will become your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt, your humiliation.

כִּי הָיוּ בְצֹעַן שָׂרָיו וּמַלְאָכָיו חָנֵס יַגִּיעוּ

For its princes, those of the king of Judah, were at Tzo’an, the capital city of Egypt (see commentary on 19:11), and its messengers, those of Judah, will reach Hanes, a major city in ancient Egypt.

כֹּל הֹבִאישׁ עַל עַם לֹא יוֹעִילוּ לָמוֹ לֹא לְעֵזֶר וְלֹא לְהוֹעִיל כִּי לְבֹשֶׁת וְגַם לְחֶרְפָּה

All the deeds of the Kingdom of Judah cause shame, or are rotten and foul-smelling, over their reliance on a people, on Egypt; it will not avail them, neither for aid nor for avail, but for shame and also for disgrace. The support of Egypt is too unsubstantial to be relied upon. Some explain: Accordingly, they shall be ashamed of having approached Egypt.

מַשָּׂא בַּהֲמוֹת נֶגֶב בְּאֶרֶץ צָרָה וְצוּקָה לָבִיא וָלַיִשׁ מֵהֶם אֶפְעֶה וְשָׂרָף מְעוֹפֵף יִשְׂאוּ עַל כֶּתֶף עֲיָרִים חֵילֵהֶם וְעַל דַּבֶּשֶׁת גְּמַלִּים אוֹצְרֹתָם עַל עַם לֹא יוֹעִילוּ

The prophet metaphorically describes the entreaty to Egypt as a dangerous journey to Egyptian cities: The expedition of beasts, animals who bear their burdens as they march, south. In a land of trouble and distress, whence come a roaring lion and lion cub, a viper and a flying serpent (see 14:29), they bear their riches on the shoulders of young donkeys, and their treasures they load on the humps of camels, on a people, the Egyptians, who are of no avail. They bring their riches to trade them with Egypt, or to bring them as a gift to the Egyptians, or to live among the Egyptians.

וּמִצְרַיִם הֶבֶל וָרִיק יַעְזֹרוּ לָכֵן קָרָאתִי לָזֹאת רַהַב הֵם שָׁבֶת

Egypt will help with futility and nothingness; therefore, I called this: Arrogance, ineffectuality is what they are. Do not depend upon them as they are useless.

עַתָּה בּוֹא כָתְבָהּ עַל לוּחַ אִתָּם וְעַל סֵפֶר חֻקָּהּ וּתְהִי לְיוֹם אַחֲרוֹן לָעַד עַד עוֹלָם

God continues to reprove His rebellious children, instructing the prophet: Now come, write it, your prophecy, on a tablet with them, so that it will remain with them, and inscribe it in a scroll, and it will be for the final day forever and ever.

כִּי עַם מְרִי הוּא בָּנִים כֶּחָשִׁים בָּנִים לֹא אָבוּ שְׁמוֹעַ תּוֹרַת ה'

For it is a defiant people, deceitful children who disavow God, children who refused to hear the Torah of the Lord,

אֲשֶׁר אָמְרוּ לָרֹאִים לֹא תִרְאוּ וְלַחֹזִים לֹא תֶחֱזוּ לָנוּ נְכֹחוֹת דַּבְּרוּ לָנוּ חֲלָקוֹת חֲזוּ מַהֲתַלּוֹת

people who say to the seers: Do not see; and to the prophets they say: Do not prophesy to us truths of reproof. If you wish to speak and prophesy, then speak to us smooth talk, popular messages, not ideas that are unacceptable to the public; prophesy delusions. Your predictions with regard to the future should be only joyful and amusing.

סוּרוּ מִנֵּי דֶרֶךְ הַטּוּ מִנֵּי אֹרַח הַשְׁבִּיתוּ מִפָּנֵינוּ אֶת קְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל

The people further state: Move from the way, deviate from the path, remove from before us the Holy One of Israel. Do not speak in the name of God; let us run our own matters as we see fit. The phrase “Holy One of Israel” as a reference to God is characteristic of the book of Isaiah.

