Isaiah 28:4

And the glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be a fading flower, and as the hasty fruit before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up.

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
glorious	צְבִ֣י tze.Vi	H6643	splendor (as conspicuous) · noun, common masculine singular construct
beauty	תִפְאַרְתּ֔וֹ tif.'ar.To	H8597	ornament (abstractly or concretely · noun, common feminine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
head	רֹ֖אשׁ rosh	H7218	the head (as most easily shaken) · noun, common masculine singular construct
fat	שְׁמָנִ֑ים she.ma.Nim	H8081	grease · adjective, masculine plural absolute
valley	גֵּ֣יא gei'	H1516	a gorge (from its lofty sides · noun, common both genders singular construct
fading	נֹבֵל֙ no.Vel	H5034	to wilt · verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
flower	צִיצַ֤ת tzi.Tzat	H6733	a flower · noun, common feminine singular construct
fruit	בִּכּוּר bikkûwr	H1061	the first-fruits of the crop
summer	קַ֔יִץ Ka.yitz	H7019	harvest (as the crop) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
looketh	יִרְאֶ֤ה yir.'Eh	H7200	to see · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
seeth	הָֽרֹאֶה֙ ha.ro.'Eh	H7200	to see · definite article + verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
hand	בְּכַפּ֖וֹ be.kha.Po	H3709	the hollow hand or palm (so of the paw of an animal · preposition + noun, common feminine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
up	יִבְלָעֶֽנָּה yiv.la.'E.nah	H1104	to make away with (specifically by swallowing) · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular + pronominal suffix, 3rd person feminine singular

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Nahum 3:12 All thy strong holds shall be like fig trees with the firstripe figs: if they be shaken, they shall even fall into the mouth of the eater.
Micah 7:1 Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grapegleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat: my soul…
Isaiah 28:1 Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower, which are on the head of the fat valleys o…
Hosea 6:4 O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it g…
Psalms 73:19-20 How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors.
Hosea 9:10-11 I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the firstripe in the fig tree at her first time: but they went to Baal-p…
Hosea 9:16 Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear no fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved fruit o…
Hosea 13:1 When Ephraim spake trembling, he exalted himself in Israel; but when he offended in Baal, he died.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Isaiah 28:1-8

Here, I. The prophet warns the kingdom of the ten tribes of the judgments that were coming upon them for their sins, which were soon after executed by the king of Assyria, who laid their country waste, and carried the people into captivity. Ephraim had his name from fruitfulness, their soil being very fertile and the products of it abundant and the best of the kind; they had a great many fat valleys (Isa 28:1, Isa 28:4), and Samaria, which was situated on a hill, was, as it were, on the head of the fat valleys. Their country was rich and pleasant, and as the garden of the Lord: it was the glory of Canaan, as that was the glory of all lands; their harvest and vintage were the glorious beauty…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Isaiah 28:4

Rather, "the fading flower, their glorious beauty (Isa 28:1), which is on the head of the fat (fertile) valley, shall be as the early fig" [G. V. SMITH]. Figs usually ripened in August; but earlier ones (Hebrew bikkurah, Spanish bokkore) in June, and were regarded as a delicacy (Jer 24:2; Hos 9:10; Mic 7:1). while it is yet--that is, immediately, without delay; describing the eagerness of the Assyrian Shalmaneser, not merely to conquer, but to destroy utterly Samaria; whereas other conquered cities were often spared.

John Gill on Isaiah 28:4

And the glorious beauty which is on the head of the fat valley,.... Meaning the riches and fruitfulness of the ten tribes, and especially of Samaria the head of them: shall be a fading flower; as before declared, Isaiah 28:1 and here repeated to show the certainty of it, and to awaken their attention to it: and as the hasty fruit before the summer; the first ripe fruit, that which is ripe before the summer fruits in common are. The Septuagint render it the first ripe fig; and so the Targum and Aben Ezra: which when he that looketh upon it seeth it; that it is goodly and desirable, and so gathers it, Micah 7:1, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up; and as soon as he has got it into…

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Dictionary and topics

Fig — First mentioned in Gen. 3:7. The fig-tree is mentioned (Deut. 8:8) as one of the valuable products of Palestine. It was a sign of peace and prosperity (1 Kings 4:25; Micah 4:4; Zech. 3:10). Figs were…
Harrow — (Heb. harits), a tribulum or sharp threshing sledge; a frame armed on the under side with rollers or sharp spikes (2 Sam. 12:31; 1 Chr. 20:3). Heb. verb sadad, to harrow a field, break its clods (Job…
Fruits · Divided into: Hasty or precocious — Divided into: Hasty or precocious
Israel, Prophecies Concerning · .Of — .Of
Summer · Fruits of — Fruits of
Valleys · Called: Fat valleys, when fruitful — Called: Fat valleys, when fruitful
Worldliness · 1:8;2:1-12;6:11,12;8:15-17;10:19;11:9,10; — 1:8;2:1-12;6:11,12;8:15-17;10:19;11:9,10;

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Isaiah 28:4

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Isaiah 28:1-8

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Isaiah 28:4

John Gill on Isaiah 28:4

Dictionary and topics

Isaiah 28:4

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Isaiah 28:1-8

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Isaiah 28:4

John Gill on Isaiah 28:4

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on Isaiah 28:4

Keil & Delitzsch on Isaiah 28:2-4

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Isaiah 28:2

Rashi on Isaiah 28:4