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Isaiah 14:29

in Isaiah 14

Do not rejoice, all you Philistines, that the rod that struck you is broken. For a viper will spring from the root of the snake, and a flying serpent from its egg.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

Rejoice not, O Philistia, all of thee, because the rod that smote thee is broken; for out of the serpent’s root shall come forth an adder, and his fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent.

KJV

Rejoice not thou, whole Palestina, because the rod of him that smote thee is broken: for out of the serpent’s root shall come forth a cockatrice, and his fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent.

This verse in Isaiah 14

Commentary

11 notes on this verse

A commentator

Jerome

Commentary on Isaiah · Written before 420.

Therefore, it is commanded to the Philistines, whom they now call Palestinians, and always by the LXX called ἀλλόφυλοι, that is, foreigners; and it is said to them not to rejoice or be glad, because they have broken the rod or yoke of their oppressor (Heb. XII, 6). For whom the Lord loves, he chastises, and he punishes every son he receives. And as God instructs our children, when He visits our iniquities with a rod, and our sins with chastisements, so that He does not take away His mercy from us (Ps. 88).

This site's exposition

the year that King Ahaz died

on Isaiah 14:28-32

The Philistia burden is dated plainly, "In the year that King Ahaz died," a shorter burden. Philistia is told not to rejoice, because "a viper will spring from the root of the snake," a worse danger. Zion's poor find safety while smoke comes from the north against Philistia.

This site's exposition

Do not rejoice, all you Philistines

The broken rod is read two ways. Henry takes it as Uzziah, and Barnes as Ahaz, whose death dates the oracle. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown name Hezekiah as the viper, and 2 Kings 18:8 records that he struck the Philistines as far as Gaza.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers1 voice

A commentator

Jerome

Commentary on Isaiah · Written before 420.

proposed

(Verse 29.) Do not rejoice, O Philistia, all of you, because the rod of your striker is broken; for from the root of the serpent a little king will come forth, and his offspring will consume the flying creature. It is natural that we say: when the king of the enemy nations dies, the enemies always rejoice, waiting for civil wars, seditions, and the incompetence of ruling from new things. Therefore, with the sinner Ahaz dead, who had walked in the ways of the kings of Israel and had been joined to them by kinship, we understand that the Philistines were pleased to be nearby and insulted the Israelites because with the mature king lost, they would be subject to the young Hezekiah. But, as we said above, Philisthaeos signifies the Palestinians, whom the Vulgate edition of the Bible refers to as foreigners: even though this is not the name of one particular nation, but of all foreign nations. Do not, he says, rejoice, O Philisthaea, do not insult my people because the rod of your smiter Achaz is broken; because the staff that used to strike you appears to be shattered; because the snake is killed. For this reason, a more harmful ruler will be born, whom the Greeks call the basilisk, who will put you to death with his gaze and the breath of his mouth. For no bird of prey can pass through unharmed: however far away it may be, it is sucked up by its mouth. So too, you will perish from the sight of King Hezekiah. And he preserved the metaphor well: for he had mentioned both a snake and a bird of prey, and he says that birds are devoured by its mouth and breath. As for no king of Judah having struck the Philistines like Hezekiah devastated them, listen to the Book of Kings: He struck the Philistines as far as Gaza, and as far as its borders: from the tower of the keepers to the fortified cities (2 Kings 18:8). […]

The Medieval Church2 voices

A commentator

Gregory the Dialogist

MORALS ON THE BOOK OF JOB 6:33.62 · Written before 604.

proposed

But because this Leviathan is called in another place not merely a serpent, but also a basilisk, because he rules over unclean spirits, or reprobate men, as Isaiah says, Out of the serpent's root shall come forth a basilisk, we must attentively observe how a basilisk destroys, that by the doings of the basilisk, his malice may be more plainly made known to us. For a basilisk does not destroy with its bite, but consumes with its breath. It often also infects the air with its breath, and withers with the mere blast of its nostrils whatever it has touched, even when placed at a distance.

