Therefore as I live, says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, surely Moab will be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, a possession of nettles, and salt pits, and a perpetual desolation. The remnant of my people will plunder them, and the survivors of my nation will inherit them.
Parallel Translations
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Therefore as I live, says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, surely Moab will be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, a possession of nettles, and salt pits, and a perpetual desolation. The remnant of my people will plunder them, and the survivors of my nation will inherit them.
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Therefore as I live, saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, even the breeding of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation: the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my people shall possess them.
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Therefore as I live, saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, even the breeding-place of nettles, and saltpits, and a desolation, for ever; the residue of My people shall spoil them, and the remnant of My nation shall inherit them.
Cross-references (21)
Passages linked to Zephaniah 2:9 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Isaiah 15:1-9 The burden of Moab. For in a night, Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to nothing. For in a night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to nothing. They have gone up to Bayith, and to Dibon, to the high places, to weep. Moab wails over Nebo and over Medeba. Baldness is on all of their heads. Every beard is cut off. In their streets, they clothe themselves in sackcloth. In their streets and on their housetops, everyone wails, weeping abundantly. Heshbon cries out with Elealeh. Their voice is heard even to Jahaz. Therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud. Their souls tremble within them. My heart cries out for Moab! Her nobles flee to Zoar, to Eglath Shelishiyah; for they go up by the ascent of Luhith with weeping; for on the way to Horonaim, they raise up a cry of destruction. For the waters of Nimrim will be desolate; for the grass has withered away, the tender grass fails, there is no green thing. Therefore they will carry away the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have stored up, over the brook of the willows. For the cry has gone around the borders of Moab, its wailing to Eglaim, and its wailing to Beer Elim. For the waters of Dimon are full of blood; for I will bring yet more on Dimon, a lion on those of Moab who escape, and on the remnant of the land.
- Isaiah 11:14 They will fly down on the shoulders of the Philistines on the west. Together they will plunder the children of the east. They will extend their power over Edom and Moab, and the children of Ammon will obey them.
- Deuteronomy 29:23 that all of its land is sulfur, salt, and burning, that it is not sown, doesn’t produce, nor does any grass grow in it, like the overthrow of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, which Yahweh overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath.
- Isaiah 25:10 For Yahweh’s hand will rest in this mountain. Moab will be trodden down in his place, even like straw is trodden down in the water of the dunghill.
- Isaiah 49:18 Lift up your eyes all around, and see: all these gather themselves together, and come to you. As I live,” says Yahweh, “you shall surely clothe yourself with them all as with an ornament, and dress yourself with them, like a bride.
- Jeremiah 48:1–49:6 Of Moab. Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Woe to Nebo! For it is laid waste. Kiriathaim is disappointed. It is taken. Misgab is put to shame and broken down. The praise of Moab is no more. In Heshbon they have devised evil against her: ‘Come! Let’s cut her off from being a nation.’ You also, Madmen, will be brought to silence. The sword will pursue you. The sound of a cry from Horonaim, desolation and great destruction! Moab is destroyed. Her little ones have caused a cry to be heard. For they will go up by the ascent of Luhith with continual weeping. For at the descent of Horonaim they have heard the distress of the cry of destruction. Flee! Save your lives! Be like the juniper bush in the wilderness. For, because you have trusted in your works and in your treasures, you also will be taken. Chemosh will go out into captivity, his priests and his princes together. The destroyer will come on every city, and no city will escape; the valley also will perish, and the plain will be destroyed; as Yahweh has spoken. Give wings to Moab, that she may fly and get herself away: and her cities will become a desolation, without anyone to dwell in them. “Cursed is he who does the work of Yahweh negligently; and cursed is he who keeps back his sword from blood. “Moab has been at ease from his youth, and he has settled on his lees, and has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither has he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remains in him, and his scent is not changed. Therefore behold, the days come,” says Yahweh, “that I will send to him those who pour off, and they will pour him off; and they will empty his vessels, and break their containers in pieces. Moab will be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence. “How do you say, ‘We are mighty men, and valiant men for the war?’ Moab is laid waste, and they have gone up into his cities, and his chosen young men have gone down to the slaughter,” says the King, whose name is Yahweh of Armies. “The calamity of Moab is near to come, and his affliction hurries fast. All you who are around him, bemoan him, and all you who know his name; say, ‘How the strong staff is broken, the beautiful rod!’ “You daughter who dwells in Dibon, come down from your glory, and sit in thirst; for the destroyer of Moab has come up against you. He has destroyed your strongholds. Inhabitant of Aroer, stand by the way and watch. Ask him who flees, and her who escapes; say, ‘What has been done?’ Moab is disappointed; for it is broken down. Wail and cry! Tell it by the Arnon, that Moab is laid waste. Judgment has come on the plain country, on Holon, on Jahzah, on Mephaath, on Dibon, on Nebo, on Beth Diblathaim, on Kiriathaim, on Beth Gamul, on Beth Meon, on Kerioth, on Bozrah, and on all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near. The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken,” says Yahweh. “Make him drunken; for he magnified himself against Yahweh. Moab will wallow in his vomit, and he also will be in derision. For wasn’t Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves? For as often as you speak of him, you shake your head. You inhabitants of Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the rock. Be like the dove that makes her nest over the mouth of the abyss. “We have heard of the pride of Moab. He is very proud in his loftiness, his pride, his arrogance, and the arrogance of his heart. I know his wrath,” says Yahweh, “that it is nothing; his boastings have done nothing. Therefore I will wail for Moab. Yes, I will cry out for all Moab. They will mourn for the men of Kir Heres. With more than the weeping of Jazer I will weep for you, vine of Sibmah. Your branches passed over the sea. They reached even to the sea of Jazer. The destroyer has fallen on your summer fruits and on your vintage. Gladness and joy is taken away from the fruitful field and from the land of Moab. I have caused wine to cease from the wine presses. No one will tread with shouting. The shouting will be no shouting. From the cry of Heshbon even to Elealeh, even to Jahaz they have uttered their voice, from Zoar even to Horonaim, to Eglath Shelishiyah; for the waters of Nimrim will also become desolate. Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab,” says Yahweh, “him who offers in the high place, and him who burns incense to his gods. Therefore my heart sounds for Moab like pipes, and my heart sounds like pipes for the men of Kir Heres. Therefore the abundance that he has gotten has perished. For every head is bald, and every beard clipped. There are cuttings on all the hands, and sackcloth on the waist. On all the housetops of Moab, and in its streets, there is lamentation everywhere; for I have broken Moab like a vessel in which no one delights,” says Yahweh. “How it is broken down! How they wail! How Moab has turned the back with shame! So will Moab become a derision and a terror to all who are around him.” For Yahweh says: “Behold, he will fly as an eagle, and will spread out his wings against Moab. Kerioth is taken, and the strongholds are seized. The heart of the mighty men of Moab at that day will be as the heart of a woman in her pangs. Moab will be destroyed from being a people, because he has magnified himself against Yahweh. Terror, the pit, and the snare are on you, inhabitant of Moab,” says Yahweh. “He who flees from the terror will fall into the pit; and he who gets up out of the pit will be taken in the snare: for I will bring on him, even on Moab, the year of their visitation,” says Yahweh. “Those who fled stand without strength under the shadow of Heshbon; for a fire has gone out of Heshbon, and a flame from the middle of Sihon, and has devoured the corner of Moab, and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones. Woe to you, O Moab! The people of Chemosh are undone; for your sons are taken away captive, and your daughters into captivity. “Yet I will reverse the captivity of Moab in the latter days,” says Yahweh. Thus far is the judgment of Moab. Of the children of Ammon. Yahweh says: “Has Israel no sons? Has he no heir? Why then does Malcam possess Gad, and his people dwell in its cities? Therefore behold, the days come,” says Yahweh, “that I will cause an alarm of war to be heard against Rabbah of the children of Ammon; and it will become a desolate heap, and her daughters will be burned with fire: then Israel will possess those who possessed him,” says Yahweh. “Wail, Heshbon, for Ai is laid waste! Cry, you daughters of Rabbah! Clothe yourself in sackcloth. Lament, and run back and forth among the fences; for Malcam will go into captivity, his priests and his princes together. Why do you boast in the valleys, your flowing valley, backsliding daughter? You trusted in her treasures, saying, ‘Who will come to me?’ Behold, I will bring a terror on you,” says the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, “from all who are around you. All of you will be driven completely out, and there will be no one to gather together the fugitives. “But afterward I will reverse the captivity of the children of Ammon,” says Yahweh.
- Genesis 19:24-25 Then Yahweh rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah sulfur and fire from Yahweh out of the sky. He overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew on the ground.
- Isaiah 13:19-20 Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride, will be like when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It will never be inhabited, neither will it be lived in from generation to generation. The Arabian will not pitch a tent there, neither will shepherds make their flocks lie down there.
- Isaiah 34:9-13 Its streams will be turned into pitch, its dust into sulfur, And its land will become burning pitch. It won’t be quenched night nor day. Its smoke will go up forever. From generation to generation, it will lie waste. No one will pass through it forever and ever. But the pelican and the porcupine will possess it. The owl and the raven will dwell in it. He will stretch the line of confusion over it, and the plumb line of emptiness. They shall call its nobles to the kingdom, but none shall be there; and all its princes shall be nothing. Thorns will come up in its palaces, nettles and thistles in its fortresses; and it will be a habitation of jackals, a court for ostriches.
