Isaiah 34:12

Isa 34:12 They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none [shall be] there, and all her princes shall be nothing.

Ver. 12. They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom.] The Venetians have magistrates called pregadi; because at first men were prayed to take the office, and to help to govern the State: but here were none left for such a purpose.

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.

Meaning, here shall be neither order nor policy, nor state of commonweal.

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

Rather, "As to her nobles, there shall be none there who shall declare a kingdom," that is, a king [MAURER]; or else, "There shall be no one there whom they shall call to the kingdom" [ROSENMULLER] (Isa 3:6, &c.). Idumea was at first governed by dukes (Gen 36:15); out of them the king wan chosen when the constitution became a monarchy.

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

(12) They shall call the nobles thereof . . .—The monarchy of Edom seems to have been elective, its rulers being known, not as kings, but by the title which the English version renders by “dukes” (Gen_36:15-43). It will be noticed that no chief in the list of dukes is the son of his predecessor. Isaiah fore tells as part of the utter collapse of Edom that there shall be neither electors nor any to elect.

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

12. They shall call the nobles … there] A very obscure sentence, probably through a defect in the text. The rendering of E.V. might be maintained if with Prof. Weir we suppose a transposition of words in the original; the inference being that the monarchy in Edom was elective (cf. Gen_36:31 ff.). More likely, however, “her nobles” is the subject of a sentence the rest of which is now lost; and the following words are to be translated “and there is no kingdom there which they may proclaim.”

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.

They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be there,.... They shall call them to take upon them the kingdom and government, and there shall be none to do it, or that will care to do it; or rather there will be no kingdom to take unto them. The words may be rendered either, "as for the nobles thereof, not there a kingdom shall they be called" (p); or, "the nobles shall call"; or, "they shall call the nobles", and "there shall be no kingdom" (q); the kingdom of the beast, as it is called, Rev 16:10 shall be no more; and though the cardinals, who are like to nobles, may call for it, and expect it, or be called to it, yet to no purpose; this kingdom will not only be full of darkness, but utterly destroyed:

and all her princes shall be nothing; shall come to nothing; the above mentioned cardinals, who are clothed and live like princes, these shall be no more; the same with the merchants of the earth, which like the merchants of Tyre are princes, Rev 18:3.

(p) "nobiles ejus, et non ibi regnum vocabuntur", Forerius. (q) "Ingenuos ejus vocabunt, et non erit ibi regnum", Tigurine version.

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

They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom - A more correct rendering of this would be, ‘As to the nobles, they shall call them, but there shall be there no kingdom.’ The idea is, that the kingdom would be desolate; there would be no people to rule. Or, there will be no nobles there who shall survive the destruction, and who can undertake the government of the state. The idea is taken from a government or constitution where the monarch is chosen from the ranks of the nobility. Idumea was formerly governed, as we have seen (see the Introduction to the chapter), by dukes or princes; and it is probable that when it became a monarchy it was a part of the constitution that the sovereign should be chosen from their ranks. The idea here is, that none would be left who could be called to the throne; or if any were left, they would be unwilling to undertake the government of a country where all was disorder and confusion.

And all her princes shall be nothing - Long since Idumea has ceased to be a kingdom, and there are neither nobles nor princes there, nor are there any remains of an organized and independent government.

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

They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be there; they shall endeavour to heal their breaches, but in vain; the remnant of the people shall seek for any fit person, and offer the kingdom to him; but they shall not find any such who shall be willing to undertake the government.

Shall be nothing; either shall be lost and cut off, or shall have no courage or strength left in them.

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

They shall call the nobles, etc.; rather, as for her nobles, there shall be none there for them to call to the kingdom. The nobles are termed horim, probably because the right of succession to the kingdom was vested in the descendants of the Horites, from whom the Edomites took their territory. (Gen_36:20, Gen_36:29, Gen_36:30) These having died out, there would be no one to appoint as king.

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

None - They shall not find any willing to undertake the government. Nothing - Shall have no courage or strength left in them.

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

“Her caves and there is no one there (i.e., her uninhabited or empty caves) they will (still) call a kingdom, and all her chiefs will be cessation” (i.e., cease to be). The great variety of explanations which have been given of this verse, and the harshness of construction with which most of them are chargeable, may serve as an excuse for the suggestion of a new one, not as certainly correct, but as possibly entitled to consideration. All interpreters coincide in giving to the first noun, the sense of nobles, which it certainly has in several places. (See 1Ki 21:8; 1Ki 21:11; Neh 2:16; Neh 4:14). But in several others, it no less certainly means holes or caves. (See 1Sa 14:11; Job 30:6; Nah 2:12). Now it is matter of history, not only that Edom was full of caverns, but that these were inhabited, and that the aboriginal inhabitants, expelled by Esau, were expressly called Horites, as being troglodytes or inhabitants of caverns (Gen 14:6; Gen 36:20; Deu 2:12; Deu 2:22). This being the case, the entire depopulation of the country, and especially the destruction of its princes, might be naturally and poetically expressed by saying that the kingdom of Edom should be thenceforth a kingdom of deserted caverns. How appropriate such a description would be to the actual condition of the country, and particularly to its ancient capital, may be seen from Robinson’s account of Petra (Palestine, II pp. 514-537).

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

As for its nobles, there are none who proclaim the kingdom Its princes stand, and none of them calls upon himself the name of ruling and kingdom.

nothing Destruction.

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.

חוריה The nobles thereof. They are compared with the white colour; the people of the lower class are called the black (Prov. 22:29).

יקראו They shall be called. Lit., They—the people—will call them. למלוכה ═ מלוכה to the kingdom.

אפס Nothing.

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.