The remaining archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.” For the LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken.
Parallel translations
- WEB and the residue of the number of the archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, will be few; for Yahweh, the God of Israel, has spoken it.”
- KJV And the residue of the number of archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished: for the LORD God of Israel hath spoken it.
- NKJV and the remainder of the number of archers, the mighty men of the people of Kedar, will be diminished; for the Lord God of Israel has spoken it.”
- NASB and the remainder of the number of bowmen, the warriors of the sons of Kedar, will be few; for the Lord God of Israel has spoken.”
- NLT Only a few of its courageous archers will survive. I, the Lord, the God of Israel, have spoken!”
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
Kedar's renowned warriors will be reduced to a remnant, for the LORD has spoken. It matters because the certainty rests on God's own authoritative word.
Overview
The mighty archers of Kedar, once numerous, will be left only a few. The collapse of their military strength completes the picture of Arabia's humbling. The closing assurance, 'for Yahweh, the God of Israel, has spoken it,' guarantees the outcome. The verse anchors the prophecy's certainty in the trustworthy character of God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Zech 1:6But did not My words and My statutes, which I commanded My servants the prophets, overtake your fathers? They repented and said, ‘Just as the LORD of Hosts purposed to do to us according to our ways and deeds, so He has done to us.’”
- Num 23:19God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?
- Isa 1:20But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
- Matt 24:35Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
- Isa 10:18–19The splendor of its forests and orchards, both soul and body, it will completely destroy, as a sickness consumes a man.
- Ps 107:39When they are decreased and humbled by oppression, evil, and sorrow,
- Jer 44:29This will be a sign to you that I will punish you in this place, declares the LORD, so that you may know that My threats of harm against you will surely stand.
- Isa 17:4–5“In that day the splendor of Jacob will fade, and the fat of his body will waste away,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 21:17 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.