Isaiah 7:21

21 When that day comes, a man will raise a young cow and two sheep.

Isaiah 7:21 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 7:21

And it shall come to pass in that day
Not in the days of Hezekiah, after the destruction of Sennacherib's army, when there followed great fruitfulness and plenty, ( Isaiah 37:30 Isaiah 37:31 ) as Kimchi and Jarchi interpret it; but in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, after the destruction of Jerusalem, when some poor men were left in the land to till it, ( Jeremiah 39:10 ) for of these, and not of rich men, are the following words to be understood: [that] a man shall nourish a young cow and two sheep;
this seems to denote both the scarcity of men and cattle, through the ravages of the army of the Chaldeans; that there should not be large herds and flocks, only a single cow, and two or three sheep; and yet men should be so few, and families so thin, that these would be sufficient to support them comfortably.

Isaiah 7:21 In-Context

19 They will come and settle, all of them, in steep vadis and holes in the rocks and on all thorn bushes and brambles.

20 When that day comes, Adonai will shave - with a razor hired beyond the [Euphrates] River, that is, with the king of Ashur - the head and the hair between the legs, and get rid of the beard as well.

21 When that day comes, a man will raise a young cow and two sheep.

22 Will they produce in abundance? No, he will [have to] eat curdled milk. Indeed, everyone left in the land will eat curdled milk and [wild] honey.

23 When that day comes, wherever there once were a thousand grapevines, worth a thousand pieces of silver, there will be only briars and thorns.