- Jeremiah 46:18 “As I live,” says the King, whose name is Yahweh of Armies, “surely like Tabor among the mountains, and like Carmel by the sea, so he will come.
- Jeremiah 49:18 As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and its neighbor cities,” says Yahweh, “no man will dwell there, neither will any son of man live therein.
- Ezekiel 25:1-17 Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, “Son of man, set your face toward the children of Ammon, and prophesy against them. Tell the children of Ammon, ‘Hear the word of the Lord Yahweh! The Lord Yahweh says, “Because you said, ‘Aha!’ against my sanctuary, when it was profaned; and against the land of Israel, when it was made desolate; and against the house of Judah, when they went into captivity: therefore, behold, I will deliver you to the children of the east for a possession. They will set their encampments in you, and make their dwellings in you. They will eat your fruit and they will drink your milk. I will make Rabbah a stable for camels, and the children of Ammon a resting place for flocks. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.” For the Lord Yahweh says: “Because you have clapped your hands, stamped with the feet, and rejoiced with all the contempt of your soul against the land of Israel; therefore, behold, I have stretched out my hand on you, and will deliver you for a plunder to the nations. I will cut you off from the peoples, and I will cause you to perish out of the countries. I will destroy you. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.” “ ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Because Moab and Seir say, ‘Behold, the house of Judah is like all the nations;’ therefore, behold, I will open the side of Moab from the cities, from his cities which are on his frontiers, the glory of the country, Beth Jeshimoth, Baal Meon, and Kiriathaim, to the children of the east, to go against the children of Ammon; and I will give them for a possession, that the children of Ammon may not be remembered among the nations. I will execute judgments on Moab. Then they will know that I am Yahweh.” “ ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Because Edom has dealt against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and has greatly offended, and taken revenge on them;” therefore the Lord Yahweh says, “I will stretch out my hand on Edom, and will cut off man and animal from it; and I will make it desolate from Teman. They will fall by the sword even to Dedan. I will lay my vengeance on Edom by the hand of my people Israel. They will do in Edom according to my anger and according to my wrath. Then they will know my vengeance,” says the Lord Yahweh. “ ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Because the Philistines have taken revenge, and have taken vengeance with contempt of soul to destroy with perpetual hostility;” therefore the Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I will stretch out my hand on the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites, and destroy the remnant of the sea coast. I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes. Then they will know that I am Yahweh, when I lay my vengeance on them.” ’ ”
- Joel 3:19-20 Egypt will be a desolation, and Edom will be a desolate wilderness, for the violence done to the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land. But Judah will be inhabited forever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.
- Amos 1:13–2:3 Yahweh says: “For three transgressions of the children of Ammon, yes, for four, I will not turn away its punishment; because they have ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead, that they may enlarge their border. But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, and it will devour its palaces, with shouting in the day of battle, with a storm in the day of the whirlwind; and their king will go into captivity, he and his princes together,” says Yahweh. Yahweh says: “For three transgressions of Moab, yes, for four, I will not turn away its punishment; because he burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime; but I will send a fire on Moab, and it will devour the palaces of Kerioth; and Moab will die with tumult, with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet; and I will cut off the judge from among them, and will kill all its princes with him,” says Yahweh.
- Micah 5:7-8 The remnant of Jacob will be among many peoples, like dew from Yahweh, like showers on the grass, that don’t wait for man, nor wait for the sons of men. The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, among many peoples, like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep; who, if he goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, and there is no one to deliver.
- Zephaniah 2:7 The coast will be for the remnant of the house of Judah. They will find pasture. In the houses of Ashkelon, they will lie down in the evening, for Yahweh, their God, will visit them, and restore them.
- Zephaniah 2:14 Herds will lie down in the middle of her, all the animals of the nations. Both the pelican and the porcupine will lodge in its capitals. Their calls will echo through the windows. Desolation will be in the thresholds, for he has laid bare the cedar beams.
- Zephaniah 3:13 The remnant of Israel will not do iniquity, nor speak lies, neither will a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth, for they will feed and lie down, and no one will make them afraid.”
- Numbers 14:21 but in very deed—as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with Yahweh’s glory—
- Jeremiah 50:40 As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and its neighbor cities,” says Yahweh, “so no man will dwell there, neither will any son of man live therein.
