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The mighty man and the warrior, The judge and the prophet, The diviner and the elder,
Isaiah 3:2 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB the mighty man, the man of war, the judge, the prophet, the diviner, the elder,
  • KJV The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient,
  • BSB the mighty man and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the soothsayer and the elder,
  • NKJV The mighty man and the man of war, The judge and the prophet, And the diviner and the elder;
  • NLT all their heroes and soldiers, judges and prophets, fortune-tellers and elders,

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 will take away the warriors, judges, prophets, diviners, and elders. The nation's leaders and protectors will be removed.

Overview

The list strips away those who provide military, judicial, religious, and civic stability. Even the diviner is mentioned, perhaps to expose the false guidance the people had relied on. Without godly leadership, society unravels, underscoring the people's need for the true Shepherd-King.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 9

  • 2 Kgs 24:14–16He carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valor, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths. No one remained, except the poorest people of the land.
  • Isa 9:14–15Therefore Yahweh will cut off from Israel head and tail, palm branch and reed, in one day.
  • Ezek 8:12Then he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in his rooms of imagery? For they say, ‘Yahweh doesn’t see us. Yahweh has forsaken the land.’”
  • Ps 74:9We see no miraculous signs. There is no longer any prophet, neither is there among us anyone who knows how long.
  • Isa 2:13–15For all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, for all the oaks of Bashan,
  • Ezek 17:13He took some of the royal offspring, and made a covenant with him. He also brought him under an oath, and took away the mighty of the land;
  • Amos 2:3and I will cut off the judge from among them, and will kill all its princes with him,” says Yahweh.
  • Ezek 9:5To the others he said in my hearing, “Go through the city after him, and strike. Don’t let your eye spare, neither have pity.
  • Lam 5:12–14Princes were hanged up by their hand: The faces of elders were not honored.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Isaiah videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Isaiah 3:2YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on IsaiahMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 3:2 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.