Isaiah 15:5
in Isaiah 15My heart cries out over Moab; her fugitives flee as far as Zoar, as far as Eglath-shelishiyah. With weeping they ascend the slope of Luhith; they lament their destruction on the road to Horonaim.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
My heart crieth out for Moab; her nobles flee unto Zoar, to Eglath-shelishi-yah: for by the ascent of Luhith with weeping they go up; for in the way of Horonaim they raise up a cry of destruction.
KJV
My heart shall cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old: for by the mounting up of Luhith with weeping shall they go it up; for in the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry of destruction.
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This verse in Isaiah 15
Commentary
10 notes on this verse(Verse 5) My heart will cry out to Moab. The prophet speaks with a lamenting affection, either because even the enemies are creatures of God, on whom so many evils come upon, or because they are to be overwhelmed with such calamities that even their enemies will become pitiable. Jeremiah also says the same: Therefore my heart will resound like a flute to Moab. They extend their borders from Segor to a calf in labor. And Jeremiah: From Segor, he says, to Oronaim, a calf in labor.
This site's exposition
Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh
on Isaiah 15:4-6
Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh traces the wailing across a real map, cities named in sequence as the sound of Moab's ruin travels from town to town until it reaches Jahaz. Verse 5 turns the voice of the oracle itself: my heart shall cry out for Moab, the prophet or the Lord grieving the very judgment being pronounced, fugitives fleeing south to Zoar along the ascent of Luhith with weeping. The bench draws the same strange compassion forward to Jeremiah 48, which borrows this chapter's language nearly word for word and adds mine heart shall sound for Moab like pipes, a rare case in the prophets of judgment and grief spoken in the same breath.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 5) Where the Prophet speaks with compassionate affection to those whose souls cried out to him, and says: My heart will cry out to Moab, that I may provoke them to repentance. But their beams and all the foundations, which seemed to have support in their heresies, will reach as far as Segor, that is, to the little one: and it will be shown that they are not strong, but fragile. And this Segor, that is, the small repentance, if it perseveres, will lead them to perfect salvation: which is signified by the three-year-old heifer, as we read in Genesis, where Abraham is commanded to offer a calf, a ram, and a three-year-old goat, a perfect sacrifice, that he may deservedly be the heir of the Lord (Genesis 15). And when they have repented, through tears of sorrow, that is, the tears of their cheeks, they will ascend to higher things. And through this as if through a hole and entrance of sorrow, they will raise the cry of contrition to the Lord, so that they may say: Sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit: a contrite and humble heart God will not despise (Ps. 50:19).
The Medieval Church1 voice
440. My heart. Here he shows the magnitude of their punishment from the compassion of their enemies, for the prophet himself suffers with them; to Moab, that is, for the affliction of Moab: I will watch over you (Jer 48:31). The bars. Here he describes …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Moab - Tho' they are a most vile nation. Zoar - Zoar was a town bordering upon Moab. Of destruction - Such a cry as men send forth when they are just falling into the pit of destruction.
My heart shall cry out for Moab,....
Thither the cry shall be carried, there it shall be raised, even at that great distance: A cry of destruction; that shall be the cry, like, "Fire, fire! we are all undone." Grief is catching, so is fear, and justly, for trouble is spreading and when it begins who knows where it will end?
3 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
My heart shall cry out for Moab - This is expressive of deep compassion; and is proof that, in the view of the prophet, the calamities which were coming upon it were exceedingly heavy. The same sentiment is expressed more fully in Isa 16:11; see also Jer 48:36: ‘My heart shall sound for Moab like pipes.’ The phrase denotes great inward pain and anguish in view of the calamities of others; and is an expression of the fact that we feel ourselves oppressed and borne down by sympathy on account of their sufferings (see the note at Isa 21:3).
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Ministers, in denouncing the wrath of God against sinners, should do it with tender sorrow, not with exultation. fugitives--fleeing from Moab, wander as far as to Zoar, on the extreme boundary south of the Dead Sea. HORSLEY translates, "her nobility," or "rulers" (Ho 4:18). heifer, &c.--that is, raising their voices "like a heifer" (compare Jer 48:34, 36).