- Romans 14:11 For it is written, “ ‘As I live,’ says the Lord, ‘to me every knee will bow. Every tongue will confess to God.’ ”
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain In order to cheer the miserable Jews by some…
In order to cheer the miserable Jews by some consolation, God said, in what we considered yesterday, that the wantonness of Moab was known to him; he now adds, that he would visit with punishment the reproaches which had been mentioned. For it would have availed them but little that their wrongs had been observed by God, if no punishment had been prepared. Hence the Prophet reminds them that God is no idle spectator, who only observes what takes place in the world; but that there is a reward laid up for all the ungodly. And these verses are to be taken in connection, that the faithful may know that their wrongs are not unknown to God, and also that he will be their defender. But that the Jews might have a more sure confidence that God would be their deliverer, he interposes an oath. God at the same time shows that he is really touched when he sees his people so cruelly and immoderately harassed, when the ungodly seem to think that an unbridled license is permitted them. God therefore shows here, that not only the salvation of his people is an object of his care, but that he undertakes their cause as though his anger was kindled; not that passions belong to him but such a form of speaking is adopted in order to express what the faithful could never otherwise conceive an idea of, that is, to express the unspeakable love of God towards them, and his care for them.
He then says that he lives, as though he had sworn by his own life. As we have elsewhere seen that he swears by his life, so he speaks now. Live do I, that is, As I am God, so will I avenge these wrongs by which my people are now oppressed. And for the same reason he calls himself Jehovah of hosts, and the God of Israel. In the first clause he exalts his own power, that the Jews might know that he was endued with power; and then he mentions his goodness, because he had adopted them as his people. The meaning then is that God swears by his own life; and that the Jews might not think that this was done in vain, his power is brought before them, and then his favor is added.
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Moab, he says, shall be like Sodom, and the sons of Ammon like Gomorrah, even for the production of the nettle and for a mire of salt; that is, their lands should be reduced to a waste, or should become wholly barren, so that nothing was to grow there but nettles, as the case is with desert places. As to the expression, the mine (fodina) or quarry of salt, it often occurs in scripture: a salt-pit denotes sterility in Hebrew. And the Prophet adds, that this would not be for a short time only; It shall be (he says) a perpetual desolation. He also adds, that this would be for the advantage of the Church; for the residue of my people shall plunder them, and the remainder of my nation shall possess them. He ever speaks of the residue; for as it was said yesterday, it was necessary for that people to be cleansed from their dregs, so that a small portion only would remain; and we know that not many of them returned from exile.
The import of the whole is, that though God determined to diminish his Church, so that a few only survived, yet these few would be the heirs of the whole land, and possess the kingdom, when God had taken vengeance on all their enemies.
It hence follows, according to the Prophet, that this shall be to them for their pride. We see that the Prophet’s object is, to take away whatever bitterness the Jews might feel when insolently slandered by their enemies. As then there was danger of desponding, since nothing, as it was said yesterday, is more grievous to be borne than reproach, God does here expressly declare, that the proud triumph of their neighbors over the Jews would be their own ruin; for, as Solomon says, ‘Pride goes before destruction.’ Proverbs 16:18. And he again confirms what he had already referred to—that the Jews would not be wronged with impunity, for God had taken them under his guardianship, and was their protector: Because they have reproached, he says, and triumphed over the people of Jehovah of hosts. He might have said, over my people, as in the last verse; but there is something implied in these words, as though the Prophet had said, that they carried on war not with mortals but with God himself, whose majesty was insulted, when the Jews were so unjustly oppressed. It follows—
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Zep 2:9 Therefore [as] I live, saith the LORD…
Zep 2:9 Therefore [as] I live, saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, [even] the breeding of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation: the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my people shall possess them.
Ver. 9. Therefore as I live] This is God’s oath; so, As true as I live, Num 14:21 cf. Psa 95:10, therefore they are to blame that use it in their common talk.
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Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, &c.] Whereas they think that I either hear not their revilings or regard them not, I shall make Moab and Ammon smart and smoke for them.
Even the breeding of nettles and salt pits] They shall not indeed be consumed with fire from heaven; but their land shall lie waste for a long season. Nettles grow in barren places, and are good for nothing, unless it be the buds at first coming. Pliny writeth, that where salt is digged little good else groweth, see Jdg 9:45 Psa 107:34.
For a perpetual desolation] Certain it is that those nations carried captive by Nebuchadnezzar were never restored; but that in later times a mixed multitude of vagrants out of many nations met there, taking upon them the old title of Arabians, and living by rapine and robbery. Out of these came Mahomet, founder of the Turkish empire and superstition, who overturned the Christian Churches, there planted by the apostles (as was here afore prophesied, "The residue of my people shall spoil them," &c., see Zep 2:7; confer Gal 1:17, and soon overrun all the east and south, as Popery did all the west and north, at the same time.)
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain As I live; the most solemn oath, fit for…
As I live; the most solemn oath, fit for none but God himself to use: see Eze 14:16.
Saith the Lord of hosts, who have all things at my disposal, and can arm all creatures against these proud revilers.
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The God of Israel, who by covenant am Israel’s God, and Israel is my people, in whose reproaches I am reproached.
Shall be as Sodom: this is a proverbial speech in Scripture phrase to speak great destruction, as Isa 1:9. Moab and Ammon were not destroyed by fire, as Sodom and Gomorrah; but the next words are an explication of these.