לָכֵן כֹּה אָמַר קְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל יַעַן מָאָסְכֶם בַּדָּבָר הַזֶּה וַתִּבְטְחוּ בְּעֹשֶׁק וְנָלוֹז וַתִּשָּׁעֲנוּ עָלָיו

Therefore, so says the Holy One of Israel: Because of your despising this thing, My words, and you relied on exploitation and corruption and leaned upon them,

לָכֵן יִהְיֶה לָכֶם הֶעָוֹן הַזֶּה כְּפֶרֶץ נֹפֵל נִבְעֶה בְּחוֹמָה נִשְׂגָּבָה פִּתְאֹם לְפֶתַע יָבוֹא שִׁבְרָהּ

therefore, this iniquity will be for you like a fallen breach exposed in a lofty wall, whose break will come suddenly. This breach is constantly widening, until the eventual collapse of the wall. The resulting damage will correspond to the height of the wall.

וּשְׁבָרָהּ כְּשֵׁבֶר נֵבֶל יוֹצְרִים כָּתוּת — לֹא יַחְמֹל וְלֹא יִמָּצֵא בִמְכִתָּתוֹ חֶרֶשׂ לַחְתּוֹת אֵשׁ מִיָּקוּד וְלַחְשֹׂף מַיִם מִגֶּבֶא

He will break it like the break of the potter’s jug, an earthenware vessel used mainly for storing wine (see commentary on 22:24). Shattered, He will not spare it, and there will not be found among its fragments an earthenware shard to rake coals from the fire or to draw water from a cistern, a small hole. The pieces will be so small that they will not be useful for any purpose.

כִּי כֹה אָמַר ה' אֳלֹהִים קְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּשׁוּבָה וָנַחַת תִּוָּשֵׁעוּן בְּהַשְׁקֵט וּבְבִטְחָה תִּהְיֶה גְּבוּרַתְכֶם וְלֹא אֲבִיתֶם

For so said the Lord God, Holy One of Israel: With repose and pleasantness you will be saved. Your salvation will come through restraint; with quiet and with confidence will be your might, but you were unwilling to accept that path.

וַתֹּאמְרוּ לֹא כִי עַל סוּס נָנוּס עַל כֵּן תְּנוּסוּן ועַל קַל נִרְכָּב עַל כֵּן יִקַּלּוּ רֹדְפֵיכֶם

You said: No, rather, we will flee on a horse. Therefore, you will flee. And you said: On the swift horses or camels we will ride. Therefore, it is not you who will be swift. Rather, your pursuers will be swift.

אֶלֶף אֶחָד מִפְּנֵי גַּעֲרַת אֶחָד מִפְּנֵי גַּעֲרַת חֲמִשָּׁה תָּנֻסוּ עַד אִם נוֹתַרְתֶּם כַּתֹּרֶן עַל רֹאשׁ הָהָר וְכַנֵּס עַל הַגִּבְעָה

One thousand of your men will flee from the provocation of one of the enemies, from the provocation of five you will flee, until you will eventually remain as a lone pole on a mountaintop and as a banner on a hill.

ולָכֵן יְחַכֶּה ה' לַחֲנַנְכֶם וְלָכֵן יָרוּם לְרַחֶמְכֶם כִּי אֱלֹהֵי מִשְׁפָּט ה' אַשְׁרֵי כָּל חוֹכֵי לוֹ

As you are not interested in God’s salvation, therefore, the Lord will wait; He will not hurry to be gracious to you, and therefore, He will be aloof from having compassion upon you, for the Lord is God of justice; happy are all who wait for Him.

כִּי עַם בְּצִיּוֹן יֵשֵׁב בִּירוּשָׁלִָם בָּכוֹ לֹא תִבְכֶּה חָנוֹן יָחְנְךָ לְקוֹל זַעֲקֶךָ כְּשָׁמְעָתוֹ עָנָךְ

The prophet offers words of comfort for the inhabitants of Jerusalem: For a people will live in Zion, in Jerusalem; you will weep no more there. He, God, will show grace to you at the sound of your crying out; upon His hearing your cry, He will answer you. However, His salvation will not arrive immediately and in full; it will initially appear in a gradual, limited manner.

