
Text -- Isaiah 8:19-22 (NET)




Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics



collapse allCommentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)
The Israelites, who are fallen from God, into superstition and idolatry.

My children, whom the prophet arms against the common temptation.

Wesley: Isa 8:19 - -- That speak with a low voice, as these two words signify, which they affected to do, speaking rather inwardly in their bellies, than audibly with their...
That speak with a low voice, as these two words signify, which they affected to do, speaking rather inwardly in their bellies, than audibly with their mouths.

Wesley: Isa 8:19 - -- This answer the prophet puts into their mouths, doth not every nation, in cases of difficulty, seek to their gods? Much more should we do so, that hav...
This answer the prophet puts into their mouths, doth not every nation, in cases of difficulty, seek to their gods? Much more should we do so, that have the only true God for our God.

Wesley: Isa 8:19 - -- That is, for living men to enquire of the living God, is proper and reasonable; but it is highly absurd for them to forsake him, and to seek dead idol...
That is, for living men to enquire of the living God, is proper and reasonable; but it is highly absurd for them to forsake him, and to seek dead idols, either to the images, or to the spirits of dead men, which are supposed to speak in them.

Wesley: Isa 8:20 - -- Let this dispute between you and them be determined by God's word, which is here and in many other places called the law, to signify their obligation ...
Let this dispute between you and them be determined by God's word, which is here and in many other places called the law, to signify their obligation to believe and obey it; and the testimony, because it is a witness between God and man, of God's will, and of man's duty.

Wesley: Isa 8:20 - -- This proceeds from the darkness of their minds, they are blind, and cannot see.
This proceeds from the darkness of their minds, they are blind, and cannot see.

Sorely distressed, and destitute of food, and all necessaries.

Wesley: Isa 8:21 - -- Either because he doth not relieve them; or because by his foolish counsels, he brought them into these miseries.
Either because he doth not relieve them; or because by his foolish counsels, he brought them into these miseries.

Their idol, to whom they trusted, and whom they now find unable to help them.

Wesley: Isa 8:22 - -- Finding no help from heaven, they turn their eyes downward, looking hither and thither for comfort.
Finding no help from heaven, they turn their eyes downward, looking hither and thither for comfort.
Consult in your national difficulties.

JFB: Isa 8:19 - -- Necromancers, spirit charmers. So Saul, when he had forsaken God (1Sa 28:7, &c.), consulted the witch of En-dor in his difficulties. These follow in t...
Necromancers, spirit charmers. So Saul, when he had forsaken God (1Sa 28:7, &c.), consulted the witch of En-dor in his difficulties. These follow in the wake of idolatry, which prevailed under Ahaz (2Ki 16:3-4, 2Ki 16:10). He copied the soothsaying as he did the idolatrous "altar" of Damascus (compare Lev 20:6, which forbids it, Isa 19:3).

JFB: Isa 8:19 - -- Men claiming supernatural knowledge; from the old English, "to wit," that is, know.
Men claiming supernatural knowledge; from the old English, "to wit," that is, know.

JFB: Isa 8:19 - -- Rather "chirp faintly," as young birds do; this sound was generally ascribed to departed spirits; by ventriloquism the soothsayers caused a low sound ...
Rather "chirp faintly," as young birds do; this sound was generally ascribed to departed spirits; by ventriloquism the soothsayers caused a low sound to proceed as from a grave, or dead person. Hence the Septuagint renders the Hebrew for "necromancers" here "ventriloquists" (compare Isa 29:4).

JFB: Isa 8:19 - -- The answer which Isaiah recommends to be given to those advising to have recourse to necromancers.
The answer which Isaiah recommends to be given to those advising to have recourse to necromancers.

JFB: Isa 8:19 - -- "should one, for the safety of the living, seek unto (consult) the dead?" [GESENIUS]. LOWTH renders it, "In place of (consulting) the living, should o...
"should one, for the safety of the living, seek unto (consult) the dead?" [GESENIUS]. LOWTH renders it, "In place of (consulting) the living, should one consult the dead?"

JFB: Isa 8:20 - -- The revelation of God by His prophet (Isa 8:16), to which he directs them to refer those who would advise necromancy.
The revelation of God by His prophet (Isa 8:16), to which he directs them to refer those who would advise necromancy.

JFB: Isa 8:20 - -- English Version understands "they" as the necromancers. But the Hebrew rendered "because" is not this but "who"; and "if not," ought rather to be "sha...
English Version understands "they" as the necromancers. But the Hebrew rendered "because" is not this but "who"; and "if not," ought rather to be "shall they not"; or, truly they shall speak according to this word, who have no morning light (so the Hebrew, that is, prosperity after the night of sorrows) dawning on them [MAURER and G. V. SMITH]. They who are in the dark night of trial, without a dawn of hope, shall surely say so, Do not seek, as we did, to necromancy, but to the law," &c. The law perhaps includes here the law of Moses, which was the "Magna Charta" on which prophetism commented [KITTO].

