Your men shall fall by the sword, and your mighty in the war.
Parallel translations
- KJV Thy men shall fall by the sword, and thy mighty in the war.
- BSB Your men will fall by the sword, and your warriors in battle.
- NKJV Your men shall fall by the sword, And your mighty in the war.
- NASB Your men will fall by the sword And your mighty ones in battle.
- NLT The men of the city will be killed with the sword, and her warriors will die in battle.
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
Isaiah turns from the women to the city's defenders, declaring that its men and warriors will fall in battle. The loss of protectors leaves Jerusalem exposed and grieving.
Overview
The downfall of the proud women is matched by the death of the soldiers who might have defended them. This military catastrophe is part of the larger judgment Isaiah foresees coming upon Judah through invasion. It underscores that no human strength can stand when God withdraws His protection from an unfaithful people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Jer 11:22therefore Yahweh of Armies says, ‘Behold, I will punish them: the young men shall die by the sword; their sons and their daughters shall die by famine;
- Amos 9:10All the sinners of my people will die by the sword, who say, ‘Evil won’t overtake nor meet us.’
- Jer 19:7“‘“I will make void the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this place; and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies, and by the hand of those who seek their life: and their dead bodies will I give to be food for the birds of the sky, and for the animals of the earth.
- 2 Chr 29:9For, behold, our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity for this.
- Jer 14:18If I go out into the field, then, behold, the slain with the sword! If I enter into the city, then, behold, those who are sick with famine! For both the prophet and the priest go about in the land, and have no knowledge.’”
- Lam 2:21“The youth and the old man lie on the ground in the streets. My virgins and my young men have fallen by the sword. You have killed them in the day of your anger. You have slaughtered, and not pitied.
- Jer 18:21Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, and give them over to the power of the sword. Let their wives become childless, and widows; and let their men be slain of death, and their young men struck by the sword in battle.
- Isa 1:20but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured with the sword; for the mouth of Yahweh has spoken it.”
- Jer 21:9He who remains in this city will die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; but he who goes out, and passes over to the Chaldeans who besiege you, he shall live, and he will escape with his life.
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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 3:25 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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