At evening, behold, terror! Before the morning, they are no more. This is the portion of those who plunder us, and the lot of those who rob us.
Parallel translations
- KJV And behold at eveningtide trouble; and before the morning he is not. This is the portion of them that spoil us, and the lot of them that rob us.
- BSB In the evening, there is sudden terror! Before morning, they are no more! This is the portion of those who loot us and the lot of those who plunder us.
- NKJV Then behold, at eventide, trouble! And before the morning, he is no more. This is the portion of those who plunder us, And the lot of those who rob us.
- NASB At evening time, behold, there is terror! Before morning they are gone. This will be the fate of those who plunder us And the lot of those who pillage us.
- NLT In the evening Israel waits in terror, but by dawn its enemies are dead. This is the just reward of those who plunder us, a fitting end for those who destroy us.
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
By evening there is terror, but before morning the enemy is gone, for this is the fate of those who plunder God's people. The Lord swiftly overthrows his people's oppressors.
Overview
Overnight the threatening invaders are destroyed, vividly recalling the sudden destruction of Assyria's army before Jerusalem (Isaiah 37:36). The verse declares the certain end of all who rob and plunder God's people. It comforts believers that the Lord is a sure defense against every foe.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- 2 Kgs 19:35That night, Yahweh’s angel went out, and struck one hundred eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians. When men arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.
- Prov 22:23for Yahweh will plead their case, and plunder the life of those who plunder them.
- Hab 2:16–17You are filled with shame, and not glory. You will also drink, and be exposed! The cup of Yahweh’s right hand will come around to you, and disgrace will cover your glory.
- Ps 37:36But he passed away, and behold, he was not. Yes, I sought him, but he could not be found.
- Judg 5:31“So let all your enemies perish, Yahweh, but let those who love him be as the sun when it rises in its strength.” Then the land had rest forty years.
- Isa 33:1Woe to you who destroy, but you weren’t destroyed; and who betray, but nobody betrayed you! When you have finished destroying, you will be destroyed; and when you have finished betrayal, you will be betrayed.
- Jer 13:25This is your lot, the portion measured to you from me,” says Yahweh; “because you have forgotten me, and trusted in falsehood.”
- Job 20:29This is the portion of a wicked man from God, the heritage appointed to him by God.”
- Isa 10:28–32He has come to Aiath. He has passed through Migron. At Michmash he stores his baggage.
- Jer 2:3Israel was holiness to Yahweh, the first fruits of his increase. All who devour him shall be held guilty. Evil shall come on them,”’ says Yahweh.”
- Ezek 39:10so that they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests; for they shall make fires of the weapons; and they shall plunder those who plundered them, and rob those who robbed them, says the Lord Yahweh.
- Zeph 2:9–10Therefore as I live, says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, surely Moab will be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, a possession of nettles, and salt pits, and a perpetual desolation. The remnant of my people will plunder them, and the survivors of my nation will inherit them.
- 2 Kgs 19:3They said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah, ‘Today is a day of trouble, of rebuke, and of rejection; for the children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to deliver them.
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 17:14 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.