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Selected Verse: Isaiah 23:11 - King James

Verse	Translation	Text
Isa 23:11	King James	He stretched out his hand over the sea, he shook the kingdoms: the LORD hath given a commandment against the merchant city, to destroy the strong holds thereof.

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A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882]
He--Jehovah. kingdoms--the PhÅ“nician cities and colonies. the merchant city--rather, Canaan, meaning the north of it, namely, PhÅ“nicia. On their coins, they call their country Canaan.

A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882]

He--Jehovah.

kingdoms--the PhÅ“nician cities and colonies.

the merchant city--rather, Canaan, meaning the north of it, namely, PhÅ“nicia. On their coins, they call their country Canaan.

Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834]
He stretched out his hand - That is, Yahweh (see Isa 23:9). To stretch out the hand is indicative of punishment (see the notes at Isa 5:25; Isa 9:12), and means that God has resolved to inflict exemplary punishment on Tyre and its dependent colonies. Over the sea - That is, over the sea coast of Phenicia; or over the cities that were built on the coast. This alludes to the fact that Nebuchadnezzar would lay siege to these cities, and would ravage the maritime coast of Phenicia. It is not improbable also that, having taken Tyre, he would extend his conquests to Citium, on the island of Cyprus, and destroy as many of the dependent cities of Tyre as possible. The Lord hath given a commandment - The control here asserted over Nebuchadnezzar is similar to that which he asserted over the Assyrian Sennacherib (see the note at Isa 10:5). Against the merchant city - Hebrew, 'Against Canaan' (על־כנען 'el-kena‛an). The word 'Canaan' may here be used as in Isa 23:8, to denote a place given to merchandise or traffic, since this was the principal employment of the inhabitants of this region; but it is rather to be taken in its obvious and usual sense in the Scriptures, as denoting the land of Canaan, and as denoting that Nebuchadnezzar would be sent against that, and especially the maritime parts of it, to lay it waste. To destroy the strongholds thereof - That is, the strongholds of Canaan; as Tyre, Sidon, Accho, etc. Tyre, especially, was strongly fortified, and was able long to resist the arms of the Chaldeans.

Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834]

He stretched out his hand - That is, Yahweh (see Isa 23:9). To stretch out the hand is indicative of punishment (see the notes at Isa 5:25; Isa 9:12), and means that God has resolved to inflict exemplary punishment on Tyre and its dependent colonies.

Over the sea - That is, over the sea coast of Phenicia; or over the cities that were built on the coast. This alludes to the fact that Nebuchadnezzar would lay siege to these cities, and would ravage the maritime coast of Phenicia. It is not improbable also that, having taken Tyre, he would extend his conquests to Citium, on the island of Cyprus, and destroy as many of the dependent cities of Tyre as possible.

The Lord hath given a commandment - The control here asserted over Nebuchadnezzar is similar to that which he asserted over the Assyrian Sennacherib (see the note at Isa 10:5).

Against the merchant city - Hebrew, 'Against Canaan' (על־כנען 'el-kena‛an). The word 'Canaan' may here be used as in Isa 23:8, to denote a place given to merchandise or traffic, since this was the principal employment of the inhabitants of this region; but it is rather to be taken in its obvious and usual sense in the Scriptures, as denoting the land of Canaan, and as denoting that Nebuchadnezzar would be sent against that, and especially the maritime parts of it, to lay it waste.

To destroy the strongholds thereof - That is, the strongholds of Canaan; as Tyre, Sidon, Accho, etc. Tyre, especially, was strongly fortified, and was able long to resist the arms of the Chaldeans.

Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78]
The prophet now proceeds to relate, as it were, to the Pheonicio-Spanish colony, the daughter, i.e., the population of Tartessus, what has happened to the mother country. "His hand hath He stretched over the sea, thrown kingdoms into trembling; Jehovah hath given commandment concerning Kena'an, to destroy her fortresses. And He said, Thou shalt not rejoice any further, thou disgraced one, virgin daughter of Sidon! Get up to Kittim, go over; there also shalt thou not find rest." There is no ground whatever for restricting the "kingdoms" (mamlâcoth) to the several small Phoenician states (compare Isa 19:2). Jehovah, reaching over the sea, has thrown the lands of Hither Asia and Egypto-Ethiopia into a state of the most anxious excitement, and has summoned them as instruments of destruction with regard to Kenaēan (אל, like על in Est 4:5). Phoenicia called itself Kena‛an (Canaan); but this is the only passage in the Old Testament in which the name occurs in this most restricted sense. לשׁמיד, for להשׁמיד, as in Num 5:22; Amo 8:4. The form מעזניה is more rare, but it is not a deformity, as Knobel and others maintain. There are other examples of the same resolution of the reduplication and transposition of the letters (it stands for מענזיה, possibly a Phoenician word; see Hitzig, Grabschrift, p. 16, and Levi, Phoenizische Studien, p. 17), viz., תּמנוּ in Lam 3:22 (vid., at Psa 64:7), and קבנו in Num 23:13, at least according to the Jewish grammar (see, however, Ewald, 250, b). (Note: Bttcher derives the form from מעזן, a supposed diminutive; see, however, Jesurun, pp. 212-216.) "Virgin of the daughter of Sidon" (equivalent to "virgin daughter of Sidon," two epexegetical genitives; Ewald, 289, c) is synonymous with Kena‛an. The name of the ancestral city (compare Isa 37:22) has here become the name of the whole nation that has sprung from it. Hitherto this nation has been untouched, like a virgin, but now it resembles one ravished and defiled. If now they flee across to Cyprus (cittiyim or cittim), there will be no rest for them even there, because the colony, emancipated from the Phoenician yoke, will only be too glad to rid herself to the unwelcome guests from the despotic mother country.

Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78]

The prophet now proceeds to relate, as it were, to the Pheonicio-Spanish colony, the daughter, i.e., the population of Tartessus, what has happened to the mother country. "His hand hath He stretched over the sea, thrown kingdoms into trembling; Jehovah hath given commandment concerning Kena'an, to destroy her fortresses. And He said, Thou shalt not rejoice any further, thou disgraced one, virgin daughter of Sidon! Get up to Kittim, go over; there also shalt thou not find rest." There is no ground whatever for restricting the "kingdoms" (mamlâcoth) to the several small Phoenician states (compare Isa 19:2). Jehovah, reaching over the sea, has thrown the lands of Hither Asia and Egypto-Ethiopia into a state of the most anxious excitement, and has summoned them as instruments of destruction with regard to Kenaēan (אל, like על in Est 4:5). Phoenicia called itself Kena‛an (Canaan); but this is the only passage in the Old Testament in which the name occurs in this most restricted sense. לשׁמיד, for להשׁמיד, as in Num 5:22; Amo 8:4. The form מעזניה is more rare, but it is not a deformity, as Knobel and others maintain. There are other examples of the same resolution of the reduplication and transposition of the letters (it stands for מענזיה, possibly a Phoenician word; see Hitzig, Grabschrift, p. 16, and Levi, Phoenizische Studien, p. 17), viz., תּמנוּ in Lam 3:22 (vid., at Psa 64:7), and קבנו in Num 23:13, at least according to the Jewish grammar (see, however, Ewald, 250, b).

(Note: Bttcher derives the form from מעזן, a supposed diminutive; see, however, Jesurun, pp. 212-216.)

"Virgin of the daughter of Sidon" (equivalent to "virgin daughter of Sidon," two epexegetical genitives; Ewald, 289, c) is synonymous with Kena‛an. The name of the ancestral city (compare Isa 37:22) has here become the name of the whole nation that has sprung from it. Hitherto this nation has been untouched, like a virgin, but now it resembles one ravished and defiled. If now they flee across to Cyprus (cittiyim or cittim), there will be no rest for them even there, because the colony, emancipated from the Phoenician yoke, will only be too glad to rid herself to the unwelcome guests from the despotic mother country.

Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, by John Wesley [1754-65]
He - The Lord. Shook - Heb. he made the kingdoms to tremble; the neighbouring and confederate kingdoms, who might justly quake at her fall, for the dreadfulness and unexpectedness of the thing; and because Tyre was a bulwark, and a refuge to them. A commandment - Hath put this design into the hearts of her enemies, and given them courage to attempt, and strength to execute it.

Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, by John Wesley [1754-65]

He - The Lord. Shook - Heb. he made the kingdoms to tremble; the neighbouring and confederate kingdoms, who might justly quake at her fall, for the dreadfulness and unexpectedness of the thing; and because Tyre was a bulwark, and a refuge to them. A commandment - Hath put this design into the hearts of her enemies, and given them courage to attempt, and strength to execute it.

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