JFB: Isa 8:21-22 - -- More detailed description of the despair, which they shall fall into, who sought necromancy instead of God; Isa 8:20 implies that too late they shall ...
More detailed description of the despair, which they shall fall into, who sought necromancy instead of God; Isa 8:20 implies that too late they shall see how much better it would have been for them to have sought "to the law," &c. (Deu 32:31). But now they are given over to despair. Therefore, while seeing the truth of God, they only "curse their King and God"; foreshadowing the future, like conduct of those belonging to the "kingdom of the beast," when they shall be visited with divine plagues (Rev 16:11; compare Jer 18:12).

JFB: Isa 8:21-22 - -- A more grievous famine than the temporary one in Ahaz' time, owing to Assyria; then there was some food, but none now (Isa 7:15, Isa 7:22; Lev 26:3-5,...
A more grievous famine than the temporary one in Ahaz' time, owing to Assyria; then there was some food, but none now (Isa 7:15, Isa 7:22; Lev 26:3-5, Lev 26:14-16, Lev 26:20).


JFB: Isa 8:21-22 - -- Whether they look up to heaven, or down towards the land of Judea, nothing but despair shall present itself.
Whether they look up to heaven, or down towards the land of Judea, nothing but despair shall present itself.

JFB: Isa 8:21-22 - -- Rather, "thick darkness" (Jer 23:12). Driven onward, as by a sweeping storm. The Jewish rejection of "their King and God," Messiah, was followed by al...
Rather, "thick darkness" (Jer 23:12). Driven onward, as by a sweeping storm. The Jewish rejection of "their King and God," Messiah, was followed by all these awful calamities.
Clarke: Isa 8:19 - -- Should not a people seek "Should they seek"- After ידרש yidrosh , the Septuagint, repeating the word, read הידרש hayidrosh : Ουκ εÎ...
Should not a people seek "Should they seek"- After

Clarke: Isa 8:20 - -- To the law and to the testimony "Unto the command, and unto the testimony"- "Is not תעודה teudah here the attested prophecy, Isa 8:1-4? and ...
To the law and to the testimony "Unto the command, and unto the testimony"- "Is not
Because there is no light in them "In which there is no obscurity"-
"A day of darkness and obscurity
Of cloud, and of thick vapor
As the gloom spread upon the mountains
A people mighty and numerous.
Where the gloom,

Clarke: Isa 8:21 - -- Hardly bestead "Distressed"- Instead of × ×§×©×” niksheh , distressed, the Vulgate, Chaldee, and Symmachus manifestly read × ×›×©×œ nichshal , stu...
Hardly bestead "Distressed"- Instead of
And look upward "And he shall cast his eyes upward"- The learned professor Michaelis, treating of this place (Not. in de Sacr. Poes. Hebr. Prael. ix.) refers to a passage in the Koran which is similar to it. As it is a very celebrated passage, and on many accounts remarkable, I shall give it here at large, with the same author’ s farther remarks upon it in another place of his writings. It must be noted here that the learned professor renders
This brings the image of Isaiah more near in one circumstance to that of Mohammed than it appears to be in my translation: -
"Labid, contemporary with Mohammed, the last of the seven Arabian poets who had the honor of having their poems, one of each, hung up in the entrance of the temple of Mecca, struck with the sublimity of a passage in the Koran, became a convert to Mohammedism; for he concluded that no man could write in such a manner unless he were Divinely inspired
"One must have a curiosity to examine a passage which had so great an effect upon Labid. It is, I must own, the finest that I know in the whole Koran: but I do not think it will have a second time the like effect, so as to tempt any one of my readers to submit to circumcision. It is in the second chapter, where he is speaking of certain apostates from the faith. ‘ They are like,’ saith he, ‘ to a man who kindles a light. As soon as it begins to shine, God takes from them the light, and leaves them in darkness that they see nothing. They are deaf, dumb, and blind; and return not into the right way. Or they fare as when a cloud, full of darkness, thunder, and lightning, covers the heaven. When it bursteth, they stop their ears with their fingers, with deadly fear; and God hath the unbelievers in his power. The lightning almost robbeth them of their eyes: as often as it flasheth they go on by its light; and when it vanisheth in darkness, they stand still. If God pleased, they would retain neither hearing nor sight.’ That the thought is beautiful, no one will deny; and Labid, who had probably a mind to flatter Mohammed, was lucky in finding a passage in the Koran so little abounding in poetical beauties, to which his conversion might with any propriety be ascribed. It was well that he went no farther; otherwise his taste for poetry might have made him again an infidel."Michaelis, Erpenii Arabische Grammatik abgekurzt, Vorrede, s. 32.
Calvin: Isa 8:19 - -- 19.And when they shall say to you Isaiah continues the former subject, which is, that all the godly should not only use the authority of God as a shi...
19.And when they shall say to you Isaiah continues the former subject, which is, that all the godly should not only use the authority of God as a shield, but should fortify themselves with it as a brazen wall, to contend against all ungodliness. He therefore entreats them to resist courageously if any one shall tempt them to superstition and unlawful modes of worship. The plural number is employed by him in order to signify that it was a vice which pervaded all ranks, and which abounded everywhere; as if he had said, “I see what will happen; you will be placed in great danger; for your countrymen will endeavor to draw you away from the true God; for, being themselves ungodly, they will wish you to resemble them.†At the same time he shows how wickedly they had departed from God’s law and covenant, by shamelessly pushing forward diviners and soothsayers whose name ought to have been held by them in abhorrence.
Should not a people ask counsel of their God? Some read these words in connection with what goes before, applying them to the ungodly, as if this were a pretense which they abused in order to deceive the simple; because there is no nation that has not oracles and revelations, but every nation consults its gods, or, in place of them, magicians and soothsayers. But what I reckon to be the more correct view is, that Isaiah advises his disciples to give this answer if they shall happen to be tempted to wicked modes of worship. Still the meaning is not fully cleared up; for this passage is commonly expounded as if it were a comparison drawn from the less to the greater. “What! seeing that the Gentiles consult their gods, and yet these gods are false, shall we not more highly esteem him whom we know to be the true God, and who hath revealed himself to us by so many proofs? What a shame will it be if their idols are more highly valued by the Gentiles than God is by us!â€
But I interpret this as referring to the Jews themselves, who were called by way of eminence (
From the living to the dead The preposition
But when I examine the whole matter more closely, I choose rather to consider

