Isaiah 7:19

And they will all come and settle in the steep ravines and clefts of the rocks, in all the thornbushes and watering holes.

Berean Standard Bible

Follow its threads on the canvas →

Study note

Setting — Isaiah pronounces this oracle to King Ahaz of Judah during the Syro-Ephraimite crisis, describing the immediate aftermath of the LORD's summons of foreign armies. The text states the invaders will gather in steep ravines, rock clefts, thornbushes, and watering holes, which interpreters understand as the scattering of military forces into Judah's ruined terrain.

The words — וּבָאוּ (u.vā’û) translates literally as "they will come," and נָחֻ (nāḥû) means "they will settle," marking the forced relocation of the armies. These verbs describe the physical arrival and occupation of the landscape rather than a voluntary migration.

The thread — The imagery of fleeing to rocky clefts echoes Isaiah 2:19, while the Assyrian military threat connects to the razor imagery in Isaiah 7:20 and the captured king in 2 Chronicles 33:11. These passages collectively track the pattern of divine judgment using foreign powers to discipline Judah.

Why it lands — The text demands recognition that human political alliances cannot outrun the LORD's summons, requiring readers to abandon reliance on foreign powers. Interpreters infer this forces a choice between fearing the LORD alone or facing the consequences of trusting in military might.

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

וּבָ֨אוּu./Va.'uand/ they will come וְנָח֤וּve./na.Chuand/ they will settle כֻלָּם֙khu.La/mall of/ them בְּנַחֲלֵ֣יbe./na.cha.Leiin/ [the] wadis of הַבַּתּ֔וֹתha./ba.Totthe/ cliffs וּבִנְקִיקֵ֖יu./vi/n.ki.Keiand/ in/ [the] clefts of הַסְּלָעִ֑יםha./se.la.'Imthe/ rocks וּבְכֹל֙u./ve./Kholand/ on/ all הַנַּ֣עֲצוּצִ֔יםha./Na.'a.tzu.Tzimthe/ thornbushes וּבְכֹ֖לu./ve./Kholand/ in/ all הַנַּהֲלֹלִֽים׃ha./na.ha.lo.Limthe/ watering-places

King James Version

And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all bushes.

Cross-references

Isaiah 2:19 Men will flee to caves in the rocks and holes in the ground, away from the terror of the LORD and from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth.
Jeremiah 16:16 But for now I will send for many fishermen, declares the LORD, and they will catch them. After that I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them down on every mountain and hill, even from the clefts of the rocks.
2 Chronicles 33:11 So the LORD brought against them the military commanders of the king of Assyria, who captured Manasseh, put a hook in his nose, bound him with bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon.
Isaiah 2:21 They will flee to caverns in the rocks and crevices in the cliffs, away from the terror of the LORD and from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth.
Micah 7:17 They will lick the dust like a snake, like reptiles slithering on the ground. They will come trembling from their strongholds in the presence of the LORD our God; they will tremble in fear of You.