Isaiah 34:11

Isaiah 34:11 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it: and he shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness.
• New International Version (NIV)The desert owl and screech owl will possess it; the great owl and the raven will nest there. God will stretch out over Edom the measuring line of chaos and the plumb line of desolation.
• English Standard Version (ESV)But the hawk and the porcupine shall possess it, the owl and the raven shall dwell in it. He shall stretch the line of confusion over it, and the plumb line of emptiness.
• New King James Version (NKJV)But the pelican and the porcupine shall possess it, Also the owl and the raven shall dwell in it. And He shall stretch out over it The line of confusion and the stones of emptiness.

Context of Isaiah 34:11

9The water in Edom's streams will become tar. Its soil will become sulphur. Its whole land will become tar that is burning. 10That fire will burn through the days and the nights. Its smoke will always continue to rise up. The land will be empty from one century to the next. Nobody will ever travel through it again. Owls, hawks and hedgehogs will live there, as well as all kinds of wild animals and wild birds. The Lord will carefully measure the whole land, so that he can destroy it. It will become like an empty desert. 12There will be no kingdom left for anyone to rule. Edom's leaders and officers will all disappear. 13Thorn bushes will grow over its palaces. Bushes and weeds will grow over its strong cities. Jackals and ostriches will make their homes in the land.

Isaiah 34:11 word by word

וִירֵשׁ֙וּהָ֙ קָאַ֣ת וְקִפּ֔וֹד וְיַנְשׁ֥וֹף וְעֹרֵ֖ב יִשְׁכְּנוּ־בָ֑הּ וְנָטָ֥ה עָלֶ֛יהָ קַֽו־תֹ֖הוּ וְאַבְנֵי־בֹֽהוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• But the cormorantקָאַתqâ'ath · pelicanH6893
• and the bitternקִפֹּדqippôd qippôd · porcupineH7090
• shall possessיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: possessH3423
• it; the owlיַנְשׁוּףyanshûph yanshôph · owlH3244
• also and the ravenעֹרֵב‛ôrêb ‛ôrêb · ravenH6158
• shall dwellשָׁכַןshâkan · to dwellH7931
• in it: and he shall stretch outנָטָהnâţâh · to stretchH5186
• upon it the lineקַוqav qâv · lineH6957
• of confusionתֹּ֫הוּtôhû · formlessnessH8414
• and the stonesאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH68
• of emptinessבֹּהוּbôhû · voidH922

Cross-references for Isaiah 34:11

• Isaiah 13:20The people and their descendants will never live there again. No Arab will put his tent there. No shepherds will take their sheep there to rest.
• Isaiah 14:23The Lord Almighty says, ‘I will make Babylon a place where wild animals live. There will be pools of bad water. I will sweep everything away, like someone who sweeps dirt away with a brush.’
• Zephaniah 2:14Sheep will lie down there. All the wild animals of that place will live together there. Vultures and owls will rest on top of the high, thin parts of the buildings. They will sing in the windows. Bits of doors will lie on the ground. The Lord will tear down all the things in the houses that they have made from valuable wood.
• Revelation 18:2He shouted with a very loud voice: ‘God has destroyed the great city of Babylon! She has become a place where demons live. She is a home for every disgusting spirit. She is a home for every unclean bird. She is a home for every unclean and disgusting animal.
• 2 Samuel 8:2David also won a battle against the Moabites. He made the Moabite prisoners lie down on the ground. Then he used a piece of rope to measure them into groups. When he had measured two groups, he would tell his men to kill all those prisoners. When he measured the next group, he would let those prisoners stay alive. So the Moabites were now under David's authority and they began to pay taxes to him.
• 2 Kings 21:13I will judge Jerusalem and I will punish the people, as I punished Samaria and the family of King Ahab. I will remove the people from Jerusalem, like someone who washes the dirt from both sides of a plate.
• Lamentations 2:8The Lord decided to destroy the strong walls of Zion. He carefully broke away each stone. It causes us to weep when we look at those walls. He destroyed them all. He destroyed the inside walls and he destroyed the strong outside walls.
• Malachi 1:3But I have not loved Esau and his descendants. Instead, I have caused trouble for Esau. I caused Esau's mountains to become a wilderness. Nobody uses that land any longer. Now there are only jackals in the land that belongs to Esau.’

Commentaries on Isaiah 34:11

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 11The cormorant - קאת kaath, the pelican, from the root קיא ki, to vomit, because it is said she swallows shell-fish, and when the heat of her stomach has killed the fish, she vomits the shells, takes out the dead fish, and eats them. The bittern - קפד kippod, the hedge-hog, or porcupine. The owl - ינשוף yanshoph, the bittern, from נשף nashaph, to blow, because of the blowing noise it makes, almost like the lowing of an ox. My old MS. Bible renders the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 11But the cormorant - This and the following verses contain a description of the desolations of Edom in language remarkably similar to that employed in the account of the destruction of Babylon Isaiah 13:20-22; Isaiah 14:23. The word here translated cormorant‘ (קאת qâ'ath ), occurs in this place and in Zephaniah 2:14, where it is rendered cormorant,‘ and in Leviticus 11:18; Deuteronomy 14:17; Psalm 102:6, where it is rendered pelican.‘ Bochart supposes it…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-17Verses 9-17 Those who aim to ruin the church, can never do that, but will ruin themselves. What dismal changes sin can make! It turns a fruitful land into barrenness, a crowded city into a wilderness. Let us compare all we discover in the book of the Lord, with the dealings of providence around us, that we may be more diligent in seeking the kingdom of God and his righteousness. What the mouth of the Lord has commanded, his Spirit will perform. And let us…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11The identification of some of these birds is uncertain, but they inhabited wild and deserted places and many were considered unclean (Deuteronomy 14:11–18).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1111. cormorant--The Hebrew is rendered, in Psa 102:6, "pelican," which is a seafowl, and cannot be meant here: some waterfowl (katta, according to Burckhardt) that tenants desert places is intended. bittern--rather, "the hedgehog," or "porcupine" [Gesenius] (Is 14:23). owl--from its being enumerated among water birds in Le 11:17; De 14:16. Maurer thinks rather the heron or crane is meant; from a Hebrew root, "to blow," as it utters a sound like the blowing…Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 34:11

• Bittern
• Cormorant
• Owl
• War

In the dictionaries

• Bittern
• Cormorant
• Owl
• Pelicans
• Scroll
• Seek
• Confusion
• Hedgehog
• Ibis
• Isaiah

Commentaries on Isaiah 34

• 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