Isaiah 37:30

And this will be a sign to you, O Hezekiah: This year you will eat what grows on its own, and in the second year what springs from the same. But in the third year you will sow and reap; you will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — God speaks through Isaiah to King Hezekiah, delivering a prophetic sign concerning the immediate aftermath of the Assyrian siege and the subsequent recovery of Judah. The declaration follows a warning against Assyrian arrogance and precedes a promise regarding the surviving remnant.

The words — The text highlights סָפִ֔יחַ (sa.Fi.ach, self-sown grain) and שָׁחִ֑יס (sha.Chis, self-seeded plants) to describe the crops Hezekiah will consume during the first two years. These terms mark the transition from wild harvest to the third year's commanded sowing and reaping.

The thread — This agricultural sign appears in 2 Kings 19:29 as a parallel account and echoes Exodus 3:12, where God uses a sign to confirm His mission. It also resonates with Leviticus 25:4, which establishes the Sabbath year as a period of rest for the land.

Why it lands — The verse commands Hezekiah to observe a three-year progression from wild harvest to deliberate cultivation as proof of divine protection. It requires the reader to recognize that restoration follows a measured timeline rather than immediate intervention.

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

וְזֶה־ve./zeh-and/ thisלְּךָ֣le./Khafor/ youהָא֔וֹתha./'ot[will be] the/ sign אָכ֤וֹל'a.Kholyou will eat הַשָּׁנָה֙ha./sha.Nahthis/ year סָפִ֔יחַsa.Fi.achself-sown grain וּבַשָּׁנָ֥הu./va./sha.Nahand/ in the/ year הַשֵּׁנִ֖יתha./she.Nit<the>/ second שָׁחִ֑יסsha.Chisself-seeded plant[s]וּבַשָּׁנָ֣הu./va./sha.Nahand/ in the/ year הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֗יתha./she.li.Shit<the>/ third זִרְע֧וּzir.'Usow וְקִצְר֛וּve./kitz.Ruand/ reap וְנִטְע֥וּve./nit.'Uand/ plant כְרָמִ֖יםkhe.ra.Mimvineyards וְאִכְל֥וּve./'a.kholand/ eat פִרְיָֽם׃fir.Ya/mfruit/ their

King James Version

And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such as groweth of itself; and the second year that which springeth of the same: and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof.

Cross-references

2 Kings 19:29 And this will be a sign to you, O Hezekiah: This year you will eat what grows on its own, and in the second year what springs from the same. But in the third year you will sow and reap; you will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
Exodus 3:12 “I will surely be with you,” God said, “and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, all of you will worship God on this mountain.”
Leviticus 25:4 But in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of complete rest for the land—a Sabbath to the LORD. You are not to sow your field or prune your vineyard.
1 Kings 13:3 That day the man of God gave a sign, saying, “The LORD has spoken this sign: ‘Surely the altar will be split apart, and the ashes upon it will be poured out.’”
2 Kings 20:9 And Isaiah had replied, “This will be a sign to you from the LORD that He will do what He has promised: Would you like the shadow to go forward ten steps, or back ten steps?”
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will be with child and give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel.
Leviticus 25:20 Now you may wonder, ‘What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not sow or gather our produce?’
Isaiah 7:21 On that day a man will raise a young cow and two sheep,
Isaiah 38:7 This will be a sign to you from the LORD that He will do what He has promised: