Isaiah 24:2
in Isaiah 24people and priest alike, servant and master, maid and mistress, buyer and seller, lender and borrower, creditor and debtor.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the creditor, so with the debtor; as with the taker of interest, so with the giver of interest to him.
KJV
And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the taker of usury, so with the giver of usury to him.
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This verse in Isaiah 24
Commentary
11 notes on this verseNor indeed is there any distinction between the state of the people and that of the priesthood: but it seems to me to be a simple fulfillment of the ancient curse, "As with the people, so with the priest." Nor again are the great and eminent men affected otherwise than the majority; no, they are openly at war with the priest, and the piety of the people is an aid to their powers of persuasion.
This site's exposition
Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty
on Isaiah 24:1-3
The burdens against single nations end at chapter 23 and the horizon opens to the whole earth, maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof, language too large for any one historical invasion the book has named so far. Delitzsch and Alexander both read chapters 24 through 27 as Isaiah's own apocalypse, a final judgment glimpsed through the near judgments the book has already described, without abandoning the nearer horizons those judgments carried. No class escapes the leveling, as with the people, so with the priest, as with the servant, so with his master, and the same list runs through buyer and seller, lender and borrower. The chapter states its own ground for the sentence in its final clause, for the Lord hath spoken this word, judgment resting on his word rather than on the size of the crime committed by any one class.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Chapter 24 - Verses 1 and following) Behold, the Lord will lay waste the earth, and make it desolate, and afflict its face, and scatter its inhabitants. And it shall be as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor. The earth shall be utterly laid waste and utterly plundered, for the Lord has spoken this word.
The Medieval Church4 voices
And this indeed is what the Lord, in the wrath of just retribution, menaced through the prophet, saying, "And there shall be like people, like priest." For the priest is as the people, when one who bears a spiritual office acts as do others who are still under judgment with regard to their carnal pursuits.
What is written has surely been fulfilled in us: And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest. For the priest does not differ from the people when by no merit of his own does he transcend the common conduct.
567. Second, the universality of destruction as to those punished, making equal those who differ in rank: as with the people, so with the priest; in condition: as with the servant so with his master; in possession of things: as with the buyer, so with …
We are put as guards in the vineyards, but we do not cultivate our own. When we are involved with external affairs, we neglect to watch over our own activities. I think that God suffers greater outrage from no one, dearly beloved, than from priests. Those he has placed to reprove others he sees giving an example of wickedness in their own lives. We who ought to have restrained sin, ourselves commit it. More seriously, priests who ought to give of their own possessions frequently plunder the goods of others. If they see others living humbly and chastely, they often make fun of them. Consider what will become of the flocks when wolves become shepherds! They undertake to guard the flock and are not afraid to waylay the Lord's flock.We do not seek to gain souls; we devote ourselves daily to our own pursuits, we attend to earthly matters, we strive for human praise with all our will. From being set over others we have greater freedom to do anything we like, and so we turn the ministry we have received into an occasion for display. We abandon God's cause, and we devote ourselves to earthly business; we accept a place of holiness and involve ourselves in earthly deeds. What is written in Hosea is truly fulfilled in us: "And so it will be, like people, like priest."
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest,.... Or, "prince" (p); no order or rank of men will fare better than another; their dignity, in things civil or ecclesiastical, will not secure them from ruin; it will be no better with princes and priests than the common people; they shall all alike share in the common destruction.
It shall be - The approaching calamity shall be universal, without any distinction of persons or ranks; the priests themselves having been partakers of the peoples sins, shall also partake with them in their plagues.
Those that have money before-hand, that are purchasing, and letting out money to interest, will fare no better than those that are so impoverished that they are forced to sell their estates and take up money at interest. There are judgments short of the great day of judgment in which rich and poor meet together.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
As with the people, so with the priest - This does not mean in moral character, but in destiny. It does not mean that the character of the priest would have any influence on that of the people, or that because the one was corrupt the other would be; but it means that all would be involved in the same calamity, and there would be no favored class that would escape. The prophet, therefore, enumerate the various ranks of the people, and shows that all classes would be involved in the impending calamity.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
Behold the Lord empties the land and lays it waste This prophecy represents retribution for Israel.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
Behold, the Lord shall spoil the land and deliver it over to the enemy; and confusion shall cover the faces of the princes, because they have transgressed the law, and scattered its inhabitants.
