Isaiah 2:6
in Isaiah 2For You have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled with influences from the east; they are soothsayers like the Philistines; they strike hands with the children of foreigners.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they are filled with customs from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they strike hands with the children of foreigners.
KJV
Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.
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This verse in Isaiah 2
Commentary
12 notes on this verseTherefore thou hast forsaken thy people, the house of Jacob,.... These words contain a reason of the divine conduct, in calling the Gentiles, and rejecting the Jews, because of the sins of the latter hereafter mentioned; though some, as the Targum and R. Moses, refer this to the Israelites; and read, "because ye have forsaken", &c. and interpret it of their forsaking the Lord, his worship, and his law.
This site's exposition
O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord
on Isaiah 2:5-6
O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord echoes the nations' own invitation at verse three, come ye, and let us go up, turning the same call toward Israel itself. Verse six answers with the reason the call is needed, the house of Jacob is replenished from the east, filled with the divination Isaiah's contemporaries practiced, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, a people Israel had once been commanded to drive out rather than imitate. Pleasing themselves in the children of strangers names foreign alliance and intermarriage as one more form of the same unfaithfulness.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers4 voices
But as there the prophet says, 'And now, O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the Lord; for He has sent away His people, the house of Jacob, because their land was full, as at the first, of soothsayers and divinations;' even so it is necessary for us here to observe that there are two seeds of Judah, and two races, as there are two houses of Jacob: the one begotten by blood and flesh, the other by faith and the Spirit.
(Vers. 5, 6.) Come, house of Jacob, and let us walk in the light of the Lord: for you have cast off your people, the house of Jacob. After the calling of the Gentiles, and the manifestation of the mountain of the Lord upon the top of the mountains, to His people, that is, the people of Judah, who is called the house of Jacob, the Prophet turns and exhorts them, so that those who are in the darkness of error may receive the light of truth and walk in the light of the Lord.
What did the prophet Isaiah mean when he announced that a mountain would be prepared on the summits of the mountains, to which all peoples were going to come? The law and the Word of God was going to proceed from Zion and Jerusalem to all nations, not from Mount Sinai to one nation. This we see most evidently fulfilled in Christ and the Christians. A little later the prophet says, "O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the Lord." Here, you [the Jews] will surely say your usual piece: "We are the house of Jacob," but listen a moment to what follows, and when you have said what you want to say, hear what you do not want to hear. The prophet continues, "For he has cast off his people, the house of Israel." Here say, "We are the house of Israel"; here acknowledge yourselves and forgive us for reminding you of these facts.
Dearly beloved, whether the Jews receive these divine testimonies with joy or with indignation, nevertheless, when we can, let us proclaim them with great love for the Jews. Let us not proudly glory against the broken branches; let us rather reflect by whose grace it is, and by much mercy, and on what root, we have been grafted into.
The Medieval Church1 voice
Here he shows their guilt. And first, in general, second, in particular, at: "and have had soothsayers." Concerning the first, he does two things. First, he shows their separation from God, when he says, "for you have cast off," and, as the Gloss continues, rightly …
5 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
): Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people. Miserable is the condition of that people whom God has forsaken, and great certainly must the provocation be if he forsake those that have been his own people. This was the deplorable case of the Jewish church after they had rejected Christ.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
Thou - Wilt certainly forsake and reject. Thy people - The body of that nation. Because - Their land is full of the idolatrous manners of the eastern nations, the Syrians and Chaldeans.
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
They be replenished “And they multiply” - Seven MSS. and one edition, for ישפיקו yaspiku, read ישפיחו yaspichu, “and have joined themselves to the children of strangers;” that is, in marriage or worship. - Dr. Jubb. So Vulg., adhaeserunt. Compare Isa 14:
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Therefore--rather, "For": reasons why there is the more need of the exhortation in Isa 2:5. thou--transition to Jehovah: such rapid transitions are natural, when the mind is full of a subject. replenished--rather, filled, namely, with the superstitions of the East, Syria, and Chaldea. soothsayers--forbidden (De 18:10-14).
