Isaiah 29:4

4 Driven into the ground, you'll speak, you'll mumble words from the dirt - Your voice from the ground, like the muttering of a ghost. Your speech will whisper from the dust.

Isaiah 29:4 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 29:4

And thou shalt be brought down
To the ground, and laid level with it, even the city of Jerusalem, as it was by the Romans; and as it was predicted by Christ it would, ( Luke 19:44 ) though some understand this of the humbling of the inhabitants of it, by the appearance of Sennacherib's army before it, and of which they interpret the following clauses: [and] shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low
out of the dust;
which some explain of the submissive language of Hezekiah to Sennacherib, and of his messengers to Rabshakeh, ( 2 Kings 18:14 2 Kings 18:26 ) as Aben Ezra and Kimchi; but it is expressive of the great famine in Jerusalem, at the time of its siege by the Romans, when the inhabitants were so reduced by it, as that they were scarce able to speak as to be heard, and could not stand upon their legs, but fell to the ground, and lay in the dust, uttering from thence their speech, with a faint and feeble voice: and thy voice shall be as one that hath a familiar spirit, out of
the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust:
or peep and chirp, as little birds, as Jarchi and Kimchi, as those did that had familiar spirits; and as the Heathen oracles were delivered, as if they came out of the bellies of those that spoke, or out of caves and hollow places in the earth; and this was in just retaliation to these people, who imitated such practices, and made use of such spirits; see ( Isaiah 8:19 ) .

Isaiah 29:4 In-Context

2 But I'm not letting up on Jerusalem. The moaning and groaning will continue. Jerusalem to me is an Ariel.

3 Like David, I'll set up camp against you. I'll set siege, build towers, bring in siege engines, build siege ramps.

4 Driven into the ground, you'll speak, you'll mumble words from the dirt - Your voice from the ground, like the muttering of a ghost. Your speech will whisper from the dust.

5 But it will be your enemies who are beaten to dust, the mob of tyrants who will be blown away like chaff. Because, surprise, as if out of nowhere,

6 a visit from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, With thunderclaps, earthquakes, and earsplitting noise, backed up by hurricanes, tornadoes, and lightning strikes,