Calvin: Isa 8:20 - -- 20.To the law and testimony There are indeed various ways of explaining this passage. Some think that it is the form of an oath, as if the Prophet we...
20.To the law and testimony There are indeed various ways of explaining this passage. Some think that it is the form of an oath, as if the Prophet were swearing by the law that they were apostates, and would entice others to a similar apostasy. But I take a different view of it, which is, that he directs our attention to the law and the testimony; for the preposition
It is therefore a very high commendation of the law that it contains the doctrine of salvation, and the rule of a good and happy life. For this reason also he justly forbids us to turn aside from it in the smallest degree; as if he should say, “Forsake all the superstitions on which they are so madly bent; for they are not satisfied with having God alone, and call to their aid innumerable inventions.†In this manner also Christ speaks,
They have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them, (Luk 16:29;)
for though Abraham is there brought forward as the speaker, still it is a permanent oracle which is uttered by the mouth of God. We are therefore enjoined to hear the law and the prophets, that we may not be under the influence of eager curiosity, or seek to learn anything from the dead. If the law and the prophets had not been sufficient, the Lord would not have refused to allow us other assistance.
Hence we learn that everything which is added to the word must be condemned and rejected. It is the will of the Lord that we shall depend wholly on his word, and that our knowledge shall be confined within its limits; and therefore, if we lend our ears to others, we take a liberty which he has forbidden, and offer to him a gross insult. Everything that is introduced by men on their own authority will be nothing else than a corruption of the word; and consequently, if we wish to obey God, we must reject all other instructors. He likewise warns us that, if we abide by the law of the Lord, we shall be protected against superstitions and wicked modes of worship; for, as Paul calls
the word of God is the sword of the Spirit,
(Eph 6:17,)
so by the word, Satan and all his contrivances are put to flight. We ought therefore to flee to him whenever we shall be attacked by enemies, that, being armed with it, we may contend valiantly, and at length put them to flight.
If they shall not speak I do not relate all the expositions of this passage, for that would be too tedious; and I consider the true exposition to be so well supported that it will easily refute all others. It is usually explained to mean that wicked men trifle with their inventions, and expose their impostures to sale, because there is no light in them; that is, because they have not ordinary understanding. For my own part, I consider this to be a reason for encouraging believers to perseverance; that if wicked men depart from the true doctrine, they will evince nothing else than their own blindness and darkness. We ought to despise their folly, that it may not be an obstruction to us; as Christ also teaches us that we should boldly set aside such persons, so as not to be in any degree affected by their blindness or obstinacy. “ They are blind, †says he, “ and leaders of the blind. Do you wish of your own accord to perish with them?†(Mat 15:14.)
The Prophet therefore enjoins us to ascribe to the word such high authority, that we shall venture boldly to despise the whole world, if the word be opposed by them; for if even angels should do this, we might condemn them also by the authority of the word.
If an angel from heaven, says Paul, preach anything else, let him be accursed. (Gal 1:8.)
How much more boldly, therefore, shall we condemn men who set themselves in opposition to God? The mode of expression is emphatic, If they shall not speak according to this word. He brings an accusation of blindness against every man who does not instantly and without dispute adopt this sentiment, that we ought not to be wise beyond the law of God.

Calvin: Isa 8:21 - -- 21.Then they shall pass through that land Not to permit believers to be ensnared by the common errors, he adds how dreadful is the punishment which a...
21.Then they shall pass through that land Not to permit believers to be ensnared by the common errors, he adds how dreadful is the punishment which awaits the ungodly when they have revolted from God, and have labored to induce others to join in the same revolt. The passage is somewhat obscure; but the obscurity arises from the want of proper attention in examining the words. The verb
When they shall be hungry The Prophet appears to point out the conversion of the Jews, as if he had said, “When they have been weighed down by afflictions they will at length repent;†and undoubtedly this is the remedy by which the Lord generally cures the disease of obstinacy. Yet if any one suppose that the word hunger describes the indignation and roaring of the wicked without repentance, it may be stated that it includes not only hunger and thirst, but, by a figure of speech in which a part is taken for the whole, (
They shall fret themselves 137 They will begin to be displeased with themselves, and to loathe all the supports on which they had formerly relied; and this is the beginning of repentance; for in prosperity we flatter ourselves, but in sore adversity we loathe everything that is around us. But if it be thought preferable to refer it to the reprobate, this word denotes the bitterness, which is so far from leading them to humility that it rather aggravates their rage.
And curse their king and their God By King some suppose that he means God. In this sense Zephaniah used the word
And look upward. He describes the trembling and agitation of mind by which wretched men are tormented until they have learned steadfastly to look up. There is, indeed, some proficiency, as I lately hinted, when, in consequence of having been taught by afflictions and chastisements, we throw away our indifference and endeavor to find out remedies. But we must advance farther. Fixing our eye on God alone we must not gaze on all sides, or through fickleness be tossed to and fro. (Eph 4:14.) However that may be, Isaiah threatens the utter destruction of the Jews; for so thoroughly were they hardened, that their rebellion could not be subdued by a light and moderate chastisement from the hand of God. Yet it might be taken in a good sense, that the Jews will at length raise their eyes to heaven; but in that case we must read separately what follows: —

