New English Translation
Isaiah 1:20
20But if you refuse and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” Know for certain that the Lord has spoken.
Isaiah 1:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
- New International Version (NIV)but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
- English Standard Version (ESV)but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken."
- New King James Version (NKJV)But if you refuse and rebel, You shall be devoured by the sword”; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
Context of Isaiah 1:20
18Come, let’s consider your options,” says the Lord. “Though your sins have stained you like the color red, you can become white like snow; though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet, you can become white like wool. 19If you have a willing attitude and obey, then you will again eat the good crops of the land. But if you refuse and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” Know for certain that the Lord has spoken. 21How tragic that the once-faithful city has become a prostitute! She was once a center of justice, fairness resided in her, but now only murderers. 22Your silver has become scum, your beer is diluted with water.
Read all of Isaiah 1Isaiah 1:20 word by word
וְאִם־תְּמָאֲנ֖וּ וּמְרִיתֶ֑ם חֶ֣רֶב תְּאֻכְּל֔וּ כִּ֛י פִּ֥י יְהוָ֖ה דִּבֵּֽר׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 1:20
- Isaiah 3:11Too bad for the wicked sinners! For they will get exactly what they deserve.
- 1 Samuel 12:25But if you continue to do evil, both you and your king will be swept away.”
- 2 Chronicles 36:14All the leaders of the priests and people became more unfaithful and committed the same horrible sins practiced by the nations. They defiled the Lord’s temple which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.
- Hebrews 2:1Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.
- Isaiah 40:5The splendor of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it at the same time. For the Lord has decreed it.”
- Isaiah 58:14Then you will find joy in your relationship to the Lord, and I will give you great prosperity, and cause crops to grow on the land I gave to your ancestor Jacob.” Know for certain that the Lord has spoken.
- Leviticus 26:33I will scatter you among the nations and unsheathe the sword after you, so your land will become desolate and your cities will become a waste.
- Numbers 23:19God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a human being, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not make it happen?
- 1 Samuel 15:29The Preeminent One of Israel does not go back on his word or change his mind, for he is not a human being who changes his mind.”
Commentaries on Isaiah 1:20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20Ye shall be devoured with the sword "Ye shall be food for the sword" - The Septuagint and Vulgate read תאכלכם tochalchem, "the sword shall devour you;" which is of much more easy construction than the present reading of the text. The Chaldee seems to read תאכלו אויב בחרב bechereb oyeb teachelu, "ye shall be consumed by the sword of the enemy." The Syriac also reads בחרב beehereb and renders the verb passively. And the rhythmus seems to require this…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20But if ye refuse, ye shall be devoured with the sword - Your enemies shall come in, and lay waste the land. This prediction was fulfilled, in consequence of their continuing to rebel, when the land was desolated by Nebuchadnezzar, and the nation was carried captive to Babylon. It illustrates a general principle of the divine government, that if people persevere in rebelling against God, they shall be destroyed. The word devour is applied to the sword, as…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-20Verses 16-20 Not only feel sorrow for the sin committed, but break off the practice. We must be doing, not stand idle. We must be doing the good the Lord our God requires. It is plain that the sacrifices of the law could not atone, even for outward national crimes. But, blessed be God, there is a Fountain opened, in which sinners of every age and rank may be cleansed. Though our sins have been as scarlet and crimson, a deep dye, a double dye, first in the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20For the mouth of the LORD has spoken: This statement shows the seriousness of God's promise. The phrase appears 11 times in Isaiah.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 19-2019-20. Temporal blessings in "the land of their possession" were prominent in the Old Testament promises, as suited to the childhood of the Church (Ex 3:17). New Testament spiritual promises derive their imagery from the former (Mt 5:5).Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 1:20
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 1
- 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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