Isaiah 8:6
in Isaiah 8“Because this people has rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah and rejoiced in Rezin and the son of Remaliah,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Forasmuch as this people have refused the waters of Shiloah that go softly, and rejoice in Rezin and Remaliah’s son;
KJV
Forasmuch as this people refuseth the waters of Shiloah that go softly, and rejoice in Rezin and Remaliah’s son;
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This verse in Isaiah 8
Commentary
12 notes on this verseObviously the only way to preserve the understanding of this passage is to explain its spiritual meaning. By the softly proceeding water of Siloam it means the gospel teaching of the word of salvation, because Siloam means "sent with a message." This would be God the Word, who was sent by the Father, of whom Moses says, "A ruler will not fail from Judah, nor a prince from his loins, until the one for whom it is stored up comes, and he is the expectation of the nations."
This site's exposition
spake also unto me again
on Isaiah 8:5-6
The Lord speaks to Isaiah again, turning from the child's name to the nation's own choice: Judah refuses the waters of Shiloah that go softly, the mild flowing spring inside Jerusalem's walls, and rejoices instead in Rezin and the son of Remaliah, the very enemies Isaiah had just told Ahaz not to fear. The waters of Shiloah were commonly read as a figure for the gentle rule of the house of David under the Lord's own promise, a quiet provision the people trade for confidence in stronger-looking allies. Henry and Barnes both draw the same contrast: gentle waters despised in favor of the flood about to be summoned in the next verse.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 5, et seq.) And the Lord added, speaking to me again, saying: Because this people has rejected the waters of Siloam that flow gently, and has preferred Rezin and the son of Remaliah, therefore behold, the Lord will bring upon them the mighty and abundant waters of the river, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it will rise above all its channels, and overflow over all its banks. And it will pass through Judah, flooding and reaching up to the neck. And the spreading of its wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Emmanuel.
The Medieval Church3 voices
274. But it seems that this should not be imputed to them as a fault, because it was done by the will of the Lord, as it says in 1 Kings 12:24: this thing is from me. And to this is to be said that …
A commentator
BonaventureCollations on the Hexaemeron, Collation 19 · Written in the 13th century.
proposed
Going down to philosophy implies the greatest danger. Isaias says: "Because this people has rejected the waters of Siloe that flow gently, and melts with fear before the loftiness of Rasin and Romelia's son, therefore the Lord raises against them the waters of the River, …
A commentator
BonaventureCollations on the Hexaemeron, Collation 17 · Written in the 13th century.
proposed
Next to these mysteries are the mystery of the tree of life and the mystery of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. For he who seeks nothing but knowledge tastes of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And this …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Forasmuch as this people refuseth the waters of Shiloah, that go softly,.... The same with Siloam, Joh 9:7 and so it is called in the Septuagint version here; and the word here used signifies "sent", as it is there interpreted.
5 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Such vipers does many a state foster in its bosom, that eat its bread, and yet adhere to its enemies, and are ready to quit its interests if they but seem to totter. (2.) The judgment which God would bring upon them for this sin.
Great encouragement given to the people of God in the midst of those distractions; they are assured, 1. That the enemies shall not gain their point against them,
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
Forasmuch as this people refuseth “Because this people have rejected” - The gentle waters of Shiloah, a small fountain and brook just without Jerusalem, which supplied a pool within the city for the use of the inhabitants, is an apt emblem of the state of the kingdom and house of David, much reduced in its apparent strength, yet supported by the blessing of God; and is finely contrasted with the waters of the Euphrates, great, rapid, and impetuous; the image of the Babylonian empire, which God threatens to bring down like a mighty flood upon all these apostates of both kingdoms, as punishment for their manifold iniquities, and their contemptuous disregard of his promises.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
waters of Shiloah . . . softly--Their source is on the southeast of Zion and east of Jerusalem. It means "sent," the water being sent through an aqueduct (Joh 9:7).
