New Living Translation
Isaiah 30:17
17One of them will chase a thousand of you. Five of them will make all of you flee. You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.”
Isaiah 30:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on an hill.
- New International Version (NIV)A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you will all flee away, till you are left like a flagstaff on a mountaintop, like a banner on a hill.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)A thousand shall flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you shall flee, till you are left like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain, like a signal on a hill.
- New King James Version (NKJV)One thousand shall flee at the threat of one, At the threat of five you shall flee, Till you are left as a pole on top of a mountain And as a banner on a hill.
Context of Isaiah 30:17
15This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it. 16You said, ‘No, we will get our help from Egypt. They will give us swift horses for riding into battle.’ But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you! One of them will chase a thousand of you. Five of them will make all of you flee. You will be left like a lonely flagpole on a hill or a tattered banner on a distant mountaintop.” 18So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help. 19O people of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. He will be gracious if you ask for help. He will surely respond to the sound of your cries.
Read all of Isaiah 30Isaiah 30:17 word by word
אֶ֣לֶף אֶחָ֗ד מִפְּנֵי֙ גַּעֲרַ֣ת אֶחָ֔ד מִפְּנֵ֛י גַּעֲרַ֥ת חֲמִשָּׁ֖ה תָּנֻ֑סוּ עַ֣ד אִם־נוֹתַרְתֶּ֗ם כַּתֹּ֙רֶן֙ עַל־רֹ֣אשׁ הָהָ֔ר וְכַנֵּ֖ס עַל־הַגִּבְעָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Oneאֶחָד'echâd · oneH259
- thousandאֶ֫לֶף'eleph · thousandH505
- atפָּנֶהpânîym · face: becauseH6440
- the rebukeגְּעָרָהge‛ârâh · rebukeH1606
- of fiveחָמֵשׁchâmêsh chămishshâh · fiveH2568
- shall ye fleeנוּסnûs · to fleeH5127
- till ye be leftיָתַרyâthar · to remainH3498
- as a beaconתֹּ֫רֶןtôren · mastH8650
- upon the topרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: topH7218
- of a mountainהַרhar · mountain: mountH2022
- and as an ensignנֵסnês · ensignH5251
- on an hillגִּבְעָהgib‛âh · hillH1389
Cross-references for Isaiah 30:17
- Leviticus 26:8Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand! All your enemies will fall beneath your sword.
- Deuteronomy 28:25“The Lord will cause you to be defeated by your enemies. You will attack your enemies from one direction, but you will scatter from them in seven! You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
- Deuteronomy 32:30How could one person chase a thousand of them, and two people put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the Lord had given them up?
- Joshua 23:10Each one of you will put to flight a thousand of the enemy, for the Lord your God fights for you, just as he has promised.
- Proverbs 28:1The wicked run away when no one is chasing them, but the godly are as bold as lions.
- Jeremiah 37:10Even if you were to destroy the entire Babylonian army, leaving only a handful of wounded survivors, they would still stagger from their tents and burn this city to the ground!”
- Isaiah 1:7Your country lies in ruins, and your towns are burned. Foreigners plunder your fields before your eyes and destroy everything they see.
- Isaiah 37:3They told him, “This is what King Hezekiah says: Today is a day of trouble, insults, and disgrace. It is like when a child is ready to be born, but the mother has no strength to deliver the baby.
- Nehemiah 1:2Hanani, one of my brothers, came to visit me with some other men who had just arrived from Judah. I asked them about the Jews who had returned there from captivity and about how things were going in Jerusalem.
- Zephaniah 3:12Those who are left will be the lowly and humble, for it is they who trust in the name of the Lord.
- Zechariah 13:8Two-thirds of the people in the land will be cut off and die,” says the Lord. “But one-third will be left in the land.
- Matthew 24:21For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again.
- Isaiah 6:13If even a tenth—a remnant—survive, it will be invaded again and burned. But as a terebinth or oak tree leaves a stump when it is cut down, so Israel’s stump will be a holy seed.”
- Isaiah 27:11The people are like the dead branches of a tree, broken off and used for kindling beneath the cooking pots. Israel is a foolish and stupid nation, for its people have turned away from God. Therefore, the one who made them will show them no pity or mercy.
- John 15:2He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more.
- Romans 11:17But some of these branches from Abraham’s tree—some of the people of Israel—have been broken off. And you Gentiles, who were branches from a wild olive tree, have been grafted in. So now you also receive the blessing God has promised Abraham and his children, sharing in the rich nourishment from the root of God’s special olive tree.
Commentaries on Isaiah 30:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17At the rebuke of five shall ye flee "At the rebuke of five, ten thousand of you shall flee" - In the second line of this verse a word is manifestly omitted, which should answer to one thousand in the first: the Septuagint supply , רבים rabbim . But the true word is רבבה rebabah, as I am persuaded any one will be convinced, who will compare the following passages with this place: - "How should one chase a thousand; And two put ten thousand (רבבה ) to…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17One thousand - The sense of this is, that you shall be easily alarmed and overcome by those who are inferior in numbers and strength. The number one thousand,‘ is put for a large indefinite number; probably meaning all. At the rebuke of one - The number one here is put to denote a very small number; a number in the ordinary course of warfare entirely disproportionate to those who would be vanquished. There is probably a reference here to the prediction…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-18Verses 8-18 The Jews were the only professing people God then had in the world, yet many among them were rebellious. They had the light, but they loved darkness rather. The prophets checked them in their sinful pursuits, so that they could not proceed without fear; this they took amiss. But faithful ministers will not be driven from seeking to awaken sinners. God is the Holy One of Israel, and so they shall find him. They did not like to hear of his holy…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17one … five: This curse is the opposite of God's blessing for obedience (Leviticus 26:8; Deuteronomy 32:30). The Assyrians had taken control of most of the land of Judah. Only Jerusalem remained. The city stood alone, like a single pole on top of a hill. It was isolated and surrounded by enemy territory.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. One thousand--A thousand at once, or, "As one man" [Maurer]. rebuke--the battle cry. shall ye--at the rebuke of five shall ye, namely, all (in contrast to the "one thousand") flee so utterly that even two shall not be left together, but each one shall be as solitary "as a signal staff" [G. V. Smith], or "a banner on a hill" (Is 5:26; 11:12). The signal staff was erected to rally a nation in war. The remnant of Jews left would be beacons to warn all…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 30:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 30
- 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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