New American Standard Bible 1995
Isaiah 56:10
10His 1watchmen are 2blind, All of them know nothing. All of them are mute dogs unable to bark, 3Dreamers lying down, who love to slumber;
Isaiah 56:10 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.
- New International Version (NIV)Israel’s watchmen are blind, they all lack knowledge; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they lie around and dream, they love to sleep.
- English Standard Version (ESV)His watchmen are blind; they are all without knowledge; they are all silent dogs; they cannot bark, dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber.
- New King James Version (NKJV)His watchmen are blind, They are all ignorant; They are all dumb dogs, They cannot bark; Sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.
Context of Isaiah 56:10
8The Lord God, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, “Yet others I will gather to them, to those already gathered.” 9All you beasts of the field, All you beasts in the forest, Come to eat. His watchmen are blind, All of them know nothing. All of them are mute dogs unable to bark, Dreamers lying down, who love to slumber; 11And the dogs are greedy, they are not satisfied. And they are shepherds who have no understanding; They have all turned to their own way, Each one to his unjust gain, to the last one. 12“Come,” they say, “let us get wine, and let us drink heavily of strong drink; And tomorrow will be like today, only more so.”
Read all of Isaiah 56Isaiah 56:10 word by word
צֹפָ֞יו עִוְרִ֤ים כֻּלָּם֙ לֹ֣א יָדָ֔עוּ כֻּלָּם֙ כְּלָבִ֣ים אִלְּמִ֔ים לֹ֥א יוּכְל֖וּ לִנְבֹּ֑חַ הֹזִים֙ שֹֽׁכְבִ֔ים אֹהֲבֵ֖י לָנֽוּם׃Read the interlinear
- watchmenצָפָהtsâphâh · to watchH6822
- blindעִוֵּר‛ivvêr · blindH5787
- Allכֹּלkôl kôl · allH3605
- of them knowיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
- nothingלֹאlô' lô' lôh · notH3808
- of them are muteאִלֵּם'illêm · muteH483
- dogsכֶּ֫לֶבkeleb · dogH3611
- unableיָכֹלyâkôl yâkôl · be ableH3201
- to barkנָבַחnâbach · to barkH5024
- Dreamersהָזָהhâzâh · to dreamH1957
- lyingשָׁכַבshâkab · to lie down: lay downH7901
- downשָׁכַבshâkab · to lie down: lay downH7901
- who loveאָהֵב'âhab 'âhêb · to love: loverH157
- to slumberנוּםnûm · to slumberH5123
Cross-references for Isaiah 56:10
- Isaiah 52:8Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices, They shout joyfully together; For they will see with their own eyes When the Lord restores Zion.
- Ezekiel 3:17“Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman to the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me.
- Isaiah 29:10For the Lord has poured over you a spirit of deep sleep, He has shut your eyes, the prophets; And He has covered your heads, the seers.
- Jeremiah 14:13But, “Ah, Lord God!” I said, “Look, the prophets are telling them, ‘You will not see the sword nor will you have famine, but I will give you lasting peace in this place.’”
- Hosea 4:6My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.
- Hosea 9:7The days of punishment have come, The days of retribution have come; Let Israel know this! The prophet is a fool, The inspired man is demented, Because of the grossness of your iniquity, And because your hostility is so great.
- Matthew 15:14Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
- Matthew 23:16“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’
- Luke 6:39And He also spoke a parable to them: “A blind man cannot guide a blind man, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit?
- Isaiah 58:1“Cry loudly, do not hold back; Raise your voice like a trumpet, And declare to My people their transgression And to the house of Jacob their sins.
- Jeremiah 6:13“For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is greedy for gain, And from the prophet even to the priest Everyone deals falsely.
- Jeremiah 23:13“Moreover, among the prophets of Samaria I saw an offensive thing: They prophesied by Baal and led My people Israel astray.
- Ezekiel 3:15Then I came to the exiles who lived beside the river Chebar at Tel-abib, and I sat there seven days where they were living, causing consternation among them.
- Ezekiel 13:16along with the prophets of Israel who prophesy to Jerusalem, and who see visions of peace for her when there is no peace,’ declares the Lord God.
- Ezekiel 33:6But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet and the people are not warned, and a sword comes and takes a person from them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require from the watchman’s hand.’
- Philippians 3:2Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision;
Commentaries on Isaiah 56:10
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 10His watchmen are blind - Kimchi observes, "The flock is intrusted to the care of these watchmen. The wild beasts come; these dogs bark not; and the wild beasts devour the flock. Thus they do not profit the flock. Yea, they injure it; for the owner trusts in them, that they will watch and be faithful; but they are not. These are the false teachers and careless shepherds." Dumb dogs, they cannot bark - See note on Isaiah 62:6. Sleeping "Dreamers" - הזים…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10His watchmen - The prophet proceeds to specify the sins which had thus induced God to send the desolating armies of foreign nations. The first is specified in this verse, the apathy, indifference, and unfaithfulness, which prevailed among those who were appointed to guard their interests and defend the cause of truth. The word rendered his watchmen‘ (צפוּ tsophâv ) is derived from צפה tsâphâh “to look about; to view from a distance; to see afar.” It is…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-12Verses 9-12 Desolating judgments are called for; and this severe rebuke of the rulers and teachers of the Jewish church, is applicable to other ages and places. It is bad with a people when their shepherds slumber, and are eager after the world. Let us pray the Great Shepherd to send us pastors after his own heart, who will feed us with knowledge, that we may rejoice in his holy name, and that believers may be daily added to the church.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 10The leaders of Israel failed to guide and protect God’s people from the sins that led to the exile in Babylon. dreamers … loving to slumber: See Isaiah 29:10.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1010. His watchmen--Israel's spiritual leaders (Is 62:6; Eze 3:17). dumb dogs--image from bad shepherds' watchdogs, which fail to give notice, by barking, of the approach of wild beasts. blind--(Mt 23:16). sleeping, lying down--rather, "dreamers, sluggards" [Lowth]. Not merely sleeping inactive, but under visionary delusions. loving to slumber--not merely slumbering involuntarily, but loving it.Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 56:10
In the dictionaries
Notes
Commentaries on Isaiah 56
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- 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
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New American Standard Bible 1995 — © 1960–1995 The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
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