The breeding of nettles; not cultivated, but run over with nettles, as if it were only to breed them.
And salt-pits; a salt, dry, barren earth, fit only to dig salt out of.
A perpetual desolation; never more to be manured and inhabited, or not for a long, a very long time.
The residue; either the few left with Gedaliah, or the remnant that returned out of Babylon.
Shall spoil them; provoked by the injuries of Moab and Ammon, shall take arms, overcome, and spoil them.
Shall possess them; settle upon their lands, and dwell in those parts that are fit for habitation.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Therefore [as] I live, saith the Lord of hosts,…
Therefore [as] I live, saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel The Lord here swears by himself, by his life; partly to show how provoked he was at, and how grievously he resented, the injuries done to his people; and partly to observe the certain fulfilment of what is after declared; and it might be depended upon it would surely be done, not only because of his word and oath, which are immutable; but because of his ability to do it, as "the Lord of hosts", of armies above and below; and because of the covenant relation that subsisted between him and Israel, being their God; and therefore would avenge the insults and injuries done them: surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah; that is, should be utterly destroyed, as these cities were; whose destruction is often made use of to express the utter ruin and destruction of any other people; otherwise it is not to be supposed that these countries were to be destroyed, or were destroyed, in like manner, by fire from heaven; the similitude lies in other things after expressed: [even] the breeding of nettles; or "left to nettles" F17; or rather to "thorns", as the Targum: and so the Vulgate Latin version renders it "the dryness of thorns", though to a very poor sense. In general the meaning of the phrase is, that those countries should be very barren and desolate, like such places as are overrun with nettles, thorns, briers, and brambles; and these so thick, that there is no passing through them without a man's tearing his garments and his flesh: for Schultens F18, from the use of the word F19 in the Arabic language, shows that the words are to be rendered a "thicket of thorns which tear"; and cut the feet of those that pass through them; and even their whole body, as well as their clothes; and, wherever these grow in such plenty, it is a plain sign of a barren land, as well as what follow: and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation; signifying that the countries of Moab and Ammon should be waste, barren, and uncultivated, as the above places were, where nothing but nettles grew, as do in great abundance in desolate places; and where saltpits should be, or heaps of salt, as Kimchi interprets it; and wherever salt is found, as Pliny F20 says, it is a barren place, and produces nothing; though Herodotus F21 speaks of places where were hillocks of salt, and very fruitful; and where the people used salt in manuring and improving their ground; which must be accounted for by the difference of climate and soil: this passage is produced by Reland F23 to prove that the lake Asphaltites is not the place, as is commonly believed, where Sodom and Gomorrah stood; since those cities were not overflown, or immersed in and covered with water, but were destroyed by fire and brimstone, and so became desolate; and had no herbs and plants, but nettles, and such like things; and such these countries of Moab and Ammon should be, and ever remain so, at least for a long time; and especially should be desolate and uninhabited by the former possessors of it; see ( Deuteronomy 29:23 ) this was fulfilled about five years after the destruction of Jerusalem, when Nebuchadnezzar, as Josephus F24 relates, led his army into Coelesyria, and made war upon the Ammonites and Moabites, and subjected them to him, who were the inhabitant of it, as the same writer says F25: the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my people shall possess them; that is, the Jews, the remnant of them that returned from Babylon: now these, in the times of the Maccabees, and those that descended from them, seized on several places in these countries, and possessed them; for, after these countries had been subdued and made desolate by Nebuchadnezzar, they became considerable nations again. Josephus F26 says the Moabites in his time were a great nation; though in the third century, as Origen F1 relates, they went under the common name of Arabians; and, even long before the times of Josephus, they were called Arabian Moabites, as he himself observes; when he tells us that Alexander Jannaeus subdued them, and imposed a tribute on them; and who also gives us an account of the cities of the Moabites, which were taken and demolished by them, as