Isaiah 21:6
in Isaiah 21For this is what the Lord says to me: “Go, post a lookout and have him report what he sees.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman; let him declare what he seeth:
KJV
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.
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This verse in Isaiah 21
Commentary
9 notes on this verseA commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth--God's direction to Isaiah to set a watchman to "declare" what he sees. But as in Isa 21:10, Isaiah himself is represented as the one who "declared." HORSLEY makes him the "watchman," and translates, "Come, let him who standeth on the watchtower report what he seeth."
This site's exposition
They prepare a table
on Isaiah 21:5-8
Verse 5 shows the court of Babylon at a feast, "they eat, they drink", even as the princes are told to "oil the shields". Its confidence and its danger stand in one scene. The Lord tells the prophet to "post a lookout and have him report what he sees".
This site's exposition
post a lookout
The lookout is part of the vision, and Barnes places the prophet in Babylon hearing the order of the Lord. In verse 10 Isaiah himself tells what he has heard, so the lookout and the prophet share one post. Habakkuk stands at the same post at Habakkuk 2:1.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
(Verse 6.) For the Lord spoke these words to me: Go and set a watchman, and whatever he sees, let him announce. The reasons for the previous fear are given, why distress has taken hold of him like a woman in labor, and he has fallen down, hearing and trembling, and being surrounded by dark horror. This, the Lord said to me: go and set a watchman, so that he may foretell to you the future with a prophetic spirit.
(Vers. 6, 7.) For the Lord said to me: Go and set a watchman, and whatever he sees, let him announce. And he saw a chariot of two horsemen, a rider on a donkey, and a rider on a camel, and he examined carefully with great attention, and the lion roared. LXX: For thus says the Lord to me: Go and set a watchman for yourself, and whatever you see, announce. And I saw two horsemen riding, a rider on a donkey, and a rider on a camel: I heard a great sound, and I called Uriah to the watchtower. The Prophet is commanded to place in his heart a lookout and to look more closely at what is to come to the world. And he saw two horsemen, one riding on a donkey and the other riding on a camel. Some have interpreted this as the rider on the donkey representing Christ according to the Gospel reading (Matt. XXI) and the prophecy of Zechariah (Zech. IX), and, on the contrary, the rider on the camel representing contrary strength because of the ugliness of the twisted animal. But others refer the two ascending letters and spirit to the two Testaments. And that which is said in Hebrew Arie (), for which Aquila and Symmachus have interpreted lion and lioness, the Seventy, I know not what, have put οὐρίαν, which some think to be interpreted as the light of the Lord, while with other letters it is the light of the Lord, which is not here, and with others it is written lion, which is here read. And he wishes this beholder, whom the Prophet is commanded to place in his heart, to be called Uriah, and through the interpretation of the name, refers it to the understanding of Christ, so that with him dwelling in us, we may perceive what is to come. Indeed, Jacob (Gen. XLIX) and Balaam (Num. XXIII and II) are named under the mystery of Christ, and can be compared to the lion.
The Medieval Church1 voice
515. For thus has the Lord said to me. Here he sets out the manner of accepting this vision, and concerning this, he does four things. First, the divine command is set out: go, and set a watchman, you yourself, or your disciple, whom the …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
One post shall run to meet another, and one messenger to meet another, to show the king of Babylon that his city is taken at one end while he is revelling at the other end and knows nothing of the matter.
For thus hath the Lord said unto me,....
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Go, set a watchman - This was said to Isaiah in the vision. He represents himself as in Babylon, and as hearing God command him to set a watchman on the watch-tower who would announce what was to come to pass. All this is designed merely to bring the manner of the destruction of the city more vividly before the eye.
The words behind it
11 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 |
| כֹ֥ה | khoh | thus | H3541 → | 577 times |
| אָמַ֛ר | ʾamar | he has said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֵלַ֖י | ʾelai | to me | H413 → | 5510 times |
| אֲדֹנָ֑י | ʾadonai | [the] Lord | H136 → | 440 times |
| לֵ֚ךְ | lekh | go | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| הַעֲמֵ֣ד | haamed | station | H5975 → | 521 times |
| הַֽמְצַפֶּ֔ה | hamtzapeh | the watchman | H6822 → | 36 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | [that] which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יִרְאֶ֖ה | yireh | he will see | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| יַגִּֽיד׃ | yagid | let him tell | H5046 → | 370 times |
כִּ֣יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
כֹ֥הthus
khohH3541 →577 times
אָמַ֛רhe has said
ʾamarH559 →5305 times
אֵלַ֖יto me
ʾelaiH413 →5510 times
אֲדֹנָ֑י[the] Lord
ʾadonaiH136 →440 times
לֵ֚ךְgo
lekhH1980 →1546 times
הַעֲמֵ֣דstation
haamedH5975 →521 times
הַֽמְצַפֶּ֔הthe watchman
hamtzapehH6822 →36 times
אֲשֶׁ֥ר[that] which
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יִרְאֶ֖הhe will see
yirehH7200 →1300 times
יַגִּֽיד׃let him tell
yagidH5046 →370 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
Isaiah 62:6On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD shall take no rest for yourselves,
it leads to
- Isaiah 52:8
Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices, together they shout for joy. For every eye will see when the LORD returns to Zion.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 6:17
I appointed watchmen over you and said, ‘Listen for the sound of the ram’s horn.’ But they answered, ‘We will not listen!’
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Ezekiel 3:17–21
“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:17
Pray without ceasing.
- Psalms 134:1–2
Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD who serve by night in the house of the LORD!
- Isaiah 52:8
Through
Ezekiel 3:17“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me.
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 19:10
For every dispute that comes before you from your brothers who dwell in their cities—whether it regards bloodshed or some other violation of law, commandments, statutes, or ordinances—you are to warn them, so that…
- Hebrews 13:17
Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they watch over your souls as those who must give an account. To this end, allow them to lead with joy and not with grief, for…
- Isaiah 62:6
On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD shall take no rest for yourselves,
- 2 Chronicles 19:10
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Isaiah

This page draws on 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); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.