My heart shall cry out for Moab “The heart of Moab crieth within her” - For לבי libbi, my heart, the Septuagint reads לבו libbo, his heart, or לב leb; the Chaldee, לבו libbo. For בריחיה bericheyha, the Syriac reads ברוחה berocheh; and so likewise the Septuagint, rendering it εν αυτῃ, Edit. Vat: or εν ἑαυτῃ, Edit. Alex. and MSS. I., D. II. A heifer of three years old “A young heifer” - Hebrew, a heifer three years old, in full strength; as Horace uses equa trima, for a young mare just coming to her prime. Bochart observes, from Aristotle, Hist. Animal. lib. 4 that in this kind of animals alone the voice of the female is deeper than that of the male; therefore the lowing of the heifer, rather than of the bullock, is chosen by the prophet, as the more proper image to express the mourning of Moab. But I must add that the expression here is very short and obscure; and the opinions of interpreters are various in regard to the meaning. Compare Jer 48:34. Shall they go it up “They shall ascend” - For יעלה yaaleh, the Septuagint and a MS. read in the plural, יעלו yaalu. And from this passage the parallel place in Jer 48:5 must be corrected; where, for יעלה בכי yaaleh bechi, which gives no good sense, read יעלה בו yaaleh bo.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
My heart shall cry out for Moab The Jewish prophets are not like the gentile prophets. Balaam sought to uproot Israel for no reason, whereas the prophets of Israel bewail the calamity that befalls the nations.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
because the armed men of Moab shall cry in alarm Since the armed men of Moab shall cry out towards the battle, and the soul of Moab shall cry out for itself, like one mourning for himself.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 3 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
20 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לִבִּי֙ | libi | heart my | H3820 → | 595 times |
| לְמוֹאָ֣ב | lemoav | for Moab | H4124 → | 181 times |
| יִזְעָ֔ק | yizak | it cries out | H2199 → | 73 times |
| בְּרִיחֶ֕הָ | bericheha | fugitives its | H1281 → | 4 times |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | [are] to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| צֹ֖עַר | tzoar | Zoar | H6820 → | |
| עֶגְלַ֣ת | ʾeglat | Eglath | H5697 → | |
| שְׁלִשִׁיָּ֑ה | shelishiyah | Shelishiyah | H7992 → | 107 times |
| כִּ֣י׀ | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| מַעֲלֵ֣ה | maaleh | [the] ascent of | H4608 → | |
| הַלּוּחִ֗ית | haluchit | <the> Luhith | H3872 → | |
| בִּבְכִי֙ | bivkhi | with weeping | H1065 → | 30 times |
| יַֽעֲלֶה־ | yaaleh- | it is going up | H5927 → | 890 times |
| בּ֔וֹ | bo | on it | ||
| כִּ֚י | ki | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| דֶּ֣רֶךְ | derekh | [the] road of | H1870 → | 707 times |
| חוֹרֹנַ֔יִם | choronayim | Horonaim | H2773 → | |
| זַעֲקַת־ | zaakat- | a cry of | H2201 → | 18 times |
| שֶׁ֖בֶר | shever | shattering | H7667 → | 45 times |
| יְעֹעֵֽרוּ׃ | yeoeru | they rouse | H5782 → | 80 times |
לִבִּי֙heart my
libiH3820 →595 times
לְמוֹאָ֣בfor Moab
lemoavH4124 →181 times
יִזְעָ֔קit cries out
yizakH2199 →73 times
בְּרִיחֶ֕הָfugitives its
berichehaH1281 →4 times
עַד־[are] to
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
צֹ֖עַרZoar
tzoarH6820 →
עֶגְלַ֣תEglath
ʾeglatH5697 →
שְׁלִשִׁיָּ֑הShelishiyah
shelishiyahH7992 →107 times
כִּ֣י׀for
kiH3588 →4482 times
מַעֲלֵ֣ה[the] ascent of
maalehH4608 →
הַלּוּחִ֗ית<the> Luhith
haluchitH3872 →
בִּבְכִי֙with weeping
bivkhiH1065 →30 times
יַֽעֲלֶה־it is going up
yaaleh-H5927 →890 times
בּ֔וֹon it
bo
כִּ֚יthat
kiH3588 →4482 times
דֶּ֣רֶךְ[the] road of
derekhH1870 →707 times
חוֹרֹנַ֔יִםHoronaim
choronayimH2773 →
זַעֲקַת־a cry of
zaakat-H2201 →18 times
שֶׁ֖בֶרshattering
sheverH7667 →45 times
יְעֹעֵֽרוּ׃they rouse
yeoeruH5782 →80 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
Jeremiah 4:20Disaster after disaster is proclaimed, for the whole land is laid waste. My tents are destroyed in an instant, my curtains in a moment.
it leads to
- Psalms 42:7
Deep calls to deep in the roar of Your waterfalls; all Your breakers and waves have rolled over me.
- Ezekiel 7:25–26
Anguish is coming! They will seek peace, but find none.
- 2 Thessalonians 1:9
They will suffer the penalty of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His might,
- Matthew 10:28
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
- Joel 1:15
Alas for the day! For the Day of the LORD is near, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty.
- Psalms 42:7
Through
2 Samuel 15:30But David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went up. His head was covered, and he was walking barefoot. And all the people with him covered their heads and went up,…
it leads to
- Esther 6:12
Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman rushed home, with his head covered in grief.
- 2 Samuel 19:4
But the king covered his face and cried out at the top of his voice, “O my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!”
- Luke 19:41
As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it
- Esther 6:12
About Isaiah
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Isaiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; 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.