Isaiah 3:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For a man will take hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying: "You have a cloak; you shall be our leader, and this heap of ruins shall be under your rule";

NIV: A man will seize one of his brothers in his father’s house, and say, "You have a cloak, you be our leader; take charge of this heap of ruins!"

NASB: When a man lays hold of his brother in his father’s house, saying, 'You have a cloak, you shall be our ruler! And these ruins will be under your authority,'

CSB: A man will even seize his brother in his father’s house, saying: "You have a cloak—you be our leader! This heap of rubble will be under your control."

NLT: In those days a man will say to his brother, 'Since you have a coat, you be our leader! Take charge of this heap of ruins!'

KJV: When a man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father, saying, Thou hast clothing, be thou our ruler, and let this ruin be under thy hand:

NKJV: When a man takes hold of his brother In the house of his father, saying, “You have clothing; You be our ruler, And let these ruins be under your power,”

Isaiah has described a time coming to Judah, at the hand of God, when all her strong men and leaders will be removed. Both those in official positions of power and those who led the people through their influence and wisdom will be taken away (Isaiah 3:2–3). Those left to lead will be young and inexperienced (Isaiah 3:4). In the power vacuum that follows, the people will take advantage of each other. This will lead to the stronger oppressing the weak and the young disrespecting and taking from those who are older. The community will fall into chaos.

The people will understand they desperately need proper leadership. They will begin to demand it from those among them. Things will be so bad that even having a cloak will a sign of some degree of status. Isaiah describes a man saying to another that he should be their leader because he is wearing a cloak. He calls his brother to take the rule over the "heap of ruins" that Jerusalem has become.

Isaiah 3:1–15 describes what will happen when God removes all the men of importance from Jerusalem . From soldiers to commanders and judges to charms experts. Those left behind will soon turn on each other for survival, oppressing the poor and old. Any man offered the role of Jerusalem's leader will refuse, knowing he cannot bring healing or provision to God's people. The Lord will bring charges against Judah's current leaders for mistreating the poor and taking everything from them.

Isaiah reveals that the Lord will take away all the qualified men from Judah and Jerusalem in His judgment. This includes military, political, and spiritual leaders. After they're gone, the people will turn on each other to survive, trying to convince anyone with the slightest advantage to be their leader. The Lord makes his case against Judah's leaders for taking from the poor instead of providing for them. The Lord will take away from Judah's women all the adornments they displayed in public in their arrogance and immorality. Jerusalem's men will fall, and she will be left empty.

Isaiah 3 picks up where the last verse in Isaiah 2 left off (Isaiah 2:22). There Isaiah warned the people not to trust in mere men and now he proclaims that the Lord will remove all the qualified men from Jerusalem. Those left behind will turn on each other. The Lord will bring charges against Jerusalem's current leaders for mistreating the poor. Because the wealthy women of Jerusalem and Judah are arrogant and immoral, the Lord will take away all their adornments, replacing hair with baldness and beauty with enemy brands. Jerusalem's men will die, leaving her broken and empty. This likely refers to the eventual invasion of Jerusalem and the capture of her people (2 Kings 24:14).

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).