וְנָתַן לָכֶם אֲדֹנָי לֶחֶם צָר וּמַיִם לָחַץ וְלֹא יִכָּנֵף עוֹד מוֹרֶיךָ וְהָיוּ עֵינֶיךָ רֹאוֹת אֶת מוֹרֶיךָ

The Lord will give you sparse bread and scant water, but your Teacher will no longer be concealed, and your eyes will see your Teacher, as He will reveal Himself before all. Some explain that “teacher” here is not a reference to God but to the Messiah (see 11:4), to the prophet himself, or to King Hizkiyahu. Alternatively, morekha, translated here as “your teacher,” means “your early rains” [yoreh].

ואָזְנֶיךָ תִּשְׁמַעְנָה דָבָר מֵאַחֲרֶיךָ לֵאמֹר זֶה הַדֶּרֶךְ לְכוּ בוֹ כִּי תַאֲמִינוּ וְכִי תַשְׂמְאִילוּ

At that time, your ears will attentively hear a word from behind you, an instruction, saying: This is the way, walk in it, when, whether, you go right, and when, whether, you go left. Not everything will be revealed at once. At first, you will not see anything, and this command will come from behind you. Nevertheless, you will receive an explicit instruction with regard to the proper path.

וְטִמֵּאתֶם אֶת צִפּוּי פְּסִילֵי כַסְפֶּךָ וְאֶת אֲפֻדַּת מַסֵּכַת זְהָבֶךָ תִּזְרֵם כְּמוֹ דָוָה צֵא תֹּאמַר לוֹ

You will defile, reject, the plating of your silver idols and the adornment of your cast golden images, the idols and their appurtenances; you shall cast them out, or scatter them, like a menstruant, or like sickness and pain. You will cast the idols from you as one throws away dirt and repulsive objects. You will say to it, each image: Get out.

וְנָתַן מְטַר זַרְעֲךָ אֲשֶׁר תִּזְרַע אֶת הָאֲדָמָה וְלֶחֶם תְּבוּאַת הָאֲדָמָה וְהָיָה דָשֵׁן וְשָׁמֵן יִרְעֶה מִקְנֶיךָ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא כַּר נִרְחָב

He will then give rain for your seeds, with which you will sow the ground, and bread of the produce of the ground, and it, the bread, will be rich and fat. This is an allusion to the promise in Deuteronomy (11:14): “I will provide the rain of your land at its appointed time, the early rain and the late rain, and you will gather your grain, and your wine, and your oil.” Your livestock will graze on that day on a broad plain.

וְהָאֲלָפִים וְהָעֲיָרִים עֹבְדֵי הָאֲדָמָה — בְּלִיל חָמִיץ יֹאכֵלוּ אֲשֶׁר זֹרֶה בָרַחַת וּבַמִּזְרֶה

The oxen and the young donkeys that work the land will eat enriched fodder, a mixture that includes cereals and legumes, that was winnowed of chaff with the shovel and the winnowing fork, both winnowing implements.

וְהָיָה עַל כָּל הַר גָּבֹהַּ וְעַל כָּל גִּבְעָה נִשָּׂאָה פְּלָגִים יִבְלֵי מָיִם בְּיוֹם הֶרֶג רָב בִּנְפֹל מִגְדָּלִים

There will be freshets and streams of water on every lofty mountain and on every high hill, so it shall be on a day of great slaughter, with the fall of the towers. The towers, the supposed security of Israel, will collapse. The walls will be smashed and many people will be killed. Nevertheless, springs and water streams will flow everywhere. From the destruction of the old, a new, redeemed world will sprout.

וְהָיָה אוֹר הַלְּבָנָה כְּאוֹר הַחַמָּה וְאוֹר הַחַמָּה יִהְיֶה שִׁבְעָתַיִם – כְּאוֹר שִׁבְעַת הַיָּמִים בְּיוֹם חֲבֹשׁ ה' אֶת שֶׁבֶר עַמּוֹ וּמַחַץ מַכָּתוֹ יִרְפָּא

At that time, the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, seven times its current strength, like the light of the seven days, the great light that shone in the first days of Creation, before the sun and moon were created. This light, which is greater than the light of the sun, will shine on the day of the redemption, on the day of the Lord’s bandaging of the break of His people, and He will heal the wound of His blow.

