God’s Word Translation
Isaiah 7:18
18On that day the Lord will whistle for the flies that are at the distant branches of the Nile River in Egypt and for the bees that are in Assyria.
Isaiah 7:18 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.
- New International Version (NIV)In that day the Lord will whistle for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.
- English Standard Version (ESV)In that day the Lord will whistle for the fly that is at the end of the streams of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And it shall come to pass in that day That the Lord will whistle for the fly That is in the farthest part of the rivers of Egypt, And for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.
Context of Isaiah 7:18
16Indeed, before the boy knows how to reject evil and choose good, the land of the two kings who terrify you will be deserted. 17“The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your ancestor’s family a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah. ⌞He will bring⌟ the king of Assyria. On that day the Lord will whistle for the flies that are at the distant branches of the Nile River in Egypt and for the bees that are in Assyria. 19All of them will come and settle in the deep valleys, in the cracks in the cliffs, on all the thornbushes, and at all the water holes. 20“On that day the Lord will hire the king of Assyria from beyond the Euphrates River to be a razor to shave the hair on your head, the hair on your legs, and even your beard.
Read all of Isaiah 7Isaiah 7:18 word by word
וְהָיָ֣ה׀ בַּיּ֣וֹם הַה֗וּא יִשְׁרֹ֤ק יְהוָה֙ לַזְּב֔וּב אֲשֶׁ֥ר בִּקְצֵ֖ה יְאֹרֵ֣י מִצְרָ֑יִם וְלַ֨דְּבוֹרָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֖ר בְּאֶ֥רֶץ אַשּֽׁוּר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And it shall come to pass in that dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- shall hissשָׁרַקshâraq · to whistleH8319
- for the flyזְבוּבzebûb · flyH2070
- in the uttermost partקָצֶהqâtseh qêtseh · endH7097
- of the riversיְאֹרye'ôr · streamH2975
- of Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
- and for the beeדְּבוֹרָהdebôrâh debôrâh · beeH1682
- in the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- of Assyriaאַשּׁוּר'ashshûr 'ashshûr · AssyriaH804
Cross-references for Isaiah 7:18
- Isaiah 5:26The Lord raises up a flag for the nations far away. With a whistle he signals those at the ends of the earth. Look, they are coming very quickly!
- Isaiah 30:1The Lord declares, “How horrible it will be for those rebellious children. They carry out plans, but not mine. They make alliances against my will. They pile sin on top of sin.
- Isaiah 31:1How horrible it will be for those who go to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who depend on many chariots, who depend on very strong war horses. They don’t look to the Holy One of Israel. They don’t seek the Lord.
- Exodus 8:21If you will not let my people go, I will send swarms of flies on you, your officials, your people, and your houses. The homes of the Egyptians will be filled with flies, and even the ground outside will be covered with them.
- Deuteronomy 1:44The Amorites who lived there came out and attacked you and chased you like a swarm of bees. They defeated you, chasing you from Seir all the way to Hormah.
- Deuteronomy 7:20The Lord your God will spread panic among them until they all die. There will be no one left—not even those who were hiding from you.
- Joshua 24:12I sent hornets ahead of you to force out the two kings of the Amorites ahead of you. These things didn’t happen because of your battle skills or fighting ability.
- Psalms 118:12They swarmed around me like bees, but they were extinguished like burning thornbushes. ⌞So armed⌟ with the name of the Lord, I defeated them.
- Isaiah 7:17“The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your ancestor’s family a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah. ⌞He will bring⌟ the king of Assyria.
- 2 Kings 23:33Pharaoh Necoh made him a prisoner at Riblah in the territory of Hamath during his reign in Jerusalem and fined the country 7,500 pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold.
Commentaries on Isaiah 7:18
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18Hiss for the fly "Hist the fly" - See note on Isaiah 5:26. Egypt, and - Assyria - Sennacherib, Esarhaddon, Pharaoh-necho, and Nebuchadnezzar, who one after another desolated Judea.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18In that day the Lord shall hiss - see the note at Isaiah 5:26. For the fly - That is, for the army, or the multitude of people. The comparison of a numerous army with “flies” is not uncommon; see Homer‘s “Iliad,” B. ii. 469, etc. - Thick as insects play, The wandering nation of a summer‘s day. That, drawn by milky streams at evening hours In gathered swarms surround the rural bowers; From pail to pail with busy murmur run The gilded legions, glittering in…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 17-25Verses 17-25 Let those who will not believe the promises of God, expect to hear the alarms of his threatenings; for who can resist or escape his judgments? The Lord shall sweep all away; and whomsoever he employs in any service for him, he will pay. All speaks a sad change of the face of that pleasant land. But what melancholy change is there, which sin will not make with a people? Agriculture would cease. Sorrows of every kind will come upon all who…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18-25The phrase on that day refers to the future Day of the LORD, when God acts to judge and to save. Judah would first experience the judgment Isaiah had announced. This would be a warning of a greater judgment still to come. That greater judgment was the exile in Babylon from 586 to 538 BC.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1818. hiss--whistle, to bring bees to settle (see on Is 5:26). fly--found in numbers about the arms of the Nile and the canals from it (Is 19:5-7; 23:3), here called "rivers." Hence arose the plague of flies (Ex 8:21). Figurative, for numerous and troublesome foes from the remotest parts of Egypt, for example, Pharaoh-nechoh. bee--(De 1:44; Psa 118:12). As numerous in Assyria as the fly in marshy Egypt. Sennacherib, Esar-haddon, and Nebuchadnezzar fulfilled…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 7:18
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 7
- 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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