Isaiah 17:3

3 The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim, and royal power from Damascus; the remnant of Aram will be like the glory of the Israelites,” declares the LORD Almighty.

Isaiah 17:3 in Other Translations

King James Version (KJV)
3 The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria: they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the LORD of hosts.
English Standard Version (ESV)
3 The fortress will disappear from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus; and the remnant of Syria will be like the glory of the children of Israel, declares the LORD of hosts.
New Living Translation (NLT)
3 The fortified towns of Israel will also be destroyed, and the royal power of Damascus will end. All that remains of Syria will share the fate of Israel’s departed glory,” declares the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
The Message Bible (MSG)
3 Not a sign of a fort is left in Ephraim, not a trace of government left in Damascus. What's left of Aram? The same as what's left of Israel - not much." Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies. The Day Is Coming
American Standard Version (ASV)
3 And the fortress shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria; they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith Jehovah of hosts.
GOD'S WORD Translation (GW)
3 Fortified cities will disappear from Ephraim, and the kingdom will disappear from Damascus. The remaining few from Aram will share Israel's honor," declares the LORD of Armies.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
3 The fortress disappears from Ephraim, and a kingdom from Damascus. The remnant of Aram will be like the splendor of the Israelites. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the declaration of the Lord of Hosts.
New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
3 Ephraim's people will no longer have cities with high walls around them. Royal power will disappear from Damascus. Those who are left alive in Aram will be like the glory of the people of Israel," announces the LORD who rules over all.

Isaiah 17:3 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 17:3

The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim
The ten tribes, now in confederacy with the Syrians, whose metropolis or fortress was Samaria, which seems to be intended here; and should be destroyed, at least taken out of the hands of the Israelites, and they be carried captive by Shalmaneser king of Assyria, ( 2 Kings 17:6 ) and this may be understood, not of that particular city and fortress only, but of all their strongholds, the singular being, put for the plural. The Targum is, "the government shall cease from Ephraim"; they shall have no more a king over them, nor have they to this day: and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria;
Damascus was the head city of Syria, where the kings of Syria had their palace; but now that and the rest of Syria should no more be a kingdom of itself, but should be subject unto others, as it has been ever since: they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the
Lord of hosts;
that is, the Syrians, who were in alliance with Israel, should share the same fate; should be carried captive as they were; should have their metropolis and other cities, and their whole kingdom, taken from them, and be stripped of their grandeur and wealth, and have no more glory than they had; which was none at all; or at least very small, as the next verse shows ( Isaiah 17:4 ) .

Isaiah 17:3 In-Context

1 A prophecy against Damascus: “See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins.
2 The cities of Aroer will be deserted and left to flocks, which will lie down, with no one to make them afraid.
3 The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim, and royal power from Damascus; the remnant of Aram will be like the glory of the Israelites,” declares the LORD Almighty.
4 “In that day the glory of Jacob will fade; the fat of his body will waste away.
5 It will be as when reapers harvest the standing grain, gathering the grain in their arms— as when someone gleans heads of grain in the Valley of Rephaim.

Cross References 3

  • 1. Isaiah 25:2,12; Hosea 10:14
  • 2. ver 4; Isaiah 21:16; Hosea 9:11
  • 3. Isaiah 7:8,16; Isaiah 8:4
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