Isaiah 16:7
in Isaiah 16Therefore let Moab wail; let them wail together for Moab. Moan for the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth, you who are utterly stricken.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Therefore shall Moab wail for Moab, every one shall wail: for the raisin-cakes of Kir-hareseth shall ye mourn, utterly stricken.
KJV
Therefore shall Moab howl for Moab, every one shall howl: for the foundations of Kir–hareseth shall ye mourn; surely they are stricken.
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This verse in Isaiah 16
Commentary
10 notes on this verseTherefore shall Moab howl for Moab,.... One Moabite shall mourn for another; the living for the dead; or one part of the country for another; or to Moab, they shall howl in turns, answering to one another: everyone shall howl: every Moabite, or the whole country of Moab shall howl, being everywhere desolate: for the foundations of Kirhareseth shall ye mourn: surely they are stricken; this was a very principal city in the land of Moab, and a very strong one, see 2Ki 3:
This site's exposition
We have heard of the pride of Moab
on Isaiah 16:6-9
The oracle turns from appeal to a report already circulating: we have heard of the pride of Moab, his haughtiness and his lies, and that pride is exactly what draws the mourning that follows. Kir-hareseth's foundations are struck and every voice in Moab howls, and the vine of Sibmah, famous enough that foreign lords broke its branches for their own vineyards, becomes the prophet's own image of grief, wept over as far as Jazer with tears mingled into Heshbon's summer harvest that never comes. John Gill and Albert Barnes both note the turn from Moab's boast to Moab's weeping as the oracle's whole argument compressed into four verses.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
(Verse 7) Therefore Moab shall wail unto Moab, every one shall wail: to them that rejoice on the walls of the cooked brick, speak concerning his wounds. Therefore Moab shall howl unto Moab, that is to say, one shall cry out against another: all the diversities, of heretics and of secular wisdom, shall roar against themselves, when they shall be in torments (III Kings VI).
(Vers. 6, 7.) We have heard of the pride of Moab, he is exceeding proud: his pride, and his arrogancy, and his indignation, is more than his strength. Therefore shall Moab howl for Moab, every one shall howl: for the foundations of Kirhareseth shall ye mourn; surely they are stricken. For the fields of Heshbon languish, and the vine of Sibmah: the lords of the heathen have broken down the principal plants thereof, they are come even unto Jazer, they wandered through the wilderness: her branches are stretched out, they are gone over the sea.
The Medieval Church1 voice
Here he sets out the punishment of those who hold the counsel in contempt. And first, the weeping of those to be punished: shall Moab howl to Moab, that is, to each other, about which enough is said above (ch. 15). Second, he describes the …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
25 ), should now be levelled with the ground, either burnt or broken down, and its foundations stricken, bruised and broken (so the word signifies); they shall howl when they see their splendid cities turned into ruinous heaps. (2.) The desolation of their country. Moab was famous for its fields and vineyards; but those shall all be laid waste by the invading army,
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-citation-number+unbalanced-parens
4 Let mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab; be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler: for the extortioner is at an end, the spoiler ceaseth, the oppressors are consumed out of the land. 5 And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
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)
Therefore shall Moab howl for Moab - One part of the nation shall mourn for another; they shall howl, or lament, in alternate responses. Jerome renders it, ‘the people (shall howl) to the city; the city to the provinces.’ The general idea is, that there would be an universal lamentation throughout the land. This would be the punishment which would result from their pride in neglecting to send the tribute and seeking the favor of the Jews; or they would lament because the expectation of finding a refuge among the Israelites was taken away.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Therefore--all hope of being allowed shelter by the Jews being cut off. foundations--that is, "ruins"; because, when houses are pulled down, the "foundations" alone are left (Isa 58:12).
For the foundations of Kir-hareseth “For the men of Kirhares” - A palpable mistake in this place is happily corrected by the parallel text of Jer 48:31, where, instead of אשישי ashishey, foundations or flagons, we read אנשי anshey, men. In the same place of Jeremiah, and in Jer 48:36, and here in Isa 16:11, the name of the city is Kirhares, not Kirhareseth.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לָכֵ֗ן | lakhen | <to> therefore | H3651 → | 771 times |
| יְיֵלִ֥יל | yeyelil | it will wail | H3213 → | 30 times |
| מוֹאָ֛ב | moav | Moab | H4124 → | 181 times |
| לְמוֹאָ֖ב | lemoav | for Moab | H4124 → | 181 times |
| כֻּלֹּ֣ה | kuloh | all of it | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| יְיֵלִ֑יל | yeyelil | it will wail | H3213 → | 30 times |
| לַאֲשִׁישֵׁ֧י | laashishei | for [the] raisin-cakes of | H809 → | |
| קִיר־ | kir- | Kir | H7025 → | 10 times |
| חֲרֶ֛שֶׂת | chareset | Hareseth | H7025 → | 10 times |
| תֶּהְגּ֖וּ | tehgu | you will groan | H1897 → | 25 times |
| אַךְ־ | ʾakh- | only | H389 → | 161 times |
| נְכָאִֽים׃ | nekhaim | stricken people | H5218 → |
לָכֵ֗ן<to> therefore
lakhenH3651 →771 times
יְיֵלִ֥ילit will wail
yeyelilH3213 →30 times
מוֹאָ֛בMoab
moavH4124 →181 times
לְמוֹאָ֖בfor Moab
lemoavH4124 →181 times
כֻּלֹּ֣הall of it
kulohH3605 →5413 times
יְיֵלִ֑ילit will wail
yeyelilH3213 →30 times
לַאֲשִׁישֵׁ֧יfor [the] raisin-cakes of
laashisheiH809 →
קִיר־Kir
kir-H7025 →10 times
חֲרֶ֛שֶׂתHareseth
charesetH7025 →10 times
תֶּהְגּ֖וּyou will groan
tehguH1897 →25 times
אַךְ־only
ʾakh-H389 →161 times
נְכָאִֽים׃stricken people
nekhaimH5218 →
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
2 Kings 3:25They destroyed the cities, and each man threw stones on every good field until it was covered. They stopped up every spring and cut down every good tree. Only Kir-haraseth was left with stones…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 48:36
Therefore My heart laments like a flute for Moab; it laments like a flute for the men of Kir-heres, because the wealth they acquired has perished.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 48:31
Therefore I will wail for Moab; I will cry out for all of Moab; I will moan for the men of Kir-heres.
- 2 Kings 3:19
And you shall attack every fortified city and every city of importance. You shall cut down every good tree, stop up every spring, and ruin every good field with stones.”
- Jeremiah 48:36
Through
Isaiah 16:11Therefore my heart laments for Moab like a harp, my inmost being for Kir-heres.
it leads to
- Isaiah 15:5
My 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.
- Philippians 2:1
Therefore if you have any encouragement in Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any affection and compassion,
- Isaiah 63:15
Look down from heaven and see, from Your holy and glorious habitation. Where are Your zeal and might? Your yearning and compassion for me are restrained.
- Hosea 11:8
How could I give you up, O Ephraim? How could I surrender you, O Israel? How could I make you like Admah? How could I treat you like Zeboiim? My heart is turned within…
- Isaiah 15:5
Through
1 Chronicles 16:3Then he distributed to every man and woman of Israel a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake.
it leads to
- Ezekiel 45:17
And it shall be the prince’s part to provide the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings for the feasts, New Moons, and Sabbaths—for all the appointed feasts of the house of Israel. He…
- Ezekiel 45:17
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 on the Book of Isaiah; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); 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 Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.