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. 1 further source is cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
15 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 be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| כָעָם֙ | khaam | as the people | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| כַּכֹּהֵ֔ן | kakohen | as the priest | H3548 → | 750 times |
| כַּעֶ֙בֶד֙ | kaeved | as the servant | H5650 → | 799 times |
| כַּֽאדֹנָ֔יו | kadonav | as master<s> his | H113 → | 333 times |
| כַּשִּׁפְחָ֖ה | kashifchah | as the maidservant | H8198 → | |
| כַּגְּבִרְתָּ֑הּ | kagevirtah | as <the> mistress her | H1404 → | 9 times |
| כַּקּוֹנֶה֙ | kakoneh | as the buyer | H7069 → | 84 times |
| כַּמּוֹכֵ֔ר | kamokher | as the seller | H4376 → | 80 times |
| כַּמַּלְוֶה֙ | kamalveh | as the lender | H3867 → | 26 times |
| כַּלֹּוֶ֔ה | kaloveh | as the borrower | H3867 → | 26 times |
| כַּנֹּשֶׁ֕ה | kanosheh | as the creditor | H5383 → | |
| כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר | kaasher | as [the one] who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| נֹשֶׁ֥א | noshe' | a creditor | H5378 → | |
| בֽוֹ׃ | vo | [is] in him |
וְהָיָ֤הand it will be
vehayahH1961 →3559 times
כָעָם֙as the people
khaamH5971 →1873 times
כַּכֹּהֵ֔ןas the priest
kakohenH3548 →750 times
כַּעֶ֙בֶד֙as the servant
kaevedH5650 →799 times
כַּֽאדֹנָ֔יוas master<s> his
kadonavH113 →333 times
כַּשִּׁפְחָ֖הas the maidservant
kashifchahH8198 →
כַּגְּבִרְתָּ֑הּas <the> mistress her
kagevirtahH1404 →9 times
כַּקּוֹנֶה֙as the buyer
kakonehH7069 →84 times
כַּמּוֹכֵ֔רas the seller
kamokherH4376 →80 times
כַּמַּלְוֶה֙as the lender
kamalvehH3867 →26 times
כַּלֹּוֶ֔הas the borrower
kalovehH3867 →26 times
כַּנֹּשֶׁ֕הas the creditor
kanoshehH5383 →
כַּאֲשֶׁ֖רas [the one] who
kaasherH834 →5497 times
נֹשֶׁ֥אa creditor
noshe'H5378 →
בֽוֹ׃[is] in him
vo
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
Genesis 41:50Before the years of famine arrived, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On.
it leads to
- Genesis 46:20
Manasseh and Ephraim were born to Joseph in the land of Egypt by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On.
- Genesis 48:5
And now your two sons born to you in Egypt before I came to you here shall be reckoned as mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, just as Reuben and Simeon are mine.
- Genesis 46:20
Through
Hosea 4:9And it shall be like people, like priest. I will punish both of them for their ways and repay them for their deeds.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 5:31
The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own authority. My people love it so, but what will you do in the end?
- Matthew 15:14
Disregard them! They are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
- Hosea 1:4
Then the LORD said to Hosea, “Name him Jezreel, for soon I will bring the bloodshed of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel.
- Jeremiah 23:11–12
“For both prophet and priest are ungodly; even in My house I have found their wickedness,” declares the LORD.
- Jeremiah 5:31
Through
Jeremiah 41:2Then Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him got up and struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword, killing the one whom the…
it leads to
- 2 Kings 25:25
In the seventh month, however, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family, came with ten men and struck down and killed Gedaliah, along with the…
- Jeremiah 40:5
But before Jeremiah turned to go, Nebuzaradan added, “Return to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has appointed over the cities of Judah, and stay with him…
- 2 Kings 25:25
About Isaiah
This page draws on 11 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Isaiah; Gregory of Nazianzus, IN DEFENSE OF HIS FLIGHT, ORATION 2:82; Gregory the Dialogist, Pastoral Care, Part 2, Chapter 7; Gregory the Dialogist, Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 17; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Joseph Addison Alexander, Commentary on the Prophecies of Isaiah; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.