Amplified Bible
Isaiah 30:16
16And you said, “No! We will flee on horses!” Therefore you will flee [from your enemies]! And [you said], “We will ride on swift horses!” Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift.
Isaiah 30:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But ye said, No; for we will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee: and, We will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift.
- New International Version (NIV)You said, ‘No, we will flee on horses.’ Therefore you will flee! You said, ‘We will ride off on swift horses.’ Therefore your pursuers will be swift!
- English Standard Version (ESV)and you said, "No! We will flee upon horses"; therefore you shall flee away; and, "We will ride upon swift steeds"; therefore your pursuers shall be swift.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And you said, “No, for we will flee on horses”— Therefore you shall flee! And, “We will ride on swift horses”— Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift!
Context of Isaiah 30:16
14Whose collapse is like the smashing of a potter’s jar, Crushed so savagely that there cannot be found among its pieces a potsherd [large enough] To take [coals of] fire from a fireplace, Or to scoop water from a cistern.” 15For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel has said this, “In returning [to Me] and rest you shall be saved, In quietness and confident trust is your strength.” But you were not willing, And you said, “No! We will flee on horses!” Therefore you will flee [from your enemies]! And [you said], “We will ride on swift horses!” Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift. 17A thousand of you will flee at the threat of one man; You will flee at the threat of five, Until you are left like a flag on the top of a mountain, And like a signal on a hill. 18Therefore the Lord waits [expectantly] and longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed (happy, fortunate) are all those who long for Him [since He will never fail them].
Read all of Isaiah 30Isaiah 30:16 word by word
וַתֹּ֨אמְר֥וּ לֹא־כִ֛י עַל־ס֥וּס נָנ֖וּס עַל־כֵּ֣ן תְּנוּס֑וּן וְעַל־קַ֣ל נִרְכָּ֔ב עַל־כֵּ֖ן יִקַּ֥לּוּ רֹדְפֵיכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 30:16
- Isaiah 5:26He will lift up a flag to [call] the distant nations [to bring His judgment on Judah], And will whistle for them from the ends of the earth; And indeed, they will come with great speed swiftly.
- Isaiah 10:28The Assyrian has come against Aiath [in Judah], He has passed through Migron [with his army]; At Michmash he stored his equipment.
- Isaiah 31:1Woe (judgment is coming) to those who go down to Egypt for help, Who rely on horses And trust in chariots because they are many, And in horsemen because they are very strong, But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek and consult the Lord!
- Deuteronomy 28:25“The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies; you will go out against them one way, but flee before them seven ways, and you will be an example of terror to all the kingdoms of the earth [when they see your destruction].
- 2 Kings 25:5The army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. Then his entire army was dispersed from him.
- Psalms 33:17A horse is a false hope for victory; Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength.
- Psalms 147:10He does not delight in the strength (military power) of the horse, Nor does He take pleasure in the legs (strength) of a man.
- Jeremiah 52:7Then the city was broken into, and all the soldiers fled. They left the city at night [as Ezekiel prophesied] passing through the gate between the two walls by the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans were all around the city. They fled by way of the Arabah (the Jordan Valley).
- Amos 2:14Flight will be lost to the swift [so they will be unable to escape], And the strong shall not strengthen nor maintain his power, Nor shall the mighty man save his own life.
- Amos 9:1I saw [in a vision] the Lord standing at the altar, and He said, “Destroy the capitals (tops) of the pillars so that the thresholds will shake, And break them on the heads of all of the people! Then I will kill the rest of them with the sword; They will not have a fugitive who will get away, Or a survivor who will escape.
- Micah 1:13Harness the chariot to the team of horses [to escape the invasion], O inhabitant of Lachish— She was the beginning of sin To the Daughter of Zion (Jerusalem)— Because in you were found The rebellious acts of Israel.
- Deuteronomy 28:49“The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, [as swift] as the eagle swoops down [to attack], a nation whose language you will not understand,
- Jeremiah 4:13“Behold, the enemy comes up like clouds, His chariots like the whirlwind; His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe (judgment is coming) to us, for we are ruined!”
- Lamentations 4:19Our pursuers were swifter Than the eagles of the sky; They pursued us on the mountains, They waited in ambush for us in the wilderness.
- Habakkuk 1:8Their horses are swifter than leopards And keener than [hungry] wolves in the evening, Their horsemen come galloping, Their horsemen come from far away; They fly like an eagle swooping down to devour.
Commentaries on Isaiah 30:16
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16But ye said, No - Ye who proposed an alliance with Egypt. For we will flee upon horses - The word flee‘ (נוּס nûc ), usually signifies to flee before or from any person or thing. But here it seems to have the notion of making a rapid motion in general, and not to refer to the fact that they expected to flee “from” their enemy, for it does not seem to have been a part of their expectation. The idea seems to be that by their alliance with Egypt they would…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-18Verses 8-18 The Jews were the only professing people God then had in the world, yet many among them were rebellious. They had the light, but they loved darkness rather. The prophets checked them in their sinful pursuits, so that they could not proceed without fear; this they took amiss. But faithful ministers will not be driven from seeking to awaken sinners. God is the Holy One of Israel, and so they shall find him. They did not like to hear of his holy…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16Judah relied on Egypt for fast horses (see Psalm 33:17), rejecting God's help and risking its downfall.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. flee--not as fugitives, but we will speed our course; namely, against the Assyrians, by the help of cavalry supplied by Egypt (Is 31:1). This was expressly against the Mosaic law (De 17:16; see on Is 2:7; Ho 14:3). shall ... flee--literally, "before your enemies"; their sin and its punishment correspond.Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 30:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 30
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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