Isaiah 30:16

16 and you said, "No! For we will flee on horses!" Therefore you shall flee! And, "We will ride on swift horses!" Therefore your pursuers shall be swift!

Isaiah 30:16 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 30:16

But ye said, No, for we will flee upon horses
Hither and thither to get help and assistance; go down to Egypt for it on them, or thither for them, as some render it; and then face the enemy, and, if we can not conquer him, will flee from him, and so provide for our safety; this is man's way of salvation, as opposed to God's way; see ( Hosea 1:7 ) ( 14:3 ) or this may design their fleeing on horses and camels with their riches into Egypt, both for the security of them and their persons, ( Isaiah 30:6 ) : therefore shall ye flee;
on horses from the enemy, and be pursued and taken by him; this was fulfilled long after, when the city was taken by the Chaldeans; see ( 2 Kings 25:4 ) : and, We will ride upon the swift;
horses or camels, to the swiftness of which they trusted, and doubted not to get off safe, but would find themselves mistaken: therefore shall they that pursue you be swift;
yea, swifter than the horses and camels they rode on, and overtake them, and either put them to death, or carry them captive. The Chaldeans are represented as very swift, ( Jeremiah 4:13 ) ( Habakkuk 1:8 ) .

Isaiah 30:16 In-Context

14 And he breaks it like a vessel of {a potter} breaks, [that] is crushed; he has no compassion, and no potsherd is found among its fragments {to take fire} from [the] hearth, or {to skim} water from [the] cistern."
15 For the Lord Yahweh, the holy one of Israel, said this: "In returning and rest you shall be saved; your strength shall be in quietness and in trust." But you were not willing,
16 and you said, "No! For we will flee on horses!" Therefore you shall flee! And, "We will ride on swift horses!" Therefore your pursuers shall be swift!
17 One thousand {because of} a threat of one, {because} of a threat of five you shall flee, until you are left like [a] flagstaff on {top} of [a] mountain, and like [a] signal on [a] hill.
18 Therefore Yahweh waits to be gracious [to] you, and therefore he will rise up to show you mercy, for Yahweh [is] a God of justice; blessed [are] all those who wait for him.
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.