Calvin: Isa 8:22 - -- 22.And when they shall look to the earth The meaning will then be, that the Jews will be converted to God, because they will be deprived of every ass...
22.And when they shall look to the earth The meaning will then be, that the Jews will be converted to God, because they will be deprived of every assistance on the earth, and will see nothing but frightful calamities, to whatever side they turn their eyes.
Behold, trouble and darkness These words are partly figurative and partly literal; for by dimness and darkness he means nothing else than adversity, according to the custom of Scripture. But he adds, driven to darkness. This aggravates the calamity to an amazing degree; for if one who is in darkness be driven or pushed forward, he is far more in danger of stumbling than before. Thus he intimates, that to a heavy calamity another still heavier will be added, that they may be more completely ruined; for he means nothing else than that the judgments of God will be so dreadful, and the punishments so severe, that, whether they will or not, they shall be constrained to look up to heaven.
Defender: Isa 8:19 - -- Throughout Scripture, the Lord unequivocally condemns consultation with spirit mediums, fortune-tellers, astrologers, witches and all other occult sou...
Throughout Scripture, the Lord unequivocally condemns consultation with spirit mediums, fortune-tellers, astrologers, witches and all other occult sources of supposed knowledge and guidance. The New Age movement involves a plethora of such activities and should be avoided by all Christian believers."

Defender: Isa 8:20 - -- The "law and testimony" - that is, the written Word of God - provide all the counsel and guidance we need. The Holy Scriptures are given "that the man...
The "law and testimony" - that is, the written Word of God - provide all the counsel and guidance we need. The Holy Scriptures are given "that the man of God may be perfect" (2Ti 3:17)."
TSK: Isa 8:19 - -- Seek : Isa 19:3; Lev 20:6; Deu 18:11; 1Sa 28:8; 1Ch 10:13; 2Ch 33:6
that peep : Isa 29:4
should not : 1Sa 28:16; 2Ki 1:3; 2Pe 2:1
for the living : Psa...

TSK: Isa 8:20 - -- the law : Isa 8:16; Luk 10:26, Luk 16:29-31; Joh 5:39, Joh 5:46, Joh 5:47; Act 17:11; Gal. 3:8-29; Gal 4:21, Gal 4:22; 2Ti 3:15-17; 2Pe 1:19
it is : I...

TSK: Isa 8:21 - -- through : Isa 8:7, Isa 8:8
hardly bestead : Isa 9:20; Deu 28:33, Deu 28:34, Deu 28:53-57; 2Ki 25:3; Jer 14:18, Jer 52:6; Lam 4:4, Lam 4:5, Lam 4:9, La...

TSK: Isa 8:22 - -- look : Isa 5:30, Isa 9:1; 2Ch 15:5, 2Ch 15:6; Jer 13:16, Jer 30:6, Jer 30:7; Amo 5:18-20; Zep 1:14, Zep 1:15; Mat 8:12, Mat 24:29; Luk 21:25, Luk 21:2...

