Revised Literal Translation
Isaiah 5:26
26And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:
Isaiah 5:26 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:
- New International Version (NIV)He lifts up a banner for the distant nations, he whistles for those at the ends of the earth. Here they come, swiftly and speedily!
- English Standard Version (ESV)He will raise a signal for nations far away, and whistle for them from the ends of the earth; and behold, quickly, speedily they come!
- New King James Version (NKJV)He will lift up a banner to the nations from afar, And will whistle to them from the end of the earth; Surely they shall come with speed, swiftly.
Context of Isaiah 5:26
24Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of Yhwh of Armies, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. 25Therefore is the anger of Yhwh kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still. And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly: 27None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken: 28Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent, their horses’ hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind:
Read all of Isaiah 5Isaiah 5:26 word by word
וְנָֽשָׂא־נֵ֤ס לַגּוֹיִם֙ מֵרָח֔וֹק וְשָׁ֥רַק ל֖וֹ מִקְצֵ֣ה הָאָ֑רֶץ וְהִנֵּ֥ה מְהֵרָ֖ה קַ֥ל יָבֽוֹא׃Read the interlinear
- And he will lift upנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: raiseH5375
- an ensignנֵסnês · ensignH5251
- to the nationsגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
- from farרָחֹקrâchôq râchôq · distantH7350
- and will hissשָׁרַקshâraq · to whistleH8319
- unto them from the endקָצֶהqâtseh qêtseh · endH7097
- of the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- and, behold, they shall comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- with speedמְהֵרָהmehêrâh · hasteH4120
- swiftlyקַלqal · swiftH7031
Cross-references for Isaiah 5:26
- Isaiah 11:12And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
- Isaiah 18:3All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye.
- Jeremiah 51:27Set ye up a standard in the land, blow the trumpet among the nations, prepare the nations against her, call together against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashchenaz; appoint a captain against her; cause the horses to come up as the rough caterpillers.
- Isaiah 7:18And it shall come to pass in that day, that Yhwh 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.
- Zechariah 10:8I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.
- Isaiah 39:3Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon.
- Deuteronomy 28:49Yhwh shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;
- Psalms 72:8He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.
- Jeremiah 5:15Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel, saith Yhwh: it is a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say.
- Malachi 1:11For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith Yhwh of Armies.
- Isaiah 30:16But ye said, No; for we will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee: and, We will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift.
- Jeremiah 4:13Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are spoiled.
- Lamentations 4:19Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.
- Joel 2:7They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks:
- Habakkuk 1:8Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat.
Commentaries on Isaiah 5:26
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 26He will - hiss "He will hist" - "The metaphor is taken from the practice of those that keep bees, who draw them out of their hives into the fields, and lead them back again, , by a hiss or a whistle." - Cyril, on this place; and to the same purpose Theodoret, ib. In Isaiah 7:18, the metaphor is more apparent, by being carried farther, where the hostile armies are expressed by the fly and the bee: - "Jehovah shall hist the fly That is in the utmost parts…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 26And he will lift up an ensign - The idea here is, that the nations of the earth are under his control, and that he can call whom he pleases to execute his purposes. This power over the nations he often claims; compare Isaiah 44:28; Isaiah 45:1-7; Isaiah 10:5-7; Isaiah 9:11; Isaiah 8:18. An “ensign” is the “standard,” or “flag” used in an army. The elevation of the standard was a signal for assembling for war. God represents himself here as simply…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 24-30Verses 24-30 Let not any expect to live easily who live wickedly. Sin weakens the strength, the root of a people; it defaces the beauty, the blossoms of a people. When God's word is despised, and his law cast away, what can men expect but that God should utterly abandon them? When God comes forth in wrath, the hills tremble, fear seizes even great men. When God designs the ruin of a provoking people, he can find instruments to be employed in it, as he…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 26The signal was a banner raised on a long pole. It was often placed on a high hill so people could see it from far away (see also Isaiah 13:2; 18:3; 30:17). In Isaiah, the phrase a banner for the distant nations appears many times. Sometimes it calls nations to join in battle, as in this passage. In other places, it calls them to share in salvation (Isaiah 11:10, 12; 49:22; 62:10). The distant nations here refer to the Assyrians and Babylonians. God used…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2626. lift ... ensign--to call together the hostile nations to execute His judgments on Judea (Is 10:5-7; 45:1). But for mercy to it, in Is 11:12; 18:3. hiss--(Is 7:18). Bees were drawn out of their hives by the sound of a flute, or hissing, or whistling (Zec 10:8). God will collect the nations round Judea like bees (De 1:44; Psa 118:12). end of the earth--the widely distant subject races of which the Assyrian army was made up (Is 22:6). The ulterior…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 5:26
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 5
- 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
Revised Literal Translation — © 2018 Michael W. Jones, Sr. — GPL
Commentaries