A commentator

Thomas Aquinas

Commentary on Isaiah · Written before 1274.

proposed

Concerning the first, he does three things. For first, he excludes foolish joy: rejoice not you, over this, namely, that the rod, that is, the power, of him that struck you, that is, Achaz, is broken in pieces, by death: laughter I counted error (Eccl …

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

But when Uzziah died, or rather abdicated, it was told with joy in Gath and published in the streets of Ashkelon. It is inhuman thus to rejoice in our neighbour's fall. But let them not be secure; for though when Uzziah was dead they made reprisals upon Ahaz, and took many of the cities of Judah ( 2 Chron. xxviii.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

Rejoice not thou, whole Palestina,....
3 more voices on this verse

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

The injuries done to them must be reckoned for and revenged upon their persecutors. Mercy to Jacob will be wrath and ruin to Jacob's impenitent implacable adversaries, such as Babylon was.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Rejoice not thou - Rejoice not at the death of Ahaz, king of Judah. It shall be no advantage to thee. It shall not be the means of making an invasion on Judah more practicable. Whole Palestina - We apply the name “Palestine” to the whole land of Canaan. Formerly, the name referred only to Philistia, from which we have derived the name Palestine.

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

Uzziah was doubtless regarded by the Philistines as a biting "serpent." But though the effects of his bite have been got rid of, a more deadly viper, or "cockatrice" (literally, "viper's offspring," as Philistia would regard him), namely, Hezekiah awaits you (2Ki 18:8).

The words behind it

16 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • אַֽל־may not

    ʾal-H408 →724 times

  • תִּשְׂמְחִ֤יyou rejoice

    tismechiH8055 →155 times

  • פְלֶ֙שֶׁת֙O Philistia

    feleshetH6429 →

  • כֻּלֵּ֔ךְall of you

    kulekhH3605 →5413 times

  • כִּ֥יthat

    kiH3588 →4482 times

  • נִשְׁבַּ֖רit has been broken

    nishbarH7665 →147 times

  • שֵׁ֣בֶט[the] rod of

    shevetH7626 →190 times

  • מַכֵּ֑ךְ[the] [one who] struck you

    makekhH5221 →499 times

  • כִּֽי־for

    ki-H3588 →4482 times

  • מִשֹּׁ֤רֶשׁfrom [the] root of

    mishoreshH8328 →33 times

  • נָחָשׁ֙a snake

    nachashH5175 →31 times

  • יֵ֣צֵאit will go forth

    yetze'H3318 →1067 times

  • צֶ֔פַעa viper

    tzefa'H6848 →5 times

  • וּפִרְי֖וֹand fruit its

    ufiryoH6529 →119 times

  • שָׂרָ֥ף[will be] a serpent

    sarafH8314 →7 times

  • מְעוֹפֵֽף׃flying

    meofefH5774 →26 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    Micah 7:8

    Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will arise; though I sit in darkness, the LORD will be my light.

    it leads to

    • John 8:12

      Once again, Jesus spoke to the people and said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.”

    • Psalms 27:1

      The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— whom shall I dread?

    • Isaiah 9:2

      The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned.

    • Psalms 112:4

      Light dawns in the darkness for the upright— for the gracious, compassionate, and righteous.

    • Psalms 107:10–15

      Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in affliction and chains,

  • Through

    Isaiah 30:6

    This is the burden against the beasts of the Negev: Through a land of hardship and distress, of lioness and lion, of viper and flying serpent, they carry their wealth on the backs of…

    it leads to

    • Deuteronomy 8:15

      He led you through the vast and terrifying wilderness with its venomous snakes and scorpions, a thirsty and waterless land. He brought you water from the rock of flint.

  • Through

    Obadiah 1:12

    But you should not gloat in that day, your brother’s day of misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast proudly in the day of their…

    it leads to

    • Proverbs 17:5

      He who mocks the poor insults their Maker; whoever gloats over calamity will not go unpunished.

    • Ezekiel 35:15

      As you rejoiced when the inheritance of the house of Israel became desolate, so will I do to you. You will become a desolation, O Mount Seir, and so will all of Edom. Then…

Where this verse is studied

About Isaiah

The Prophet Isaiah, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
The Prophet Isaiah, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Gregory the Dialogist, MORALS ON THE BOOK OF JOB 6:33.62; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; 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.