collapse allCommentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)
Barnes: Isa 8:19 - -- And when they shall say - When the people, instead of putting confidence in God, shall propose to apply to necromancers. In the time of Ahaz th...
And when they shall say - When the people, instead of putting confidence in God, shall propose to apply to necromancers. In the time of Ahaz the people were, as they were often, much inclined to idolatry; 2Ki 16:10. In their troubles and embarrassments, instead of looking to Yahweh, they imitated the example of surrounding nations, and applied for relief to those who professed to be able to hold converse with spirits. That it was common for idolatrous people to seek direction from those who professed that they had the power of divining, is well known; see Isa 19:3; Isa 29:4. It was expressly forbidden to the Jews to have recourse to those who made such professions; Lev 20:6; Deu 18:10-11. Yet, notwithstanding this express command, it is evident that it was no uncommon thing for the Jews to make application for such instructions; see the case of Saul, who made application to the woman of Endor, who professed to have a familiar spirit, in 1 Sam. 28:7-25. Among pagan nations, nothing was more common than for persons to profess to have contact with spirits, and to be under the influence of their inspiration. The oracle at Delphi, of this nature, was celebrated throughout Greece, and throughout the world. Kings and princes, warriors and nations, sought of the priestess who presided there, responses in undertaking any important enterprise, and were guided by her instructions; see the Travels of Anacharsis, vol. ii. 376ff.
Seek unto - Apply to for direction.
That hath familiar spirits - Hebrew,
And unto wizards - The word used here -
That peep - This word is properly used of young birds, and means to chirp, to pip; and also to make a small noise by the gentle opening of the mouth. It is then applied to the gentle whispering which the ancients ascribed to departed spirits; the small, low, shrill voice which they were supposed to use, and which, probably, those attempted to imitate who claimed the power of raising them to the earth. It was believed among all the ancient nations, that departed spirits did not speak out openly and clearly, but with an indistinct, low, gentle, suppressed voice. Thus, in Virgil:
- Pars tollere vocem
Exiguam .
AEneid, vi. 492.
- gemitus lachrymabilis imo
Auditur tumulo, et vox reddita ferter ad aures .
AEneid, iii. 39.
Thus Horace:
Umbrae cum Sagana resonarint triste et acutum .
Sat. lib i. 8, 40.
Thus Homer, speaking of the shade or spirit of Patroclus, says that it went with a whizzing sound:
He said, and with his longing arms essay’ d
In vain to grasp the visionary shade;
Like a thin smoke he sees the spirit fly
And hears a feeble, lamentable cry.
This night my friend, so late in battle lost,
Stood at my side a pensive, plaintive ghost.
Pope.
So, also, Lucian says of the infernal regions, ‘ The whizzing shades of the dead fly around us;’ see Gesenius in loc . and Rosenmuller; also Bochart’ s Hieroz., Part i. B. iii. ch. ii. p. 731.
And that mutter - The word used here -
Should not a people seek ... - Is it not proper that a people should inquire of the God that is worshipped, in order to be directed in perplexing and embarrassing events? Some have understood this to be a question of the idolaters, asking whether it was not right and proper for a people to seek counsel of those whom they worshipped as God. I understand it, however, as a question asked by the prophet, and as the language of strong and severe rebulge. ‘ You are seeking to idols, to the necromancers, and to the dead, But Yahweh is your God. And should not a people so signally favored, a people under his special care, apply to him, and seek his direction?’
For the living - On account of the affairs of the living. To ascertain what will be their lot, what is their duty, or what will occur to them.
To the dead - The necromancers pretended to have contact with the spirits of the dead. The prophet strongly exposes the absurdity of this. What could the dead know of this? How could they declare the future events respecting the living? Where was this authorized? People should seek God - the living God - and not pretend to hold consultation with the dead.

Barnes: Isa 8:20 - -- To the law ... - To the revelation which God has given. This is a solemn call of the prophet to try everything by the revealed will of God; see...
To the law ... - To the revelation which God has given. This is a solemn call of the prophet to try everything by the revealed will of God; see Isa 8:16.
If they speak not - If the necromancers - those that pretended to have contact with the dead.
According to this word - According to what God has revealed. By this standard all their pretended revelations were to be tried. By this standard all doctrines are still to be tried.
It is because - There has been a great variety of criticism upon this verse, but our translation expresses, probably, the true idea. The word rendered here ‘ because,’
No light - Margin, ‘ Morning.’ Hebrew
‘ If they speak not according to this word,
In which there is no obscurity.’
But there is no evidence that the word is ever used in this sense. Others suppose that the Arabic sense of the word is to be retained here, deception, or magic. ‘ If they speak not according to this oracle, in which there is no deception.’ But the word is not used in this sense in the Hebrew. The meaning is, probably, this: ‘ The law of God is the standard by which all professed communications from the invisible world are to be tested. If the necromancers deliver a doctrine which is not sustained by that, and not in accordance with the prophetic communications, it shows that they are in utter ignorance. There is not even the glimmering of the morning twilight; all is total night, and error, and obscurity with them, and they are not to be followed.’

Barnes: Isa 8:21 - -- And they shall pass - The people who have been consulting necromancers. This represents the condition of these who have sought for counsel and ...
And they shall pass - The people who have been consulting necromancers. This represents the condition of these who have sought for counsel and direction, and who have not found it. They shall be conscious of disappointment, and shall wander perplexed and alarmed through the land.
Through it - Through the land. They shall wander in it from one place to another, seeking direction and relief.
Hardly bestead - Oppressed, borne down, agitated. The meaning is, that the people would wander about, oppressed by the calamities that were coming upon the nation, and unalleviated by all that soothsayers and necromancers could do.
And hungry - Famished; as one effect of the great calamities that would afflict the nation.
They shall fret themselves - They shall be irritated at their own folly and weakness, and shall aggravate their sufferings by self-reproaches for having trusted to false gods.
Their king and their God - The Hebrew interpreters understand this of the false gods which they bad consulted, and in which they had trusted. But their looking upward, and the connection, seem to imply that they would rather curse the true God - the ‘ king and the God’ of the Jewish people. They would be subjected to the proofs of his displeasure, and would vent their malice by reproaches and curses.
And look upward - For relief. This denotes the condition of those in deep distress, instinctively casting their eyes to heaven for aid. Yet it is implied that they would do it with no right feeling, and that they would see there only the tokens of their Creator’ s displeasure.