Essebon, Medaba, Lemba, Oronas, Telithon, Zara, the valley of the Cilicians, and Pella; these he destroyed, because the inhabitants would not promise to conform to the rites and customs of the Jews F2; though Josephus ben Gorion, who also makes mention of these cities as taken by the same prince, says F3 he did not demolish them, because they entered into a covenant and were circumcised; and he speaks of ten fortified cities of the king of Syria, added at the same time to the kingdom of Israel, not destroyed: likewise the children of Ammon, after their captivity by Nebuchadnezzar, became a powerful people: we read of the country of the Ammonites in ``Then Jason, who had undermined his own brother, being undermined by another, was compelled to flee into the country of the Ammonites.'' (2 Maccabees 4:26) and, in the times of Judas Maccabeus, Timotheus, their general, got together a strong and numerous army, which being worsted by Judas, he took their city Jasoron, or Jaser, ``Afterward he passed over to the children of Ammon, where he found a mighty power, and much people, with Timotheus their captain.'' (1 Maccabees 5:6) carried their wives and children captive, and burnt their city F4; and this people, as well as the Moabites in the third century, as before observed, were swallowed up under the general name of Arabians; and neither of them are any more; all which has fulfilled this prophecy, and those of Jeremiah and Amos concerning them: this, likewise, in a spiritual sense, might have a further accomplishment in the first times of the Gospel, when it was preached in these countries by the apostles, and churches were formed in them; and may be still further accomplished in the latter day, when those parts of the world shall be possessed by converted Jews and by Gentile Christians. Kimchi owns it may be interpreted as future, of what shall be in the times of the Messiah. FOOTNOTES: F17 (lwrx qvmm) "locus urticae derelictus", Bochart. Hierozoic. par. 1. col. 872. Stockius, p. 629.; "derelictio urticae", Burkius. So R. Sol. Urbin. Ohel Moed, fol. 68. 2. F18 De Defect. Hodiern. Ling. Heb. p. 32. F19 "laceravit, laceratus est", Golius, col. 2231. Castel. col. 2165. F20 Nat. Hist. l. 31. c. 7. "Salsa autem tellus----frugibus infelix." Virgil. Georgic. l. 2. F21 Melpomene, sive l. 4. c. 182, 183. F23 Palestina Illustrata, l. 1. c. 38. p. 254, 255. F24 Antiqu. l. 10. c. 9. sect. 7. F25 Ibid. l. 1. c. 11. sect. 5. F26 Antiqu. l. 1. c. 11. sect. 5. F1 Comment. in Job, fol. 2. 1. A. F2 Antiqu. l. 13. c. 13. sect. 5. c. 15. sect. 4. De Bello Jud. l. 1. c. 4. sect. 2. F3 Hist. Heb. l. 4. c. 12. p. 297. F4 Joseph. Antiqu. l. 12. c. 8. sect. 1. 1 Maccab. v. 6.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Of nettles - Not cultivated, but over-run with nettles.…
Of nettles - Not cultivated, but over-run with nettles. Salt-pits - A dry, barren earth, fit only to dig salt out of. The residue - That return out of Babylon. Possess them - Settle upon those parts of their lands, that are fit for habitation.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 9. The breeding of nettles] That is, their…
Verse 9. The breeding of nettles] That is, their land shall become desolate, and be a place for nettles, thorns, &c., to flourish in, for want of cultivation.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Therefore as I live, saith the Lord of hosts…
Therefore as I live, saith the Lord of hosts - Life especially belongs to God, since He Alone is Underived Life. “He hath life in Himself” Joh 5:26. He is entitled “the living God,” as here, in tacit contrast with the dead idols of the Philistines 1Sa 17:26, 1Sa 17:36, with idols generally Jer 10:10; or against the blasphemies of Sennacherib 2Ki 19:4, 2Ki 19:16, the mockeries of scoffers Jer 23:36, of the awe of His presence (Deu 5:25 (Deu 5:26 in Hebrew)), His might for His people Jos 3:10; as the object of the soul’s longings , the nearness in the Gospel, “children of the living God” (Hos 1:10 (Hos 2:1 in Hebrew)). “Since He can swear by no greater, He sware by Himself” Heb 6:13. Since mankind are ready mostly to believe that God means well with them, but are slow to think that He is in earnest in His threats, God employs this sanction of what He says, twice only in regard to His promises or His mercy Isa 49:18; Eze 33:10; everywhere else to give solemnity to His threats Num 14:28; Deu 32:40, (adding לעולס) Jer 22:24; Eze 5:11; Eze 14:16, Eze 14:18, Eze 14:20; Eze 16:48; (as Judge) Eze 17:16, Eze 17:19; Eze 18:3; (in rebuke) Eze 20:3, Eze 20:31, Eze 20:33; Eze 33:27; Eze 34:8; Eze 35:11. In the same sense, I swear by Myself, Jer 22:5; Jer 49:13; hath sworn by Himself, Amo 6:8; by the excellency of Jacob, Amo 8:7). The appeal to the truth of His own being in support of the truth of His words is part of the grandeur el the prophet Ezekiel in whom it chiefly occurs. God says in the same meaning, by Myself have I sworn, of promises which required strong faith .
