Isaiah 3:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen, because their speech and their deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence.

NIV: Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence.

NASB: For Jerusalem has stumbled and Judah has fallen, Because their speech and their actions are against the Lord, To rebel against His glorious presence.

CSB: For Jerusalem has stumbled and Judah has fallen because they have spoken and acted against the Lord, defying his glorious presence.

NLT: For Jerusalem will stumble, and Judah will fall, because they speak out against the Lord and refuse to obey him. They provoke him to his face.

KJV: 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.

NKJV: For Jerusalem stumbled, And Judah is fallen, Because their tongue and their doings Are against the Lord, To provoke the eyes of His glory.

This verse sums up the results of the passage so far. Isaiah has described a time coming for Judah when all the strong men and leaders will be gone (Isaiah 3:2–3). Jerusalem and the community will fall into chaos because of the lack of leadership. The people will turn on each other and those chosen by the people to lead them will refuse to take the job because it will that hopeless (Isaiah 3:5–7).

Isaiah describes this moment in the present tense. The specific events he has described had not yet taken place when the text was written. Yet Jerusalem had already stumbled and Judah had already fallen, in a spiritual sense. The cause of God's judgment has already happened.

The reason for this fall is simple. In all ways the people have set themselves against the Lord. They have done so by putting their trust in false idols (Isaiah 2:8) and human leaders (Isaiah 2:11). They have openly sinned right in God's face in full defiance of His glory (Isaiah 3:9). They have earned the coming judgment He will bring upon them.

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).

Accessed 5/8/2024 4:03:19 PM