Isaiah 25:5

Isa 25:5 Thou shalt bring down the noise of strangers, as the heat in a dry place; [even] the heat with the shadow of a cloud: the branch of the terrible ones shall be brought low.

Ver. 5. As the heat in a dry place.] Where the insolonce of these strangers from the life of God, the Antichristian rabble, the stir and ado they make, is resembled to a heat and drought that doth parch and scorch the godly; God’s protection of his to a thick shadow.

The branch of the terrible ones shall be brought low.] Some read the text thus: As the heat is abated with a thick shadow, so the song or chanting of the terrible ones was abased. Others the whole verse thus: As the heat in a drought, thou hast brought down the stir of the strangers; heat, I say, with the shadow of a cloud; which (heat) did answer (a life) to the branches of the terrible ones. That is, say they, served well their turn, and was most commodious for the wicked, who think their branches spread and flourish when the godly are scorched with calamities.

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.

Isa 25:5. Thou shall bring down the wise of strangers — The tumultuous noise, as the word properly signifies; the rage and furious attempts of those heathen nations that fought against God’s people. As the heat in a dry place — With as much ease as thou dost allay the heat of a dry place, by the shadow of thy clouds, or by the rain which falls from black and shadowy clouds. Here again, as in Isa 25:2, instead of strangers, Bishop Lowth reads, the proud. The branch of the terrible ones — Their arm or power, as a branch is the arm of a tree; shall be brought low — Shall be humbled and broken.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

As a cloud shadoweth from the heat of the sun, so shall God assuage the rejoicing of the wicked against the godly.

Meaning, that as the heat is abated by the rain, so shall God bring down the rage of the wicked.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Translate, "As the heat in a dry land (is brought down by the shadow of a cloud, so) thou shalt bring down the tumult (the shout of triumph over their enemies) of strangers (foreigners); and as the heat by the shadow of the cloud (is brought low), so the branch (the offspring) of the terrible ones shall be brought low." PARKHURST translates the Hebrew for "branch," the exulting song. JEROME translates the last clause, "And as when the heat burns under a cloud, thou shalt make the branch of the terrible ones to wither"; the branch withering even under the friendly shade of a cloud typifies the wicked brought to ruin, not for want of natural means of prosperity, but by the immediate act of God.

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 5. Of strangers - "Of the proud"] The same mistake here as in Isa 25:2: see the note there. See Clarke on Isa 25:2. Here זדים zedim, the proud, is parallel to עריצים aritsim, the formidable: as in Ps 54:5, and Ps 86:14.

The heat with the shadow of a cloud - "As the heat by a thick cloud"] For חרב choreb, the Syriac, Chaldee, Vulgate, and two MSS. read כחרב kechoreb, which is a repetition of the beginning of the foregoing parallel line; and the verse taken out of the parallel form, and more fully expressed, would run thus: "As a thick cloud interposing tempers the heat of the sun on the burnt soil; so shalt thou, by the interposition of thy power, bring low and abate the tumult of the proud, and the triumph of the formidable."

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

(5) Thou shalt bring down the noise of strangers . . .—The thought of Isa_25:4 is reproduced with a variation of imagery, the scorching “heat” in a “dry” (or parched) “land.” This is deprived of its power to harm, by the presence of Jehovah, as the welcome shadow of a cloud hides the sun’s intolerable blaze. (Comp. Isa_32:2.) It is noticeable that the LXX. in both passages gives “Sion” for “dry place” (Heb. tsayôn), perhaps following a various reading, perhaps interpreting.

The branch of the terrible ones . . .—Better, the song. The Hebrew noun is a rare one, but is found in this sense in Song Son_2:12. The triumph song of the dread oppressors is thought of as blighting the world like a spell of evil; but this also is to be brought low, and hushed in silence.

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

5. Render: As heat in a dry place (cf. Isa_32:2) Thou humblest the pride of aliens; (as) heat by the shadow of a cloud the song of the tyrants is brought low. The meaning is that as natural heat, however intense, is abated by an intervening cloud, so Jehovah has means of bringing to an end the fiercest oppression to which His people can be exposed.

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.

Thou shalt bring down the noise of strangers,.... Such as are strangers to God and godliness, to Christ, his Gospel, and truths, to the Spirit and his operations of grace; the clamour and noise of such against true religion, and the professors of it, their persecuting rage and fury, this the Lord in his own time will bring down, and cause to cease, and it shall be heard no more:

as the heat in a dry place: which parches the earth, and burns and dries up the grass and fruits of it; to which persecution is compared:

even the heat with the shadow of a cloud; as that is brought down, and caused to cease by the shadow of a cloud, sheltering from the scorching beams of the sun, and by letting down rain, which moistens the earth; so the Lord protects his people from the fury of persecution, and abates it by the interposition of his power and providence; and at last puts an end to it:

the branch of the terrible ones shall be made low; meaning the most eminent of them; a branch being put for a most eminent person, Isa 4:2 perhaps the pope of Rome is meant, the head of the antichristian party, the principal of the terrible persecutors, who shall be brought low and destroyed by Christ, at his coming. Some render it, "the song of the terrible ones shall be brought low" (d); it will be brought a note lower; their triumphing will be at an end; the voice of harpers and musicians, of pipers and trumpeters, will be heard no more among them; but instead thereof weeping and howling, Rev 18:9.

(d) "cantus fortium humiliabitur, vel humiliabit se", Vatablus; see Cant. ii. 12.

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

Thou shalt bring down the noise - The tumult; the sound which they make in entering into battle; or the note of triumph, and the sound of revelry. The phrase may refer either to their shout of exultation over their vanquished foes; or to the usual sound of revelry; or to the hum of business in a vast city.