Saith the Lord of Hosts - Their blasphemies had denied the very being of God, as God, to whom they preferred or likened their idols; they had denied His power or that He could avenge, so He names His Name of power, “the Lord of the hosts” of heaven against their array against His border, I, “the Lord of hosts” who can fulfill what I threaten, and “the God of Israel” who Myself am wronged in My people, will make “Moab as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah.” Sodom and Gomorrah had once been flourishing cities, on the borders of that land, which Israel had won from the Amorite, and of which Moab and Ammon at different times possessed themselves, and to secure which Ammon carried on that exterminating war. For they were to the east of the plain “between Bethel and Ai,” where Lot made his choice, “in the plain or circle of Jordan” Gen 13:1, Gen 13:3, Gen 13:11, the well known title of the tract, through which the Jordan flowed into the Dead Sea. Near this, lay Zoar, (Ziara) beneath the caves whither Lot, at whose prayer it had been spared, escaped from its wickedness.
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Moab and Ammon had settled and in time spread from the spot, wherein their forefathers had received their birth. Sodom, at least, must have been in that part of the plain, which is to the east of the Jordan, since Lot was bidden to flee to the mountains, with his wife and daughters, and there is no mention of the river, which would have been a hindrance Gen 19:17-23. Then it lay probably in that “broad belt of desolation” in the plain of Shittim, as Gomorrah and others of the Pentapolis may have lain in “the sulphur-sprinkled expanse” between El Riha (on the site of Jericho) and the dead sea, “covered with layers of salt and gypsum which overlie the loamy subsoil, literally, fulfilling the descriptions of Holy Writ (says an eye-witness), “Brimstone and salt and burning, that it is not sown nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein” Deu 29:23 : “a fruitful land turned into salthess” Psa 107:34. “No man shall abide there, neither shall a son of man dwell in it” Jer 49:18. An elaborate system of artificial irrigation was carried through that cis-Jordanic tract, which decayed when it was desolated of man, and that desolation prevents its restoration.
The doom of Moab and Ammon is rather of entire destruction beyond all recovery, than of universal barrenness. For the imagery, that it should be the “breeding” (literally, ‘possession’) “of nettles” would not be literally compatible, except in different localities, with that of “saltpits,” which exclude all vegetation. Yet both are united in Moab. The soil continues, as of old, of exuberant fertility; yet in part, from the utter neglect and insecurity of agriculture it is abandoned to a rank and encumbering vegetation; elsewhere, from the neglect of the former artiticial system of irrigation, it is wholly barren. The plant named is one of rank growth, since outcasts could lie concealed under it Job 30:7. The preponderating authority seems to be for “mollach,” the Bedouin name of the “mallow,” Prof. E. H. Palmer says , “which,” he adds, “I have seen growing in rank luxuriance in Moab, especially in the sides of deserted Arab camps.”
The residue of My people shall spoil them, and the remnant of My people shall possess them - Again, a remnant only, but even these shall prevail against them, as was first fulfilled in Judas Maccabaeus (1 Macc. 5:6-8).
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Dryness. Septuagint, "Damascus shall be abandoned as a heap…
Dryness. Septuagint, "Damascus shall be abandoned as a heap on the barn-floor, and disappearing for an age." (Haydock) --- This city is threatened with the rest, Isaias xvii. 1. (Calmet) --- Ever. Septuagint refer this to Damascus, others to Ammon, &c. (Haydock) --- The latter nations were in desolation for a long time; but had re-established themselves, when the Machabees reduced them again, Jeremias xlviii., and 1 Machabees v. 6.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain the breeding of nettles--or, the overspreading of nettles, that…
the breeding of nettles--or, the overspreading of nettles, that is, a place overrun with them.
salt pits--found at the south of the Dead Sea. The water overflows in the spring, and salt is left by the evaporation. Salt land is barren (Jdg 9:45; Psa 107:34, Margin).
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possess them--that is, their land; in retribution for their having occupied Judah's land.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 9. Jehovah’s oath by Himself, as I live, is…
9. Jehovah’s oath by Himself, as I live, is rare in early writings, but very common in Ezekiel.
Moab shall be as Sodom] The vicinity of the two peoples or at least of Moab to the Dead Sea may have suggested the threat that the fate of the cities of the plain shall overtake them.
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the breeding of nettles] a possession of nettles, which overgrow uncultivated places, Pro_24:31; Job_30:7; Isa_34:13.
and saltpits] These were common around the Dead Sea: Deu_29:23; cf. Isa_13:19; Jer_49:18. The idea suggested is that of utter barrenness. To sow with salt was a symbolical act, signifying to doom to perpetual unfruitfulness and desolation (Jdg_9:45). Eze_47:11 predicts that, though the waters of the Dead Sea shall be sweetened when Israel is finally restored, the miry places and marshes about it shall be used for salt.
shall spoil them] i.e. make a spoil of them, viz. Moab and Ammon. There is a certain inconsistency in the verse, which is not to be removed by drawing a distinction between the country of Moab and Ammon and the peoples themselves, and fancying that the country shall share the fate of Sodom, while the peoples become the servants of Israel (Hitzig). It is better to consider the prophet’s predictions to be ideal, and to threaten two fates to Moab and Ammon, one, destruction like Sodom and Gomorrah, and the other, absorption by Israel.
