English Standard Version
Isaiah 8:21
21They will pass through the land, greatly distressed and hungry. And when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will speak contemptuously against their king and their God, and turn their faces upward.
Isaiah 8:21 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And they shall pass through it, hardly bestead and hungry: and it shall come to pass, that when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king and their God, and look upward.
- New International Version (NIV)Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God.
- New King James Version (NKJV)They will pass through it hard-pressed and hungry; and it shall happen, when they are hungry, that they will be enraged and curse their king and their God, and look upward.
- New Living Translation (NLT)They will go from one place to another, weary and hungry. And because they are hungry, they will rage and curse their king and their God. They will look up to heaven
Context of Isaiah 8:21
19And when they say to you, "Inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter," should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living? 20To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn. They will pass through the land, greatly distressed and hungry. And when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will speak contemptuously against their king and their God, and turn their faces upward. 22And they will look to the earth, but behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish. And they will be thrust into thick darkness.
Read all of Isaiah 8Isaiah 8:21 word by word
וְעָ֥בַר בָּ֖הּ נִקְשֶׁ֣ה וְרָעֵ֑ב וְהָיָ֨ה כִֽי־יִרְעַ֜ב וְהִתְקַצַּ֗ף וְקִלֵּ֧ל בְּמַלְכּ֛וֹ וּבֵאלֹהָ֖יו וּפָנָ֥ה לְמָֽעְלָה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And they shall passעָבַר‛âbar · to passH5674
- through it, hardly besteadקָשָׁהqâshâh · to hardenH7185
- and hungryרָעֵבrâ‛êb · hungryH7457
- and it shall come to pass, that when they shall be hungryרָעֵבrâ‛êb · be hungryH7456
- they shall fretקָצַףqâtsaph · be angryH7107
- themselves, and curseקָלַלqâlal · to lightenH7043
- their kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- and their Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- and lookפָּנָהpânâh · to turnH6437
- upwardמַ֫עַלma‛al · aboveH4605
Cross-references for Isaiah 8:21
- Isaiah 8:7therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them the waters of the River, mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks,
- Isaiah 9:20They slice meat on the right, but are still hungry, and they devour on the left, but are not satisfied; each devours the flesh of his own arm,
- Deuteronomy 28:33A nation that you have not known shall eat up the fruit of your ground and of all your labors, and you shall be only oppressed and crushed continually,
- 2 Kings 25:3On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land.
- Jeremiah 14:18If I go out into the field, behold, those pierced by the sword! And if I enter the city, behold, the diseases of famine! For both prophet and priest ply their trade through the land and have no knowledge.'"
- Jeremiah 52:6On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land.
- Lamentations 4:4The tongue of the nursing infant sticks to the roof of its mouth for thirst; the children beg for food, but no one gives to them.
- Proverbs 19:3When a man's folly brings his way to ruin, his heart rages against the Lord.
- Exodus 22:28"You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.
- 2 Kings 6:33And while he was still speaking with them, the messenger came down to him and said, "This trouble is from the Lord! Why should I wait for the Lord any longer?"
- Job 1:11But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face."
- Job 2:5But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face."
- Revelation 9:20The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk,
- Revelation 16:9They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory.
Commentaries on Isaiah 8:21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21Hardly bestead "Distressed" - Instead of נקשה niksheh, distressed, the Vulgate, Chaldee, and Symmachus manifestly read נכשל nichshal, stumbling, tottering through weakness, ready to fall; a sense which suits very well with the place. And look upward "And he shall cast his eyes upward" - The learned professor Michaelis, treating of this place (Not. in de Sacr. Poes. Hebr. Prael. ix.) refers to a passage in the Koran which is similar to it. As it is a very…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21And they shall pass - The people who have been consulting necromancers. This represents the condition of these who have sought for counsel and direction, and who have not found it. They shall be conscious of disappointment, and shall wander perplexed and alarmed through the land. Through it - Through the land. They shall wander in it from one place to another, seeking direction and relief. Hardly bestead - Oppressed, borne down, agitated. The meaning is…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 17-22Verses 17-22 The prophet foresaw that the Lord would hide his face; but he would look for his return in favour to them again. Though not miraculous signs, the children's names were memorials from God, suited to excite attention. The unbelieving Jews were prone to seek counsel in difficulties, from diviners of different descriptions, whose foolish and sinful ceremonies are alluded to. Would we know how we may seek to our God, and come to the knowledge of…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19-22Isaiah contrasted his message with the advice of ungodly people around him. His message brought light and truth. The message of spiritists led to darkness and death. Mediums tried to discover the future through divination (seeking hidden knowledge through rituals). Some claimed to speak with the dead (see Isaiah 19:3). However, God had forbidden these practices because they were empty and harmful (Isaiah 47:9; Deuteronomy 18:9–11).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 21-2221-22. More detailed description of the despair, which they shall fall into, who sought necromancy instead of God; Is 8:20 implies that too late they shall see how much better it would have been for them to have sought "to the law," &c. (De 32:31). But now they are given over to despair. Therefore, while seeing the truth of God, they only "curse their King and God"; foreshadowing the future, like conduct of those belonging to the "kingdom of the beast,"…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 8:21
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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