Isaiah 2:15

Isa 2:15 And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall,

Ver. 15. And upon every high tower.] In these the Jews trusted, as sure help in time of distress, but all in vain.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

tower . . . wall--Towers were often made on the walls of cities.

fenced--strongly fortified.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 15. See Clarke on Isa 2:13.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(15) Upon every high tower.—Generic as the words are, they have a special reference to the fortifications which were the glory of Uzziah’s reign, and were continued by his successors (2Ch_26:9-10; 2Ch_27:3-4; Hos_8:14; Mic_5:11; comp. also Isa_22:8-11, Psa_48:13).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

15, 16. Works of human art are last mentioned as being nearer to the sinful pride of man, which is the ultimate cause of the judgment.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And upon all the ships of Tarshish,.... Upon all the merchants and merchandises of Rome. The Targum is,

"and upon all that dwell in the islands of the sea.''

See Rev 16:20. Tarshish, as Vitringa observes, designs Tartessus or Gades in Spain, which must bring to mind the memorable destruction of the Spanish Armada in 1558, as he also notes.

And upon all pleasant pictures; of Christ and the Virgin Mary, of angels, and of saints departed, the Papists make use of to help their devotion. The Targum is,

"and upon all that dwell in beautiful palaces;''

such as those of the pope and his cardinals at Rome, and of archbishops and bishops at other places. The Septuagint version is, "and upon all the sight of the beauty of ships"; such were the ships of the Phoenicians, which were very much ornamented, and beautiful to behold.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Every high tower - Towers, or fortresses, were erected for defense and protection. They were made on the walls of cities, for places of observation (compare the note at Isa 21:5), or in places of strength, to be a refuge for an army, and to be a point from which they might sally out to attack their enemies. They were “high” to afford a defense against being scaled by an enemy, and also that from the top they might look abroad for observation; and also to annoy an enemy from the top, when the foe approached the walls of a city.

Every fenced wall - הומה בצוּרה betsûrâh hômâh. The word “fenced,” בצוּרה betsûrâh, is from בצר bâtsar, to make inaccessible, and hence, to fortify. It denotes a wall that is inaccessible, or strongly fortified. Cities were commonly surrounded by high and strong walls to defend them from enemies. The sense is, God would overturn all their strong places of refuge and defense.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

To which you resorted and trusted for your defence.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

15. High tower — Uzziah had filled the land with these, and with fenced walls of cities and towns; at Jerusalem especially. 2Ch_26:9; Deu_28:52; Hos_8:14.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Upon every high tower. Uzziah and. Jotham had, both of them, paid much attention to fortifications, and had especially "built towers," both at Jerusalem and in other parts of Judaea. (2Ch_26:9, 10 27:4) Isaiah means to pour contempt on these indications of "trust in an arm of flesh," and to say that they will be of no avail when the time of calamity arrives. Every fenced wall. "On the wall of Ophel" Jotham had "built much". (2Ch_27:3) Hosea (Hos_8:14) and Micah (Mic_4:11) also notice the trust of Judah in her fortresses, and threaten their destruction.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Wall - To which you trusted for your defense.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

The glory of nature is followed by what is lofty and glorious in the world of men, such as magnificent fortifications, grand commercial buildings, and treasures which minister to the lust of the eye. "As upon every high tower, so upon every fortified wall. As upon all ships of Tarshish, so upon all works of curiosity." It was by erecting fortifications for offence and defence, both lofty and steep (bâzur, praeruptus, from bâzar, abrumpere, secernere), that Uzziah and Jotham especially endeavoured to serve Jerusalem and the land at large. The chronicler relates, with reference to Uzziah, in 2 Chron 26, that he built strong towers above "the corner-gate, the valley-gate, and the southern point of the cheesemakers' hollow," and fortified these places, which had probably been till that time the weakest points in Jerusalem; also that he built towers in the desert (probably in the desert between Beersheba and Gaza, to increase the safety of the land, and the numerous flocks which were pastured in the shephelah, i.e., the western portion of southern Palestine). With regard to Jotham, it is related in both the book of Kings (Kg2 15:32.) and the Chronicles, that he built the upper gate of the temple; and in the Chronicles (Ch2 27:1-9) that he fortified the 'Ofel, i.e., the southern spur of the temple hill, still more strongly, and built cities on the mountains of Judah, and erected castles and towers in the forests (to watch for hostile attacks and ward them off). Hezekiah also distinguished himself by building enterprises of this kind (Ch2 32:27-30). But the allusion to the ships of Tarshish takes us to the times of Uzziah and Jotham, and not to those of Hezekiah (as Psa 48:7 does to the time of Jehoshaphat); for the seaport town of Elath, which was recovered by Uzziah, was lost again to the kingdom of Judah during the reign of Ahaz. Jewish ships sailed from this Elath (Ailath) through the Red Sea and round the coast of Africa to the harbour of Tartessus, the ancient Phoenician emporium of the maritime region watered by the Baetis (Guadalquivir), which abounded in silver, and then returned through the Pillars of Hercules (the Straits of Gibraltar: vid., Duncker, Gesch. i. 312-315). It was to these Tartessus vessels that the expression "ships of Tarshish" primarily referred, though it was afterwards probably applied to mercantile ships in general. The following expression, "works of curiosity" (sechiyyoth hachemdah), is taken in far too restricted a sense by those who limit it, as the lxx have done, to the ships already spoken of, or understand it, as Gesenius does, as referring to beautiful flags. Jerome's rendering is correct: "et super omne quod visu pulcrum est" (and upon everything beautiful to look at); seciyyâh, from sâcâh, to look, is sight generally. The reference therefore is to all kinds of works of art, whether in sculpture or paintings (mascith is used of both), which delighted the observer by their imposing, tasteful appearance. Possibly, however, there is a more especial reference to curiosities of art and nature, which were brought by the trading vessels from foreign lands.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

To trees and hills he now adds walls and towers, as a third class of objects with which the ideas of loftiness and strength are commonly associated. “And upon every high tower and upon every fenced wall,” literally, cut off (i.e., rendered inaccessible by being fortified).

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Prophecies of Isaiah (1846–1847; New York: Scribner, 1870–1878) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The tower. The tower on the royal palace..)

Ibn Ezra on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Yalkut, Sifsei Chachomim Chumash, Metsudah Publications, 2009” (CC BY 4.0); and “Commentary of Ibn Ezra on Isaiah - trans. by M. Friedlander, 1873” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.