Isaiah 28:10 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little."

NIV: For it is: Do this, do that, a rule for this, a rule for that ; a little here, a little there."

NASB: For He says, ‘ Order on order, order on order, Line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there.’?'

CSB: "Law after law, law after law, line after line, line after line, a little here, a little there."

NLT: He tells us everything over and over — one line at a time, one line at a time, a little here, and a little there!'

KJV: For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:

NKJV: For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, Line upon line, line upon line, Here a little, there a little.”

Here are Israel's religious leaders—priests and prophets—mocking Isaiah for daring to correct them for their public drunkenness and failure to carry out the Lord's work. They have asked, in essence, why he is talking to them like children (Isaiah 28:9).

Now they mock Isaiah's message from the Lord. This perhaps means warning that Samaria won't last much longer before being destroyed (Isaiah 28:3–4). The Hebrew words in the first part of this verse are rhyming sounds: saw' lā sāw', saw' lā sāw', qaw' lā qaw', qaw' lā qaw', z󠄓eēr sām', z󠄓eēr sām'. This is meant to imitate the babbling speech of a child, taunting Isaiah for his message.

A literal rendering of the mocking chant is "do and do, do and do, rule on rule, rule on rule." The ESV translates them more formally as "precept upon precept, line upon line," while the NIV aims to capture the spirit of the words: "Do this, do that, a rule for this, a rule for that." They end with "here a little, there a little" to describe the continuous proclamation of the lessons, a little at a time.

The scoffers make themselves sound like a strict teacher reciting the rule book to her students—while speaking like a simpleton. They see Isaiah in this way, and they don't take his godly message seriously. After all, why would they want to be lectured by someone still committed to proclaiming God's message? The Lord will throw these words back into the faces of the obstinate Israelites (Isaiah 28:13).

Something similar often happens today when attempting to discuss Scripture with those who have given up believing it. It's easier to mock the believer than to engage with the content of the message.

Isaiah 28:1–13 poetically describes Israel's capital Samaria as a crown or wreath on the head of a beautiful valley. Its leaders, though, are drunkards, and the wilted wreath will be trampled by the hailstorm of the Lord's judgment. This comes in the form of Assyrian invaders. Then God will be the glorious crown of Israel once more. Israel's prophets and priests live in a drunken stupor, staggering, vomiting, and mocking Isaiah's warning message from the Lord. Isaiah assures them they will hear the message firsthand from foreign lips when the Lord's judgment falls on them.

Samaria, the capital of Israel, also called Ephraim, is the beautiful crown on the head of the rich valley below. Her leaders are proud and drunk. The Lord will send the Assyrians to trample the crown and send the people into exile. Israel's religious leaders mock Isaiah, but they will hear the Lord's message from the Assyrians. Isaiah warns Jerusalem's leaders not to mock his warning to them from the Lord about the same fate. Their covenant with death will fail. The hailstorm of the Assyrians will beat them down. The Lord's counsel is wonderful.

Isaiah 28 begins a new section following the previous four chapters about Israel's glorious future with the Lord as her king. Now, though, the Lord is sending the Assyrians to judge His own people, first in Ephraim, which is Israel, and then in Judah. The beautiful capital city of Samaria will be trampled like a wilted wreath. Israel's religious leaders mock Isaiah but will hear the Lord's message from the Assyrians themselves. Isaiah warns Jerusalem's leaders not to scoff at his message. Despite Judah's agreements with other nations, the Lord will send the overwhelming scourge to wash away their refuge of lies. The next three chapters of Isaiah (29—31) predict siege and distress for Jerusalem but also promise that God will destroy Judah's enemies and bless them if they return to Him.

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).