ris3n's Apologetics Codex

Passage

Isaiah 10.21

Book: Isaiah · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

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ASV

19. And the remnant of the trees of his forest shall be few, so that a child may write them. 20. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and they that are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again lean upon him that smote them, but shall lean upon Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

21. A remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.

  1. For though thy people, Israel, be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them shall return: a destruction is determined, overflowing with righteousness. 23. For a full end, and that determined, will the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, make in the midst of all the earth. (Isaiah 10:19-23, ASV)
WEB

19. The remnant of the trees of his forest shall be few, so that a child could write their number. 20. It will come to pass in that day that the remnant of Israel, and those who have escaped from the house of Jacob will no more again lean on him who struck them, but shall lean on Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

21. A remnant will return, even the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.

  1. For though your people, Israel, are like the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return. A destruction is determined, overflowing with righteousness. 23. For the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, will make a full end, and that determined, throughout all the earth. (Isaiah 10:19-23, WEB)
KJV

19. And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them. few: Heb. number 20. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

21. The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.

  1. For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return: the consumption decreed shall overflow with righteousness. of them: Heb. in, or, among, etc with: or, in 23. For the Lord GOD of hosts shall make a consumption, even determined, in the midst of all the land. (Isaiah 10:19-23, KJV)
YLT

19. And the rest of the trees of his forest [are] few, And a youth doth write them. 20. And it hath come to pass, in that day, The remnant of Israel, And the escaped of the house of Jacob, Do not add any more to lean on its smiter, And have leant on Jehovah, The Holy One of Israel, in truth.

21. A remnant returneth, a remnant of Jacob, Unto the Mighty God.

  1. For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, A remnant doth return of it, A consumption determined, Overflowing [with] righteousness. 23. For a consumption that is determined, The Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, Is making in the midst of all the land. (Isaiah 10:19-23, YLT)

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Setting

  • Speaker: the LORD, through the prophet
  • Audience: Judah and Jerusalem
  • Location: Jerusalem
  • Time period: the eighth century BC, under Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah

Theological reading

A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.

Two things sit in this short verse. The remnant theme, which is one of Isaiah's organising ideas and which his son's name Shear-jashub, a remnant shall return, carries through the book. And the title El gibbor, Mighty God.

That title is the reason this verse matters beyond its own context. It is used here unambiguously of the LORD, two chapters after being applied to the child of Isaiah 9:6-7. Whatever is made of the royal oracle, the same book uses the same phrase of God within a few pages, which constrains readings that treat it in chapter 9 as ordinary court flattery.

The remnant idea is itself double-edged: it is a promise that not all will be lost and a warning that not all will be kept, and Isaiah uses it both ways.

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap.

Quoted in

Arguments and defeaters:

Concepts:

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

  • ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
  • WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
  • KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
  • YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.