“What sorrow awaits Assyria, the rod of my anger. I use it as a club to express my anger.
Parallel translations
- WEB Alas Assyrian, the rod of my anger, the staff in whose hand is my indignation!
- KJV O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation.
- BSB Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger; the staff in their hands is My wrath.
- NKJV “Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger And the staff in whose hand is My indignation.
- NASB ¶Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger And the staff in whose hands is My indignation,
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God calls Assyria the rod of his anger, an instrument he uses to discipline his people.
Overview
Assyria is the unwitting tool in God's hand to punish sin, a "rod" and "staff" of his indignation. Yet, as the following verses show, Assyria's own pride will not go unpunished. The passage teaches that God sovereignly uses even wicked nations to accomplish his purposes while still holding them accountable.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Zeph 2:13He will stretch out his hand against the north, destroy Assyria, and will make Nineveh a desolation, as dry as the wilderness.
- Isa 10:15Should an ax brag against him who chops with it? Should a saw exalt itself above him who saws with it? As if a rod should lift those who lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up someone who is not wood.
- Jer 51:20–24“You are my battle ax and weapons of war. With you I will break the nations into pieces. With you I will destroy kingdoms.
- Isa 14:25that I will break the Assyrian in my land, and tread him under foot on my mountains. Then his yoke will leave them, and his burden leave their shoulders.
- Isa 30:30Yahweh will cause his glorious voice to be heard, and will show the descent of his arm, with the indignation of his anger, and the flame of a devouring fire, with a blast, storm, and hailstones.
- Isa 66:14You will see it, and your heart shall rejoice, and your bones will flourish like the tender grass. Yahweh’s hand will be known among his servants; and he will have indignation against his enemies.
- Isa 14:5–6Yahweh has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of the rulers,
- Isa 13:5They come from a far country, from the uttermost part of heaven, even Yahweh, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.
- Isa 8:4For before the child knows how to say, ‘My father,’ and, ‘My mother,’ the riches of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria will be carried away by the king of Assyria.”
- Ps 125:3For the scepter of wickedness won’t remain over the allotment of the righteous; so that the righteous won’t use their hands to do evil.
- Gen 10:11Out of that land he went into Assyria, and built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah,
- Ps 17:14from men by your hand, Yahweh, from men of the world, whose portion is in this life. You fill the belly of your cherished ones. Your sons have plenty, and they store up wealth for their children.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Isaiah sees him most clearly: the virgin's son Immanuel, the child on David's throne, the shoot from Jesse, the light to the nations, and above all the Suffering Servant pierced for our transgressions (ch. 53).
How Isaiah 10:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.