הִנֵּה שֵׁם ה' בָּא מִמֶּרְחָק בֹּעֵר אַפּוֹ וְכֹבֶד מַשָּׂאָה שְׂפָתָיו מָלְאוּ זַעַם וּלְשׁוֹנוֹ כְּאֵשׁ אֹכָלֶת

The prophet continues with his twin depictions of the future revelation, involving both retribution and redemption: Behold, the name of the Lord comes to reveal Himself from afar, His wrath is burning, and its burden is weighty, due to people’s transgressions. His lips are full of fury, and His tongue is like a consuming fire;

וְרוּחוֹ כְּנַחַל שׁוֹטֵף עַד צַוָּאר יֶחֱצֶה לַהֲנָפָה גוֹיִם בְּנָפַת שָׁוְא וְרֶסֶן מַתְעֶה עַל לְחָיֵי עַמִּים

at that stage, His breath is like a surging stream; it reaches to the neck, to shake the nations with an illusory sieve. There will be no need for a genuine instrument for sifting them. And an unreal rein will be on the jaws of peoples. Even a rein that is not in working order will be enough to prevent them from rebellion. Some commentaries explain that an illusory sieve is one that holds nothing back, that all the nations will pass through it and be destroyed, while an unreal rein leads the people on the path to their annihilation.

הַשִּׁיר יִהְיֶה לָכֶם כְּלֵיל הִתְקַדֶּשׁ חָג וְשִׂמְחַת לֵבָב כַּהוֹלֵךְ בֶּחָלִיל לָבוֹא בְהַר ה' אֶל צוּר יִשְׂרָאֵל

The song will be for you, Israel, like the night of the consecration of the festival, as the songs of Passover night, when all of Israel would gather around the paschal lamb with songs and praise. And there will be universal, heartfelt joy like one going with the flute at the head of a celebratory procession to come to the mountain of the Lord, to the rock of Israel.

וְהִשְׁמִיעַ ה' אֶת הוֹד קוֹלוֹ וְנַחַת זְרוֹעוֹ יַרְאֶה בְּזַעַף אַף וְלַהַב אֵשׁ אוֹכֵלָה נֶפֶץ וָזֶרֶם וְאֶבֶן בָּרָד

Alongside the joy, God will reveal His anger as well: The Lord will sound the glory of His voice, and He will display the descent of His arm, with furious wrath and the flame of a devouring fire, with a blast, a torrent, and hailstones.

כִּי מִקּוֹל ה' יֵחַת אַשּׁוּר בַּשֵּׁבֶט יַכֶּה

For from the voice of the Lord, Assyria will be broken; He will strike them with the rod.

וְהָיָה כֹּל מַעֲבַר מַטֵּה מוּסָדָה אֲשֶׁר יָנִיחַ ה' עָלָיו — בְּתֻפִּים וּבְכִנֹּרוֹת וּבְמִלְחֲמוֹת תְּנוּפָה נִלְחַם בָּם

It shall be that any passage of the staff to an established place that the Lord will set upon, He will make war on them with drums and harps and with wars of shaking. The revelation of God will be accompanied by song and musical instruments on the one hand, and storms and rage on the other. Alternatively, God’s revelation is metaphorically described in the verse as an inferno, such as the place in Jerusalem where humans would be burned to the sound of drums in the background. Accordingly, the verse is saying that when God places His staff upon Assyria, while the Assyrians are passed through the inferno, this will be accompanied by drums and harps.

כִּי עָרוּךְ מֵאֶתְמוּל תָּפְתֶּה גַּם הִיא לַמֶּלֶךְ הוּכָן הֶעְמִיק הִרְחִב מְדֻרָתָהּ אֵשׁ וְעֵצִים הַרְבֵּה נִשְׁמַת ה' כְּנַחַל גָּפְרִית בֹּעֲרָה בָּהּ

For an inferno is arranged from yesterday; it, too, is prepared for the king. This inferno is prepared for all, even the king. He deepened and widened its conflagration, with much fire and wood; the breath and spirit of the Lord, like a stream of sulfur, is burning within it.