Isaiah 29

Isaiah 28–33 forms a collection of oracles (prophetic messages delivering the word of God) that open with "Woe," and chapter 29 is the second in this collection. Isaiah 28 rebuked the pride of the leaders of Ephraim and Jerusalem; chapter 29 goes on to address a city called "Ariel."

Structure

• Verses 1–4: A lament declares that God will encamp round about Ariel, the city where David encamped, and will bring it low. The city's voice will become faint, like a sound rising out of the dust.
• Verses 5–8: The situation is suddenly reversed. The LORD of hosts punishes the enemy, and the nations that fight against Mount Zion vanish like a dream or a vision of the night.
• Verses 9–12: The LORD pours out the spirit of deep sleep, closing the eyes of the prophets and seers. As a result, the vision becomes to the people like a sealed book that cannot be read.
• Verses 13–14: Because the people honor God only with their lips, God will do a marvelous work and cause the wisdom of the wise to perish.
• Verses 15–16: Woe is pronounced on those who try to hide their counsel from God. Using the image of the potter and the clay, the passage rebukes the thing made for passing judgment on its maker.
• Verses 17–21: A day is coming when Lebanon will become a fruitful field. On that day the deaf will hear the words of the book and the blind will see, while the terrible one and those who wrong the righteous will be cut off.
• Verses 22–24: The LORD, who redeemed Abraham, promises that the house of Jacob will no longer be ashamed. Even those who erred in spirit will come to understanding.

Key Verses

• Isaiah 29:13: "with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me." Jesus quoted this verse when rebuking the Pharisees and scribes.
• Isaiah 29:14: "the wisdom of their wise men shall perish." Paul quotes this in 1 Corinthians 1:19 when speaking of the wisdom of the cross.
• Isaiah 29:16: "shall be esteemed as the potter's clay." This is a classic image of the relationship between the Creator and the creature.

People and Places

• Ariel: Described in verse 1 as the city where David encamped (KJV: "the city where David dwelt"), it is generally understood to refer to Jerusalem. The name is reportedly interpreted as meaning either "lion of God" or "altar hearth."
• David: Mentioned as the king who encamped at this city.
• Mount Zion: Appears as the place the nations seek to fight against (v. 8).
• Lebanon: A forested mountain region north of Israel. It appears in the picture of restoration.
• Abraham and Jacob: Mentioned as the patriarch whom God redeemed and the house descended from him.

Points for Reflection

• Many commentators connect the siege and deliverance of verses 1–8 with the Assyrian king Sennacherib's siege of Jerusalem and the city's deliverance (Isaiah 37). The text itself, however, names no nation.
• The phrase "one that hath a familiar spirit" in verse 4 refers to a medium who claims to communicate with the spirits of the dead.
• The "Woe" of verse 1 ("Woe to Ariel") and that of verse 15 ("Woe unto them") are understood to translate the same Hebrew interjection of lament.
• In the New Testament, verse 13 is quoted in Matthew 15:8–9 and Mark 7:6–7, verse 10 in Romans 11:8, and verse 14 in 1 Corinthians 1:19.
• The potter image of verse 16 is read together with Isaiah 45:9, Jeremiah 18:1–10, and Romans 9:18–23.
• The promise of restoration in verse 18 is sometimes read, together with Isaiah 35, in connection with Jesus' healing ministry (Luke 7:22).
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints interprets verse 4 and verses 11–12 as a prophecy of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. Protestant commentaries read these verses as figurative descriptions of the spiritual insensibility of the people of that time.