Isaiah 3:7

7 But that brother will stand up and say, "I cannot help you, because I do not have food or clothes in my house. You will not make me your leader."

Isaiah 3:7 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 3:7

In that day shall he swear
Or "lift up", that is, his hand ^F5, which was a gesture used in swearing, and therefore is so rendered; the meaning is, that he shall at once immediately give an answer, and for the solemn confirmation of it shall say an oath with it, saying, I will not be a healer,
or "a binder"; that is, of wounds, of political wounds, made in the nation, and which were incurable. See ( Isaiah 1:6 ) for the meaning is, that he neither was fit to be, nor could he be, a healer of the distempered state of the nation, it was so desperately bad. The Targum is,

``I am not fit to be a head or governor;''

and so Kimchi explains it of a governor, who, he says, is so called, because he binds and imprisons those that transgress his commands; and to this sense Jarchi and Abarbinel: for in my house [is] neither bread nor clothing;
not a sufficiency of either to support such grandeur and dignity; not enough to keep a proper table, and a suitable equipage: make me not a ruler of the people;
this shows that the state of the nation must be very bad indeed, that men, who are naturally ambitious of power and honour, should refuse government when offered to them.

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FOOTNOTES:

F5 (avy) "attollet manum", Piscator.

Isaiah 3:7 In-Context

5 People will be against each other; everyone will be against his neighbor. Young people will not respect older people, and common people will not respect important people."

6 At that time a man will grab one of his brothers from his own family and say, "You have a coat, so you will be our leader. These ruins will be under your control."

7 But that brother will stand up and say, "I cannot help you, because I do not have food or clothes in my house. You will not make me your leader."

8 This will happen because Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen. The things they say and do are against the Lord; they turn against him.

9 The look on their faces shows they are guilty; like the people of Sodom, they are proud of their sin. They don't care who sees it. How terrible it will be for them, because they have brought much trouble on themselves.