Barnes: Isa 8:22 - -- And they shall look unto the earth - They would look upward and find no relief, and then in despair cast their eyes to the earth to obtain help...
And they shall look unto the earth - They would look upward and find no relief, and then in despair cast their eyes to the earth to obtain help there. Yet equally in vain. The whole image is one of intense anguish brought on the nation for leaving the counselor the true God.
And behold ... - see the note at Isa 5:30.
Trouble - Anguish, oppression,
Dimness of anguish - These words should be kept separate in the translation -
And they shall be driven to darkness - Hebrew,
Poole: Isa 8:19 - -- When they the Israelites, to whom I and my children are signs and wonders, who are fallen from God, and his true religion and worship, into superstit...
When they the Israelites, to whom I and my children are signs and wonders, who are fallen from God, and his true religion and worship, into superstition and idolatry, and will endeavour to seduce you into the same impiety, shall say unto you, my children, whom the prophet here arms against the common temptation.
Seek unto them for advice and help, and seek no more to the prophets, who have hitherto deluded you with vain words. This was the counsel of the ungodly and unbelieving Jews.
Wizards of whom see Lev 19:31 20:27 Deu 18:11 .
That peep, and that mutter that speak with a puling and low voice, as these two words signify; which they affected to do, speaking rather inwardly in their bellies, than outwardly and audibly with their mouths and voice, as the title of ventriloqui , commonly given to them, signifies.
Should not a people seek unto their God? this answer the prophet puts into their mouths, to the foregoing counsel. Doth not every nation, in cases of difficulty or distress, seek to their own gods for relief? Much more should we do so, that have the only true God for our God.
For the living to the dead shall they seek (which words are easily understood out of the foregoing clause) for the living, &c? That living men should inquire of the living God is proper and reasonable; but it is highly absurd for them to forsake him, and to seek to dead idols, either to the images, or to the spirits of dead men, which are supposed to dwell and speak in them.

Poole: Isa 8:20 - -- To the law and to the testimony let this dispute between you and them be determined by God’ s word, which is here and in many other places calle...
To the law and to the testimony let this dispute between you and them be determined by God’ s word, which is here and in many other places called
the law to signify their obligation to believe and obey it; and the testimony, because it is a witness between God and man of God’ s mind and will, and of man’ s duty; and so these two titles contain two arguments against these idolatrous practices.
If they your antagonists, that seek to pervert you, Isa 8:19 .
It is because there is no light in them this proceeds from the darkness of their minds, because they are blind, and will not see, and God hath shut their eyes that they cannot see. But these words are by divers learned interpreters understood not as a declaration of their ignorance, but a commination and prediction of their misery, light being most commonly used in Scripture for comfort and happiness, and darkness for sorrows and calamities. And this sense seems to be much favoured by the following passages. And then the words may be thus rendered, assuredly (for the Hebrew particle asher is frequently used as a note of asseveration, as 1Sa 15:20 Psa 10:6 95:11 , &c., as hath been more than once observed before) no light or morning light shall be (for that may as well be understood as is) to them ; a night of misery shall come upon them, and they shall never have a morning of deliverance from it; they shall be swallowed up in endless calamities.

Poole: Isa 8:21 - -- And they the idolatrous and apostatical Israelites,
shall pass through it or, in it , to wit, their own land, which is easily understood out of th...
And they the idolatrous and apostatical Israelites,
shall pass through it or, in it , to wit, their own land, which is easily understood out of the context, and from the phrase itself; the pronoun relative being put without an antecedent, as it is in other places, which have been formerly noted. They shall either pass through it into captivity, or wander hither and thither in it, like distracted men, not knowing whither to go, nor what to do; whereas if they had not forsaken God, they might have had a quiet and settled abode in it.
Hardly bestead sorely distressed, as this word is used, Gen 35:16 Job 30:25 ; and hungry; destitute of food, and of all necessaries, which are oft signified by food. Curse their king; either because he doth not relieve them, or because by his foolish counsels and courses he brought them into these miseries.
Their God either,
1. The true God; or rather,
2. Their idols, to whom they trusted, and whom they now find too late unable to help them.
Look upward to heaven for help, as men of all nations and religions in great calamities use to do.

Poole: Isa 8:22 - -- They shall look unto the earth finding no help from heaven, they turn their eyes downward, looking hither and thither for comfort.
Trouble and darkn...
They shall look unto the earth finding no help from heaven, they turn their eyes downward, looking hither and thither for comfort.
Trouble and darkness &c.; many words expressing the same thing are put together, to signify the variety, and extremity, and continuance of their miseries.
Haydock: Isa 8:19 - -- Seek of pythons. That is, people pretending to tell future things by a prophesying spirit. ---
Should not the people seek of their God, for the liv...
Seek of pythons. That is, people pretending to tell future things by a prophesying spirit. ---
Should not the people seek of their God, for the living of the dead? Here is signified, that it is to God we should pray to be directed, and not to seek of the dead, (that is, of fortune-tellers dead in sin) for the health of the living. (Challoner) ---
Mutter. Literally, "use a shrill note," strident. (Haydock) ---
so Horace, (1 Sat. viii.) says--- Umbr×– cum sagana resonarent triste et acutum.
--- Should. Make this reply: Should, &c.

