Amplified Bible
Isaiah 8:12
12“You are not to say, ‘It is a conspiracy!’ In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy, And you are not to fear what they fear nor be in dread of it.
Isaiah 8:12 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.
- New International Version (NIV)“Do not call conspiracy everything this people calls a conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Do not say, ‘A conspiracy,’ Concerning all that this people call a conspiracy, Nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.
Context of Isaiah 8:12
10Take counsel together [against Judah], but it will come to nothing; Speak the word, but it will not stand, For God is with us (Immanuel).” 11For in this way the Lord spoke to me with His strong hand [upon me] and instructed me not to walk in the way of this people [behaving as they do], saying, “You are not to say, ‘It is a conspiracy!’ In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy, And you are not to fear what they fear nor be in dread of it. 13It is the Lord of hosts whom you are to regard as holy and awesome. He shall be your [source of] fear, He shall be your [source of] dread [not man]. 14Then He shall be a sanctuary [a sacred, indestructible shelter for those who fear and trust Him]; But to both the houses of Israel [both the northern and southern kingdoms—Israel and Judah, He will be] a stone on which to stumble and a rock on which to trip, A trap and a snare for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
Read all of Isaiah 8Isaiah 8:12 word by word
לֹא־תֹאמְר֣וּן קֶ֔שֶׁר לְכֹ֧ל אֲשֶׁר־יֹאמַ֛ר הָעָ֥ם הַזֶּ֖ה קָ֑שֶׁר וְאֶת־מוֹרָא֥וֹ לֹֽא־תִֽירְא֖וּ וְלֹ֥א תַעֲרִֽיצוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 8:12
- Isaiah 7:2When the house of David (Judah) was told, “Aram is allied with Ephraim (Israel),” the hearts of Ahaz and his people trembled as the trees of the forest tremble in the wind.
- Isaiah 51:12“I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies And of a son of man who is made [as destructible] as grass,
- 2 Kings 16:5Then Rezin the king of Aram (Syria) and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to Jerusalem to wage war. They besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome and conquer him.
- Isaiah 7:4and say to him, ‘Take care and be calm, do not fear and be weak-hearted because of these two stumps of smoldering logs, on account of the fierce anger of [King] Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah (Pekah, usurper of the throne of Israel).
- Isaiah 57:9You have gone to the king [of a pagan land] with oil And increased your perfumes; You have sent your messengers a great distance And made them go down to Sheol (the realm of the dead).
- Psalms 53:5There they were, in great terror and dread, where there had been no terror or dread; For God scattered the bones of him who besieged you; You have put them to shame, because God has rejected them.
- Matthew 28:2And a great earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone [from the opening of the tomb], and sat on it.
- Luke 12:4“I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have nothing more that they can do.
- Luke 21:9When you hear of wars and disturbances [civil unrest, revolts, uprisings], do not panic; for these things must take place first, but the end will not come immediately.”
- 1 Peter 3:14But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness [though it is not certain that you will], you are still blessed [happy, to be admired and favored by God]. Do not be afraid of their intimidating threats, nor be troubled or disturbed [by their opposition].
Commentaries on Isaiah 8:12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Say ye not, A confederacy "Say ye not, It is holy" - קשר kesher . Both the reading and the sense of this word are doubtful. The Septuagint manifestly read קשה kashah ; for they render it by , hard. The Syriac and Chaldee render it מרדא merda, and dn מרוד merod, rebellion. How they came by this sense of the word, or what they read in their copies, is not so clear. But the worst of it is, that neither of these readings or renderings gives any clear sense in…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12Say ye not - Do not join in their purposes of forming a confederacy. Do not unite with the king and the people of Judah in their alarms about the threatened invasion by the kings of Syria and Samaria, and in their purpose to form an alliance with the king of Assyria. The reason why they should not do this, he states in Isaiah 8:13, where he exhorts the nation to put confidence in the Lord rather than in man. There has been, however, great diversity in the…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-16Verses 9-16 The prophet challenges the enemies of the Jews. Their efforts would be vain, and themselves broken to pieces. It concerns us, in time of trouble, to watch against all such fears as put us upon crooked courses for our own security. The believing fear of God preserves against the disquieting fear of man. If we thought rightly of the greatness and glory of God, we should see all the power of our enemies restrained. The Lord, who will be a…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12People saw Isaiah’s message of staying out of Assyrian affairs as treason and part of a conspiracy. However, Isaiah was not engaging in political games. He was sharing God’s message. What scared them was the alliance of Syria and Israel attacking Judah (see Isaiah 7:1, 4).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 12-1612-16. The words of Jehovah. confederacy--rather, a conspiracy; an appropriate term for the unnatural combination of Israel with Syrian foreigners against Judea and the theocracy, to which the former was bound by ties of blood and hereditary religion [Maurer]. to all ... say--rather, of all which this people calleth a conspiracy [G. V. Smith]. their fear--namely, object of fear: the hostile conspiracy. be afraid--rather [Maurer], "nor make others to be…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 8:12
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 8
- 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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