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Forasmuch as this people - There has been a considerable difference of opinion among interpreters respecting the ‘people’ to whom the prophet here refers. Some have supposed that it refers to the kingdom of Judah alone; others to a party in that kingdom; and others to the kingdom of Judah in connection with the ten tribes, or the kingdom of Israel also. The latter is probably the correct interpretation. The prophet reproves the whole nation of the Jews for despising the mild and gentle reign of the family of David, and for seeking the aid of foreign nations; the ten tribes as seeking an alliance with Rezin and Pekah; and the kingdom of Judah as seeking an alliance with the king of Assyria. It was characteristic of the nation - both of the ten tribes, and of the tribe of Judah - that they forsook the defense which they had in themselves. and sought foreign alliances. Hence, God says, that he will bring upon them the judgments which they deserve. That there is a joint reference to both the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, is apparent from Isa 8:14. It cannot refer to the kingdom of Judah alone, for it could not be brought as an accusation against them, that they took pleasure in Rezin. In the opinion that it refers to the kingdoms of Israel and of Judah - to the whole Jewish people, Vitringa, Lowth, and Hengstenberg concur. The waters of Shiloah that go softly - That flow gently. The name Siloah, or Siloam, is found only three times in the Scriptures as applied to waters; once in this place, where it is spoken of a running water; once as a pool in Nehemiah - השׁלח ברכה berêkah hashelach - Isa 3:15, and again as a pool, in the account of the miracle of healing the man who was born blind; Joh 9:7, Joh 9:11. Siloam is on the east side of the city of Jerusalem, to the southeast of the site of the temple, and its waters flow into the valley of Jehoshaphat. […]
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יַ֗עַן | yaan | because | H3282 → | 99 times |
| כִּ֤י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| מָאַס֙ | maas | it has rejected | H3988 → | 76 times |
| הָעָ֣ם | haam | the people | H5971 → | 1873 times |
| הַזֶּ֔ה | hazeh | <the> this | H2088 → | 1180 times |
| אֵ֚ת | ʾet | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מֵ֣י | mei | [the] waters of | H4325 → | 581 times |
| הַשִּׁלֹ֔חַ | hashiloach | <the> Shiloah | H7975 → | |
| הַהֹלְכִ֖ים | haholekhim | which go | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| לְאַ֑ט | leat | to gentleness | H328 → | |
| וּמְשׂ֥וֹשׂ | umesos | and rejoicing | H4885 → | 17 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | with | H853 → | 10935 times |
| רְצִ֖ין | retzin | Rezin | H7526 → | 11 times |
| וּבֶן־ | uven- | and [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| רְמַלְיָֽהוּ׃ | remalyahu | Remaliah | H7425 → | 13 times |
יַ֗עַןbecause
yaanH3282 →99 times
כִּ֤יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
מָאַס֙it has rejected
maasH3988 →76 times
הָעָ֣םthe people
haamH5971 →1873 times
הַזֶּ֔ה<the> this
hazehH2088 →1180 times
אֵ֚ת<obj.>
ʾetH853 →10935 times
מֵ֣י[the] waters of
meiH4325 →581 times
הַשִּׁלֹ֔חַ<the> Shiloah
hashiloachH7975 →
הַהֹלְכִ֖יםwhich go
haholekhimH1980 →1546 times
לְאַ֑טto gentleness
leatH328 →
וּמְשׂ֥וֹשׂand rejoicing
umesosH4885 →17 times
אֶת־with
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
רְצִ֖יןRezin
retzinH7526 →11 times
וּבֶן־and [the] son of
uven-H1121 →4930 times
רְמַלְיָֽהוּ׃Remaliah
remalyahuH7425 →13 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 2:13“For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water.
it leads to
- John 4:14
But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water springing up to eternal life.”
- John 7:37
On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and called out in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.
- Revelation 21:6
And He told me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give freely from the spring of the water of life.
- Jeremiah 17:13
O LORD, the hope of Israel, all who abandon You will be put to shame. All who turn away will be written in the dust, for they have abandoned the LORD, the fountain of…
- Psalms 36:9
For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.
- John 4:14
Through
John 9:7Then He told him, “Go, wash in the Pool of Siloam” (which means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came back seeing.
it leads to
- Isaiah 35:5
Then the eyes of the blind will be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
- Isaiah 35:5
Through
Nehemiah 3:15The Fountain Gate was repaired by Shallun son of Col-hozeh, ruler of the district of Mizpah. He rebuilt it, roofed it, and installed its doors, bolts, and bars. He also repaired the wall of…
it leads to
- John 9:7
Then He told him, “Go, wash in the Pool of Siloam” (which means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came back seeing.
- John 9:7
Through
Isaiah 5:24Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes the straw, and as dry grass shrivels in the flame, so their roots will decay and their blossoms will blow away like dust; for they have rejected…
it leads to
- Joel 2:5
With a sound like that of chariots they bound over the mountaintops, like the crackling of fire consuming stubble, like a mighty army deployed for battle.
- Joel 2:5
Where this verse is studied
About Isaiah
This page draws on 11 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); Bonaventure, Collations on the Hexaemeron, Collation 19; Bonaventure, Collations on the Hexaemeron, Collation 17; Eusebius of Caesarea, PROOF OF THE GOSPEL 7:1; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.