Isaiah 6:11

11 Then I said, "Lord, ¹how long *?" And He answered, "Until * * ²cities are devastated and without inhabitant, Houses are without people And the land is utterly desolate,

Isaiah 6:11 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 6:11

Then said I, Lord, how long?
&c.] That is, how long will this blindness, hardness, stupidity, and impenitence, remain with this people, or they be under such a sore judgment of God upon them: and he answered, until the cities be wasted without inhabitant,
and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate;
until there is not an inhabitant in the cities of Judea, nor in Jerusalem, the metropolis of the land, nor a single man in any house in them; which denotes the utter desolation of the land and city; and can refer to no other than to the desolation thereof by the Romans; and till that time the blindness which happened to them continued; the things which belonged to their peace were hid from their eyes till their city was destroyed, and not one stone left upon another, ( Luke 19:42-44 ) till that time, and even to this day, the veil of blindness, ignorance, and and penitence, is on their hearts, and will remain until they are converted to the Lord, in the latter day; see ( Romans 11:25 Romans 11:26 ) ( 2 Corinthians 3:14-16 ) .

Isaiah 6:11 In-Context

9 He said, "Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand.'

10 "Render the hearts of this people insensitive, Their ears dull, And their eyes dim, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed."

11 Then I said, "Lord , how long ?" And He answered, "Until cities are devastated and without inhabitant, Houses are without people And the land is utterly desolate,

12 "The LORD has removed men far away, And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

13 "Yet there will be a tenth portion in it, And it will again be subject to burning, Like a terebinth or an oak Whose stump remains when it is felled. The holy seed is its stump."

Cross References

• 1. Psalms 79:5
• 2. Leviticus 26:31; Isaiah 1:7; Isaiah 3:8, 26