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Therefore - The prophet proceeds in this and the following verses, to state the reasons of their calamities, and of the judgments that had come upon them. Those judgments he traces to the crimes which he enumerates - crimes growing chiefly out of great commercial prosperity, producing pride, luxury, and idolatry. Thou hast forsaken - The address is changed from the exhortation to the house of Jacob Isa 2:5 to God, as is frequently the case in the writings of Isaiah. It indicates a state where the mind is full of the subject, and where it expresses itself in a rapid and hurried manner. Hast forsaken - Hast withdrawn thy protection, and given them over to the calamities and judgments which had come upon them. They be replenished - Hebrew, They are “full.” That is, these things abound. From the East - Margin, “More than the East.” The meaning of the expression it is not easy to determine. The word translated “East,” קדם qedem denotes also “antiquity,” or that which is “of old,” as well as the East. Hence, the Septuagint renders it, ‘their land is, as of old, filled.’ The Chaldee, ‘their land is filled with idols as at the beginning.’ Either idea will suit the passage; though our translation more nearly accords with the Hebrew than the others. The “East,” that is, Arabia, Persia, Chaldea, etc., was the country where astrology, soothsaying, and divination particularly abounded; see Dan 2:2; Deu 18:9-11. And are soothsayers - Our word “soothsayers” means “foretellers, prognosticators,” persons who pretend to predict future events “without inspiration,” differing in this from true prophets. What the Hebrew word means, it is not so easy to determine. […]
The words behind it
13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כִּ֣י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| נָטַ֗שְׁתָּה | natashtah | you have abandoned | H5203 → | 40 times |
| עַמְּךָ֙ | ʾamekha | people your | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| בֵּ֣ית | beit | [the] house of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| יַעֲקֹ֔ב | yaako | Jacob | H3290 → | 350 times |
| כִּ֤י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| מָלְאוּ֙ | malu | they are full | H4390 → | 249 times |
| מִקֶּ֔דֶם | mikedem | from [the] east | H6924 → | 87 times |
| וְעֹֽנְנִ֖ים | veonenim | and soothsayers | H6049 → | |
| כַּפְּלִשְׁתִּ֑ים | kapelishtim | like the Philistines | H6430 → | 287 times |
| וּבְיַלְדֵ֥י | uveyaldei | and with [the] children of | H3206 → | 89 times |
| נָכְרִ֖ים | nakherim | foreigners | H5237 → | |
| יַשְׂפִּֽיקוּ׃ | yaspiku | they clap hands | H5606 → |
כִּ֣יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
נָטַ֗שְׁתָּהyou have abandoned
natashtahH5203 →40 times
עַמְּךָ֙people your
ʾamekhaH5971 →1873 times
בֵּ֣ית[the] house of
beitH1004 →2046 times
יַעֲקֹ֔בJacob
yaakoH3290 →350 times
כִּ֤יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
מָלְאוּ֙they are full
maluH4390 →249 times
מִקֶּ֔דֶםfrom [the] east
mikedemH6924 →87 times
וְעֹֽנְנִ֖יםand soothsayers
veonenimH6049 →
כַּפְּלִשְׁתִּ֑יםlike the Philistines
kapelishtimH6430 →287 times
וּבְיַלְדֵ֥יand with [the] children of
uveyaldeiH3206 →89 times
נָכְרִ֖יםforeigners
nakherimH5237 →
יַשְׂפִּֽיקוּ׃they clap hands
yaspikuH5606 →
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
1 Chronicles 10:13So Saul died for his unfaithfulness to the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD and even consulted a medium for guidance,
it leads to
- Leviticus 20:6
Whoever turns to mediums or spiritists to prostitute himself with them, I will also set My face against that person and cut him off from his people.
- Leviticus 19:31
You must not turn to mediums or spiritists; do not seek them out, or you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God.
- 1 Samuel 15:23
For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance is like the wickedness of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has rejected you as king.”
- Isaiah 8:19
When men tell you to consult the spirits of the dead and the spiritists who whisper and mutter, shouldn’t a people consult their God instead? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living?
- Leviticus 20:6
Through
Romans 11:20That is correct: They were broken off because of unbelief, but you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but be afraid.
it leads to
- Romans 12:16
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but enjoy the company of the lowly. Do not be conceited.
- 2 Corinthians 1:24
Not that we lord it over your faith, but we are fellow workers with you for your joy, because it is by faith that you stand firm.
- 1 Corinthians 10:12
So the one who thinks he is standing firm should be careful not to fall.
- 1 Peter 1:17
Since you call on a Father who judges each one’s work impartially, conduct yourselves in reverent fear during your stay as foreigners.
- Romans 12:16
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Isaiah

Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 12 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); Augustine of Hippo, IN ANSWER TO THE JEWS 8; Augustine of Hippo, IN ANSWER TO THE JEWS 10; 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; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, Chapter CXXXV; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.