Haydock: Isa 8:20 - -- Law. Sealed, (ver. 16.) or to the law of Moses, Ecclesiasticus xxxiv. 28. (Calmet) ---
Septuagint, "why do they consult the dead concerning the li...
Law. Sealed, (ver. 16.) or to the law of Moses, Ecclesiasticus xxxiv. 28. (Calmet) ---
Septuagint, "why do they consult the dead concerning the living? For he gave the law to assist us." (Haydock) ---
Light. They shall die or be miserable. (Calmet)

Haydock: Isa 8:21 - -- By it. The word of God. (Haydock) ---
God. Elohim means also princes or idols. (Calmet) ---
Whether they seek God unwillingly, or the aid of m...
By it. The word of God. (Haydock) ---
God. Elohim means also princes or idols. (Calmet) ---
Whether they seek God unwillingly, or the aid of men, (ver. 22.) they shall perish. (Worthington)
Gill: Isa 8:19 - -- And when they shall say unto you,.... These are the words of Christ continued, as making his appearance in Israel; and are an address to his people am...
And when they shall say unto you,.... These are the words of Christ continued, as making his appearance in Israel; and are an address to his people among them, even to his children, disciples, and followers, advising them what they should do, when those among whom they dwelt should press them to
seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards, that peep, and that mutter; meaning the Scribes and Pharisees, the doctors among the Jews, who sat in Moses's chair, and who were very much given to sorcery, and the magic art, and used enchantments, which were performed by "muttering"; hence we read of muttering over a wound for the healing of it; and muttering over serpents and scorpions at the driving of them away y; and of such a Rabbi muttering in the name of such an one z; and of such and such a doctor skilled in wonders or miraculous operations: See Gill on Mat 24:24 yea, even such as were chosen into the sanhedrim, or great council, were to be skilled in the arts of soothsayers, diviners, and wizards, and the like, that they might know how to judge them a; now the Jews would have had the disciples of Christ to have applied to these men to direct their judgments in religious affairs, and be determined by them concerning the Messiah and other things:
should not a people seek unto their God? "to" Christ, who is the Lord God omniscient and omnipotent, who knows all things, and whose name is called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Angel of the great council; and who is able to give the best counsel and direction in matters of moment and consequence, and able to do everything for his people they stand in need of; and who being present with them, God manifest in the flesh, it would be egregious folly to apply to any other, and especially such as are here described; see Joh 6:68,
for the living to the dead? that is, should men seek to such who are no other than dead men, for the sake or on the account of such who are living? The disciples of Christ, the children that God had given him, were quickened and made alive by the grace of God, had principles of grace and spiritual life implanted in them, had passed from death to life, lived by faith on Christ, lived holy lives, and were heirs of eternal life; and therefore it does not become them, nor any of them, to consult persons dead in trespasses and sins, who knew no more, and were no more capable of judging of spiritual things, than dead men are. See 1Co 2:14.

Gill: Isa 8:20 - -- To the law, and to the testimony,.... Kimchi takes this to be an oath, "by the law, and by the testimony", it is so and so; but Aben Ezra observes the...
To the law, and to the testimony,.... Kimchi takes this to be an oath, "by the law, and by the testimony", it is so and so; but Aben Ezra observes there is no instance of this kind in Scripture; it is a direction of Christ's to his disciples, to attend to the writings of Moses and the prophets, to search the Scriptures, as in Joh 5:39 and particularly what is before said in this prophecy concerning himself, the same is meant as on Isa 8:16.
if they speak not according to this word; this sure word of prophecy, to which men do well to take heed, as to a light shining in a dark place, it being the rule of faith and practice, a lamp to the feet, and a light to the path:
it is because there is no light in them; that is, in them that speak not according to it, meaning the Scribes and Pharisees; who, rejecting the written word, set up the traditions of the elders above it, and taught the people to walk according to them; and so were, as our Lord says, "blind leaders of the blind", Mat 15:14 or the words may be read, "if not"; if they will not regard the Scriptures, and the evangelical doctrine in them, and the testimony they give concerning Christ; "let them speak according to this word"; or instruction, and counsel, they have from the Scribes and Pharisees: "in which there is no light" b; but the darkness of ignorance, infidelity, superstition, and will worship; or "no morning"; but a night of Jewish darkness, even though the sun of righteousness was risen, and the dayspring from on high had visited the earth; yet they had received no light and knowledge from him, which was their condemnation, Joh 1:4, Joh 3:19 or thus, "to the law, and to the testimony, though they may say after this manner, there is no light in it" c; in the law and testimony, preferring the traditions, decisions, and determinations of their doctors above it. Noldhius d renders the words thus, "seeing they speak not according to this word, certainly they shall have no morning"; that is, seeing the seducers and false teachers, in the preceding verse Isa 8:19, speak not according to the word of God, and testimony of Jesus, they shall have no morning of light and joy, of grace and comfort, or any spiritual felicity; Christ will be no morning to them, but they will continue in their dark, benighted, and miserable condition, described in the following verse.