remnant of my people] As R.V., my nation.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (9) The breeding of nettles.—Better, an inheritance of nettles.…
(9) The breeding of nettles.—Better, an inheritance of nettles. The propriety of illustrating the fate of Moab and Ammon by that of the cities of the plain is the greater in that Lot, the ancestor of these nationalities, was an inhabitant of Sodom, and narrowly escaped sharing its destruction. Ravages in Moab and Ammon were effected by Nebuchadnezzar in B.C. 582, probably in revenge for the murder of Gedaliah, the ruler of his appointment (Jos., Ant. x. 9 § 7). But the allusion here is to some later and more permanent work of destruction. The national existence of both Moab and Ammon appears to have ceased long before the Christian era. Josephus’ assertion (Ant. i. 11 § 5.) that in his own time the Moabites were “a very great nation.” is simply unintelligible. The extraordinary number of ruined towns in Moab has been noticed by every modern explorer.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain As I live. This is a common formulary to…
As I live. This is a common formulary to express certainty, God, as it were, pledging his existence to the truth of his declaration. (Deu_32:40 Isa_49:18, etc.) God calls himself, The Lord of hosts , therefore able to fulfil his threats; and the God of Israel, and therefore ready to punish wrongs done to his chosen people. As Sodom. This threat came home with particular force to the Moabites and Am. monites who dwelt in the neighbourhood of the Dead Sea, and had before their eyes this awful proof of the chastisement with which sin meets, and which had happened in the time of their forefather Lot. "There are no settled inhabitants," says Dr. Porter, writing of Moab, "but the hillsides and glens are studded with the ruins of ancient towns and villages. We at length pitched our tents by the lonely fountain of Heshbon. The site of this royal city is commanding a rounded hilt on the edge of a vast plateau, which extends on the south and east to the horizon, and on the west breaks down in steep slopes, jagged cliffs, and wild ravines, to the Dead Sea and Jordan valley, nearly four thousand feet below. The hill was the nucleus of the city. Its sides are covered with ruins, and remains of houses, temples, and other buildings are strewn over a considerable section of the adjoining plain. All is desolate. Not a building, and scarcely a fragment of a wall, is standing; yet, though deserted for centuries, it bears its ancient name. I looked from Heshbon far and wide over the ancient territory of the Moabites, and saw desolation everywhere. The old towns and villages are all deserted and in ruins. In fact, there is not at this moment a single inhabited town or village in Moab, except Kerak, which stands on the extreme southern border. The sites of many were visible grey mounds dotting the plain" ("Illust. of Bible Proph.," pp. 24, 25). "The cities, towns, villages, are all in ruins. ... And no attempt is ever made to rebuild or repair; no man ventures to seek even a temporary abode among the ruined cities of Moab. The local Arab avoids the old sites, and seeks rest and security amid rocks and ravines; the powerful desert tribes sweep over the country periodically, and devour and destroy all in their track" (ibid., p. 28). Even the breeding of nettles; rather, a possession of nettles; a place where nettles only grow. Vulgate, siccitas spinarum. The identification of the plant kharul is uncertain. In Job (Job_30:7) it is represented as of sufficient growth to conceal fugitives; hence some think it is the wild mustard. Dr. Pusey, relying on a notice of Professor Palmer, considers it to be the mallow, which grows in rank luxuriance in Moab. The LXX, reading daleth instead of mem in the apax legomenon mimshaq, rendered "breeding," has Damaskonh , "Damascus shall be left." Salt pits. All travellers note the abundance of rock salt in the vicinity of the Dead Sea. (see Deu_29:23; and comp. Psa_107:34 Jer_17:6) A perpetual desolation. The prophecy intimates that this country should never recover its prosperity. (comp. Eze 25) The residue of my people shall spoil them. A partial fulfilment of this prophecy occurred when Judas Maccabaeus smote Ammon, (RAPC 1Ma 5:6, etc.) and Alexander Jannaeus subdued the Moabites (Josephus, "Ant.," 13:13. 5); but the prophet looks forward to a spiritual fulfilment under the Messiah, as we see from ver. 11.The (comp. Isa_14:1, 2 49:23, etc.) faithful remnant shall win possession of the heathen strongholds, and convert the nations to Christ, and incorporate them in the Church.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 2:9 The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah serves as…
2:9 The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah serves as an example of God’s severe judgment of sin, both in the Old Testament (Deut 29:23; Isa 1:9; Jer 23:14; Amos 4:11) and in the New Testament (Luke 10:12; Rom 9:29; 2 Pet 2:6). • salt pits: A ruinous waste (Deut 29:23; Ps 107:34; Jer 17:6). Sowing the earth with salt was a mark of permanent judgment (see Judg 9:45) because it made the ground barren.
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