Isaiah 37:29

Because your rage and arrogance against Me have reached My ears, I will put My hook in your nose and My bit in your mouth; I will send you back the way you came.’

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — God addresses the Assyrian ruler during the siege of Jerusalem, responding directly to the king’s documented hostility and movements recorded in Isaiah 37:28.

The words — The Hebrew יַ֚עַן (Ya.'an) means "because," establishing the cause for divine action. חַחִ֜/י (cha.Ch/i) translates literally as "my hook," paired with "bit" to depict forced redirection.

The thread — This mechanism of restraint appears in Isaiah 10:12 where God punishes the Assyrian king after finishing His work on Zion, and in Isaiah 30:28 where His breath acts as a sifting torrent against the nations. The reversal is confirmed in Isaiah 37:34, which states the ruler will return the way he came.

Why it lands — The text records that God actively intercepts human arrogance before it reaches its intended target. It requires the reader to acknowledge that hostile powers are subject to divine redirection rather than independent agency.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

יַ֚עַןYa.'anbecause הִתְרַגֶּזְךָ֣hit.ra.gez./Kharaging/ you אֵלַ֔י'e.La/iagainst/ me וְשַׁאֲנַנְךָ֖ve./sha.'a.nan./Khaand/ arrogance/ your עָלָ֣ה'a.Lahit has come up בְאָזְנָ֑יve./'a.ze.Na/iin/ ears/ my וְשַׂמְתִּ֨יve./sam.Tiand/ I will put חַחִ֜יcha.Ch/ihook/ my בְּאַפֶּ֗ךָbe./'a.Pe./khain/ nose/ your וּמִתְגִּי֙u./mit.G/iand/ bridle/ my בִּשְׂפָתֶ֔יךָbi/s.fa.Tei./khaon/ lips/ your וַהֲשִׁ֣יבֹתִ֔יךָva./ha.Shi.vo.Ti./khaand/ I will turn back/ you בַּדֶּ֖רֶךְba./De.rekhby the/ way אֲשֶׁר־'a.Sher-which בָּ֥אתָBa.tayou cameבָּֽהּ׃Ba/hby/ it

King James Version

Because thy rage against me, and thy tumult, is come up into mine ears, therefore will I put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.

Cross-references

Isaiah 10:12 So when the Lord has completed all His work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, He will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria for the fruit of his arrogant heart and the proud look in his eyes.
Isaiah 30:28 His breath is like a rushing torrent that rises to the neck. He comes to sift the nations in a sieve of destruction; He bridles the jaws of the peoples to lead them astray.
Isaiah 37:34 He will go back the way he came, and he will not enter this city,’ declares the LORD.
Ezekiel 38:4 I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws, and bring you out with all your army—your horses, your horsemen in full armor, and a great company armed with shields and bucklers, all brandishing their swords.
Ezekiel 29:4 But I will put hooks in your jaws and cause the fish of your streams to cling to your scales. I will haul you up out of your rivers, and all the fish of your streams will cling to your scales.
2 Kings 19:27 But I know your sitting down, your going out and coming in, and your raging against Me.
Job 15:25 For he has stretched out his hand against God and has vaunted himself against the Almighty,
Job 41:2 Can you put a cord through his nose or pierce his jaw with a hook?
Psalms 2:1 Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?
Psalms 32:9 Do not be like the horse or mule, which have no understanding; they must be controlled with bit and bridle to make them come to you.