Isaiah 10:17
in Isaiah 10And the Light of Israel will become a fire, and its Holy One a flame. In a single day it will burn and devour Assyria’s thorns and thistles.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the light of Israel will be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame; and it will burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day.
KJV
And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day;
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This verse in Isaiah 10
Commentary
10 notes on this verseAnd Isaiah shows that the Holy Spirit is not only light but also fire, saying, "And the light of Israel shall be for a fire." So the prophets called him a burning fire, because in those three points we see more intensely the majesty of the Godhead; since to sanctify is of the Godhead, to illuminate is the property of fire and light, and the Godhead is customarily pointed out or seen in the appearance of fire: "For our God is a consuming fire," as Moses said.
This site's exposition
And the Light of Israel
on Isaiah 10:17-19
The Light of Israel becomes "a fire, and its Holy One a flame," the title turned against the invader. Assyria's host, pictured as forest, is consumed until a child could count the trees. The imagery prepares the next chapter, a stump left behind, out of which the Branch will grow.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 16 and following) Therefore, the Lord of hosts will send wasting sickness among his fat ones, and under his glory a burning will be kindled like the burning of fire. And the light of Israel will become a fire, and his Holy One a flame, and it will burn and devour his thorns and briers in one day. The glory of his forest and of his fruitful land the Lord will destroy, both soul and body, and it will be as when a sick man wastes away.
The Medieval Church1 voice
Second, the one bringing the punishment, the Holy One of Israel, God, or the angel Michael, to whom that people was committed: behold Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me (Dan 10:13); as a fire, for he will punish them through fire: …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
He is light, for he is the Holy One; his holiness is his glory. He is Israel's light, to direct and counsel his people, to favour and countenance them, and so to gladden and comfort them in the worst of times. He is their Holy One, for he is in covenant with them; his holiness is engaged and employed for them.
The same God that is a rejoicing light to those that serve him faithfully will be a consuming fire to those that trifle with him or rebel against him. The light of Israel shall be for a fire to the Assyrians, as the same pillar of cloud was a light to the Israelites and a terror to the Egyptians in the Red Sea.
The light - That God who is and will be a comfortable light to his people. A fire - To the Assyrians. Thorns - His vast army, which is no more able to resist God, than dry thorns and briars are to oppose the fire.
3 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And the light of Israel shall be for a fire,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
And the light of Israel - That is, Yahweh. The word “light” here, אור 'ôr, is used also to denote a “fire,” or that which causes light and heat; see Eze 5:2; Isa 44:16; Isa 47:14. Here it is used in the same sense, denoting that Yahweh would be “the fire” אור 'ôr that would cause the “flame” (אשׁ 'êsh) which would consume the Assyrian. Jehovah is often compared to a burning flame, or fire; Deu 4:24; Deu 9:3; Heb 12:29. Shall be for a fire - By his power and his judgment he shall destroy them.
And it shall burn and devour his thorns “And he shall burn and consume his thorn” - The briers and thorns are the common people; the glory of his forest are the nobles and those of highest rank and importance. See note on Isa 9:17, and compare Eze 20:47. The fire of God’s wrath shall destroy them, both great and small; it shall consume them from the soul to the flesh; a proverbial expression; soul and body, as we say; it shall consume them entirely and altogether; and the few that escape shall be looked upon as having escaped from the most imminent danger; “as a firebrand plucked out of the fire,” Amo 4:11; ὡς δια πυρος, so as by fire, 1Co 3:15; as a man when a house is burning is forced to make his escape by running through the midst of the fire. I follow here the reading of the Septuagint, כמאש נסס kemash noses, ὡς ὁ φευγων απω φλογος χαιομενης, as he who flees from the burning flame. Symmachus also renders the latter word by φευγων, flying.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהָיָ֤ה | vehayah | and it will become | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| אֽוֹר־ | ʾor- | [the] light of | H216 → | 121 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| לְאֵ֔שׁ | leesh | <into> a fire | H784 → | 378 times |
| וּקְדוֹשׁ֖וֹ | ukedosho | and holy [one] its | H6918 → | 116 times |
| לְלֶהָבָ֑ה | lelehavah | <into> a flame | H3852 → | 19 times |
| וּבָעֲרָ֗ה | uvaarah | and it will burn | H1197 → | 94 times |
| וְאָֽכְלָ֛ה | veakhelah | and it will consume | H398 → | 810 times |
| שִׁית֥וֹ | shito | bush[es] his | H7898 → | 7 times |
| וּשְׁמִיר֖וֹ | ushemiro | and thorn[s] his | H8068 → | 11 times |
| בְּי֥וֹם | beyom | in a day | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| אֶחָֽד׃ | ʾechad | one | H259 → | 971 times |
וְהָיָ֤הand it will become
vehayahH1961 →3559 times
אֽוֹר־[the] light of
ʾor-H216 →121 times
יִשְׂרָאֵל֙Israel
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
לְאֵ֔שׁ<into> a fire
leeshH784 →378 times
וּקְדוֹשׁ֖וֹand holy [one] its
ukedoshoH6918 →116 times
לְלֶהָבָ֑ה<into> a flame
lelehavahH3852 →19 times
וּבָעֲרָ֗הand it will burn
uvaarahH1197 →94 times
וְאָֽכְלָ֛הand it will consume
veakhelahH398 →810 times
שִׁית֥וֹbush[es] his
shitoH7898 →7 times
וּשְׁמִיר֖וֹand thorn[s] his
ushemiroH8068 →11 times
בְּי֥וֹםin a day
beyomH3117 →2304 times
אֶחָֽד׃one
ʾechadH259 →971 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Revelation 22:5There will be no more night in the city, and they will have no need for the light of a lamp or of the sun. For the Lord God will shine on them, and…
it leads to
- Isaiah 60:19–20
No longer will the sun be your light by day, nor the brightness of the moon shine on your night; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your…
- Daniel 7:18
But the saints of the Most High will receive the kingdom and possess it forever—yes, forever and ever.’
- Revelation 20:4
Then I saw the thrones, and those seated on them had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony of Jesus and for…
- 1 Peter 1:3–4
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
- Daniel 7:27
Then the sovereignty, dominion, and greatness of the kingdoms under all of heaven will be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all…
- Isaiah 60:19–20
Through
Jeremiah 7:20Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, My anger and My fury will be poured out on this place, on man and beast, on the trees of the field and the produce…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 42:18
For this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Just as My anger and wrath were poured out on the residents of Jerusalem, so will My wrath be poured out…
- Isaiah 42:25
So He poured out on them His furious anger and the fierceness of battle. It enveloped them in flames, but they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to…
- Lamentations 2:3–5
In fierce anger He has cut off every horn of Israel and withdrawn His right hand at the approach of the enemy. He has burned in Jacob like a flaming fire that consumes everything…
- Jeremiah 42:18
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Isaiah
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Isaiah; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ambrose of Milan, On the Holy Spirit 1.14; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.