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.
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.”
- BSB The remaining archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.” For the LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken.
- 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 my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us.
- Num 23:19God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?
- Isa 1:20But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.
- Matt 24:35Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
- Isa 10:18–19And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standard-bearer fainteth.
- Ps 107:39Again, they are minished and brought low through oppression, affliction, and sorrow.
- Jer 44:29And this shall be a sign unto you, saith the LORD, that I will punish you in this place, that ye may know that my words shall surely stand against you for evil:
- Isa 17:4–5And in that day it shall come to pass, that the glory of Jacob shall be made thin, and the fatness of his flesh shall wax lean.
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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
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