Of strangers - Of foreigners (see the note at Isa 25:2).

As the heat in a dry place - The parallelism here requires that we should suppose the phrase ‘with the shadow of a cloud’ to be supplied in this hemistich, as it is obscurely expressed in our translation by the word ‘even,’ and it would then read thus:

As the beat in a dry place (by the shadow of a cloud),

The noise of the strangers shalt thou humble;

As the heat by the shadow of a cloud,

The exultation of the formidable ones shalt thou bring low.

The idea thus is plain. Heat pours down intensely on the earth, and if unabated would wither up every green thing, and dry up every stream and fountain. But a cloud intervenes, and checks the burning rays of the sun. So the wrath of the ‘terrible ones,’ the anger of the Babylonians, raged against the Jews. But the mercy of God interposed. It was like the intervening of a cloud to shut out the burning rays of the sun. It stayed the fury of their wrath, “and rendered them impotent to do injury, just as the intense burning rays of the sun are completely checked by an interposing cloud.

The branch of the terrible ones - This is a very unhappy translation. The word זמיר zâmiyr is indeed used to denote a branch, or bough, as derived from זמר zâmar, “to prune a vine;” but it also has the I sense of “a song;” a song of praise, or a song of exultation, from a second signification of זמר zâmar, “to sing; perhaps” from the song with which the work of the vineyard was usually accompanied. See the verb used in this sense in Jdg 5:3; Psa 9:12; Psa 30:5; Psa 47:7; and the word which occurs here (zamir) used in the sense of a song in Psa 119:54; 2Sa 23:1; Job 35:10. Here it is undoubtedly used in the sense of a song, meaning either a shout of victory or of revelry; and the idea of the prophet is, that this would be brought low by the destruction of Babylon, and by the return of the captive Jews to their own land.

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

Away. Cyrus (Calmet) shall reduce Babylon the great. (Haydock)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

The noise; the tumultuous noise, as the word properly signifies, which he called their blast in the foregoing verse; by which he means their rage and furious attempts, which are commonly managed with much noise and clamour.

Of strangers; of those strange and heathen nations that fought against God’s people.

Even the heat with the shadow of a cloud; with as much ease as thou dost in the course of thy common providence allay the heat of a dry season and place, either by the shadow of thy clouds, or by the rain which falleth from black and shadowy clouds.

The branch; the arm or power, as a branch is the arm of a tree. Or, the prince or commanders; for the word branch is sometimes put for a person of eminent place and power, as Psa 80:15; Isa 4:2; Zec 3:8; 6:12. But others render the word, the song, as it is used, Son 2:12, their jovial and triumphant song.

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

5. Noise of strangers — The roar of a battle engagement. The “strangers” are the hostile ones, probably Chaldeans, the same as the “terrible ones.” The branch, etc., should read the song (strange, it was rendered “branch”) of the terrible ones — their triumphal song of the battle. The parallelism here is peculiarly inverted and difficult. We may properly read it thus: “As heat with natural stillness comes down into a dry place, so shalt thou, Jehovah, bring down, or make more quiet, the battle roar; as heat is lessened by an overshadowing cloud, so wilt thou lessen the boasting song of victory.”

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

Thou shalt bring down. The past foreshadows the future. What God had done in "bringing down" the enemies of his saints, he would do again and again. He could as easily bring to naught the clamorous uprising of heathen nations (strangers) against his people, as temper the sun"s heat by the interposition of a thick cloud. The branch; rather, the song. (comp. Isa_24:16 Job_35:10 Psa_95:2 Psa_119:51) The exultant chant of triumph which the ungodly are sure to raise as they deem their victory over the people of God complete, will be stopped in mid-career, and "brought low," or reduced to silence, by the crushing overthrow predicted in Isaiah 24.

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

The noise - The tumultuous noise, as the word properly signifies; the rage and furious attempts of those Heathen nations that fought against God's people. As the heat - With as much ease as thou dost allay the heat of a dry place, by the shadow of thy clouds, or by the rain which falls from black and shadowy clouds. The branch - The arm or power, as a branch is the arm of a tree.

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

“As the heat in a drought (or in a dry place), the noise of strangers wilt Thou bring down; (as) heat by the shadow of a cloud, (so) shall the song of the tyrants be brought low.” The sufferings of Israel under oppression shall be mitigated and relieved as easily and quietly as the intense heat of the sun by an intervening cloud. The noise mentioned in the first clause is probably the tumult of battle and conquest, and the song in the last clause the triumphal song of the victorious enemy. The meaning branch is more agreeable to usage, but not so appropriate in this connection.

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

Like heat in the dry season In the dry season, when the seeds dry out to be cut off, so shall You humble the multitude of the strangers.

like heat with a thick cloud When the heavens thicken with thick clouds in the hot season, with which everyone rejoices, so will the song of the righteous be sung concerning the cutting down of the tyrants and their downfall.

the downfall of (lit., the cutting down of. זְמִיר). An expression related to (Lev. 25:4): “You shall not prune (תִזְמֹר).”

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

בציון In a dry place. Comp. בארץ ציה in a dry land (Jer. 2:6).

חורב בצל עב ונו׳ The heat in the shadow of a cloud, etc. Repetition of the same idea.

בצל עב In the shadow of a cloud, that is, in the shadow which hides the clouds and makes them invisible.

זמיר עריצים The song of the terrible ones. It is the same as שאון זרים; comp. זמירות songs (24:16).

יענה Shall be low. It is an intransitive verb of the same root as עני poor (Deut. 24:12); לענות to be humbled (Ex. 10:3)

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.