Gill: Isa 8:21 - -- And they shall pass through it,.... The land, as the Targum and Kimchi supply it; that is, the land of Judea, as Aben Ezra interprets it. Here begins ...
And they shall pass through it,.... The land, as the Targum and Kimchi supply it; that is, the land of Judea, as Aben Ezra interprets it. Here begins an account of the punishment that should be inflicted on the Jews, for their neglect of the prophecies of the Old Testament, and their rejection of the Messiah:
hardly bestead and hungry; put to the greatest difficulty to get food to eat, and famishing for want of it; which some understand of the time when Sennacherib's army was before Jerusalem, as Aben Ezra; but it seems better, with others, to refer it to the times of Zedekiah, when there was a sore famine, Jer 52:6 though best of all to the besieging of Jerusalem, by the Romans, and the times preceding it, Mat 24:7 and it may also be applied to the famine of hearing the word before that, when the Gospel, the kingdom of heaven, was taken from them, for their contempt of it:
and it shall come to pass, when they shall be hungry: either in a temporal sense, having no food for their bodies; or in a mystical sense, being hungry often and earnestly desirous of the coming of their vainly expected Messiah, as a temporal Saviour of them:
they shall fret themselves; for want of food for their bodies, to satisfy their hunger; or because their Messiah does not come to help them:
and curse their King, and their God; the true Messiah, who is the King of Israel, and God manifest in the flesh; whom the unbelieving Jews called accursed, and blasphemed:
and look upwards; to heaven, for the coming of another Messiah, but in vain; or for food to eat.

Gill: Isa 8:22 - -- And they shall look unto the earth,.... As persons in distress, upwards and downwards, backwards and forwards, on the right hand and on the left, part...
And they shall look unto the earth,.... As persons in distress, upwards and downwards, backwards and forwards, on the right hand and on the left, particularly into the land of Judea; a land that used to flow with milk and honey, a land of light, plenty, and prosperity:
and behold trouble and darkness; adversity, and miseries of all kinds, expressed by a variety of words; and even words fail to express the tribulation of these times, which were such as were not from the beginning of the world, Mat 24:22,
dimness of anguish; or "fleeing from affliction" e, multitudes everywhere fleeing from one place to another, to avoid the calamities coming upon them, Mat 24:16,
and they shall be driven to darkness; when they endeavour to escape one calamity, they shall be driven and fall into another; the whole land shall be full of nothing else.

expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes: Isa 8:19 Heb “Should a nation not inquire of its gods on behalf of the living, (by inquiring) of the dead?” These words appear to be a continuation...

NET Notes: Isa 8:20 Heb “If they do not speak according to this word, [it is] because it has no light of dawn.” The literal translation suggests that “t...


NET Notes: Isa 8:22 Heb “ and darkness, pushed.” The word מְנֻדָּח (mÿnudakh) appears to be a Pual partic...
Geneva Bible: Isa 8:19 And when they shall say to you, Seek to them that are mediums, and to wizards that peep, and that mutter: ( u ) should not a people seek to their God?...

Geneva Bible: Isa 8:20 To the ( y ) law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, [it is] because [there is] no ( z ) light in them.
( y ) Seek remedy...

Geneva Bible: Isa 8:21 And they shall pass through it, distressed and hungry: and it shall come to ( a ) pass, that when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, ( ...

Geneva Bible: Isa 8:22 And they shall look to the earth; and behold trouble and ( c ) darkness, dimness of anguish; and [they shall be] driven to darkness.
( c ) They will ...

expand allCommentary -- Verse Range Notes
TSK Synopsis -> Isa 8:1-22
TSK Synopsis: Isa 8:1-22 - --1 In Maher-shalal-hash-baz, he prophesies that Syria and Israel shall be subdued by Assyria.5 Judah likewise for their infidelity.9 God's judgments sh...
MHCC -> Isa 8:17-22
MHCC: Isa 8:17-22 - --The prophet foresaw that the Lord would hide his face; but he would look for his return in favour to them again. Though not miraculous signs, the chil...
Matthew Henry -> Isa 8:16-22
Matthew Henry: Isa 8:16-22 - -- In these verses we have, I. The unspeakable privilege which the people of God enjoy in having the oracles of God consigned over to them, and being e...
Keil-Delitzsch: Isa 8:19 - --
It is to this ecclesiola in ecclesia that the prophet's admonition is addressed. "And when they shall say to you, Inquire of the necromancers, ...

Keil-Delitzsch: Isa 8:20 - --
In opposition to such a falling away to wretched superstition, the watchword of the prophet and his supporters is this. "To the teaching of God ( th...

Keil-Delitzsch: Isa 8:21-22 - --
The night of despair to which the unbelieving nation would be brought, is described in Isa 8:21, Isa 8:22 : "And it goes about therein hard pressed...
Constable: Isa 7:1--39:8 - --III. Israel's crisis of faith chs. 7--39
This long section of the book deals with Israel's major decision in Isa...

Constable: Isa 7:1--12:6 - --A. The choice between trusting God or Assyria chs. 7-12
This section of Isaiah provides a historical int...

Constable: Isa 7:1--9:8 - --1. Signs of God's presence 7:1-9:7
A unifying theme in this subsection is children. The children...

Constable: Isa 8:11--9:8 - --Clarification of the issue 8:11-9:7
Having received two signs of God's dealing with them...
