Isaiah 34:9

Isaiah 34:9 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the streams of Edom shall be turned into pitch, and her soil into sulfur; her land shall become burning pitch.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Its streams shall be turned into pitch, And its dust into brimstone; Its land shall become burning pitch.
• New Living Translation (NLT)The streams of Edom will be filled with burning pitch, and the ground will be covered with fire.

Context of Isaiah 34:9

7And the wild oxen will fall with them, the bull calves and the great bulls. Their land will be drenched with blood, and the dust will be soaked with fat. 8For the Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of retribution, to uphold Zion’s cause. Edom’s streams will be turned into pitch, her dust into burning sulfur; her land will become blazing pitch! 10It will not be quenched night or day; its smoke will rise forever. From generation to generation it will lie desolate; no one will ever pass through it again. 11The 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.

Isaiah 34:9 word by word

וְנֶהֶפְכ֤וּ נְחָלֶ֙יהָ֙ לְזֶ֔פֶת וַעֲפָרָ֖הּ לְגָפְרִ֑ית וְהָיְתָ֣ה אַרְצָ֔הּ לְזֶ֖פֶת בֹּעֵרָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the streamsנַ֫חַלnachal nachlâh nachălâh · torrent: riverH5158
• thereof shall be turnedהָפַךְhâphak · to overturnH2015
• into pitchזֶ֫פֶתzepheth · pitchH2203
• and the dustעָפָר‛âphâr · dustH6083
• thereof into brimstoneגׇּפְרִיתgophrîyth · brimstoneH1614
• and the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• thereof shall become burningבָּעַרbâ‛ar · to burn: burnH1197

Cross-references for Isaiah 34:9

• Genesis 19:28He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.
• Job 18:15Fire resides in his tent; burning sulfur is scattered over his dwelling.
• Psalms 11:6On the wicked he will rain fiery coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot.
• Luke 17:29But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.
• Jude 1:7In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.
• Revelation 19:20But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
• Revelation 21:8But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

Commentaries on Isaiah 34:9

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9And the streams thereof - The idea here is, that there would be as great and awful a destruction as if the streams everywhere should become pitch or resin, which would be set on fire, and which would fill the land with flame. This image is very striking, as we may see by supposing the rivers and streams in any land to flow not with water, but with heated pitch, turpentine, or tar, and that this was all suddenly kindled into a flame. It cannot be supposed…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. 9Edom’s judgment was similar to the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24; see also Jeremiah 49:17–18).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. Images from the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah (Ge 19:24-28; so De 29:23; Jr 49:17, 18).Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 34:9

• Pitch
• Punishment
• Slime
• Volcanoes
• War

In the dictionaries

• Brimstone
• Pitch
• Scroll
• Seek
• Isaiah
• Obadiah, Book of
• Slime; Slime Pits
• sulfur, sulfurous

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