Isaiah 5 17

Isaiah 5:17 kjv

Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the fat ones shall strangers eat.

Isaiah 5:17 nkjv

Then the lambs shall feed in their pasture, And in the waste places of the fat ones strangers shall eat.

Isaiah 5:17 niv

Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture; lambs will feed among the ruins of the rich.

Isaiah 5:17 esv

Then shall the lambs graze as in their pasture, and nomads shall eat among the ruins of the rich.

Isaiah 5:17 nlt

In that day lambs will find good pastures,
and fattened sheep and young goats will feed among the ruins.

Isaiah 5 verses

Isaiah 5 17 Meaning

Isaiah 5:17 depicts a radical reversal of the social and agricultural order in Judah as a result of God's severe judgment. The land, previously prosperous but marred by injustice and greed, will be laid waste. In this desolation, a paradoxical peace emerges: flocks, traditionally herded, will graze unattended in abandoned areas, and transient people, not the original inhabitants, will subsist on the ruins of the once-flourishing settlements. This verse underscores the completeness of God's corrective action, showing a transformed landscape where only the marginal or unguided elements persist.

Isaiah 5 17 Context

Isaiah chapter 5 presents a vivid indictment of Judah and Jerusalem, particularly through the "Song of the Vineyard" (verses 1-7). God's vineyard, Israel, was cultivated with care but yielded only wild grapes (injustice and unrighteousness) instead of good fruit. The subsequent woes (verses 8-25) detail specific sins: greed, drunkenness, defiance of God, pride, and corruption of justice. The chapter culminates in a terrifying prophecy of foreign invasion and widespread destruction. Verse 17 offers a grim snapshot of the aftermath of this judgment. It contrasts sharply with the earlier descriptions of opulence and settled life in Judah. The historical context is pre-exilic Judah, facing threats from Assyria and later Babylon. The people's persistent sinfulness despite God's covenant loyalty and warnings foreshadows the complete devastation described in this verse, demonstrating divine judgment against social inequity and spiritual apostasy.

Isaiah 5 17 Word analysis

• וְרָעוּ (wə·rā·‘ū): "And will graze/feed." This verb (from ra'ah) denotes feeding, pasturing, or shepherding. In this context, it implies a passive grazing without an attendant shepherd, indicative of abandoned land where flocks wander freely due to the absence of human oversight or settled population. It speaks to a radical absence of former order.
• כְבָשִׂים (kə·ḇā·śîm): "Lambs." Symbolically represents innocence and vulnerability. However, in this setting, it points to a scene of wild abandonment, as the former human inhabitants are gone, allowing lambs to roam and graze untended. Their presence implies an empty, unmanaged landscape, highlighting desolation, not peaceful pastoralism.
• כְדָבְרָם (kə·ḏāḇ·rām): "According to their own pastures" or "in their way." The root dabar here is most likely understood as "pasture" or "meadow," implying an area suitable for grazing. It signifies that the lambs will graze freely in places that might once have been cultivated land, emphasizing the collapse of settled agriculture and human dominion.
• וְחֶרְבוֹת (wə·ḥer·ḇō·wṯ): "And ruins/desolations." From churban, meaning devastation, waste, desolation, or ruin. This word powerfully communicates the result of God's judgment: the destruction of cities and inhabited places, transforming them into desolate areas.
• גָּרִים (gā·rîm): "Sojourners/nomads/strangers." From gur, referring to those who dwell as temporary residents or strangers. These are not the indigenous landowners or permanent citizens. Their presence implies that the original inhabitants have been displaced, exiled, or destroyed, leaving the desolate land open for transient, marginalized groups.
• יֹאכֵֽלוּ (yō·ḵê·lū): "Will eat." From akhal, meaning to eat or consume. This indicates sustenance, but critically, it occurs "among the ruins." It is a picture of survival on the scraps or the desolated resources of a fallen society, further reinforcing the overturning of societal norms.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "Then lambs will graze as in their own pastures": This phrase paints a scene of natural wilderness reclaiming formerly cultivated or inhabited land. The idea of "lambs" grazing implies an absence of the usual human care and structured agriculture. The "own pastures" suggests they graze where they please, perhaps even where humans once resided or farmed, signaling the complete upheaval and devastation wrought by judgment. It’s an inversion: fertile land becomes common pasture through abandonment.
• "and nomads will eat among the ruins": This complements the first half by showing human response to the desolation. The "nomads" (sojourners, foreigners, transients) are not the proud and wealthy people of Judah denounced in the preceding verses. They represent those who benefit from the destruction, perhaps scavenging, living off the land in a makeshift manner, or simply passing through devastated areas. This emphasizes the utter ruin of society and the transfer of its vestiges to the marginal and unrooted.

Isaiah 5 17 Bonus section

The seemingly pastoral imagery of lambs grazing might mislead some, but its placement within the woes of Isaiah 5 unequivocally marks it as a consequence of judgment. It is the peace of desolation, not prosperity. The original Hebrew word dabar (translated "pasture") in kedabram is somewhat rare in this precise form in this context, leading some scholars to debate its exact meaning, though "pasture" or "way of grazing" remains the most common and coherent interpretation. The image of the 'nomads' is also significant; these are not simply foreigners, but literally 'strangers' or 'sojourners', people without a permanent stake in the land, who would scavenge or temporarily dwell in places no longer suitable for established settlement, highlighting the loss of secure possession and settled life for God's unfaithful people.

Isaiah 5 17 Commentary

Isaiah 5:17 serves as a poignant depiction of the radical transformation brought about by divine judgment. It is not a scene of renewed blessing or peaceful coexistence, but rather a vivid illustration of inverted order stemming from utter desolation. The luxurious vineyards and teeming cities described earlier in the chapter, products of human greed and injustice, are reduced to wild pastures and uninhabitable ruins. The very elements that symbolized God's wrath – destruction and depopulation – pave the way for a peculiar form of peace and sustenance for the vulnerable and transient. This verse profoundly underscores that God's judgment cleanses the land of its sinful inhabitants and their structures, allowing a raw, natural, and ironically, peaceful state to emerge from the chaos of human rebellion. The quietness is not a restoration but a testimony to God's definitive response to a corrupt society. This picture might encourage contemplation of how God's justice often leads to a humbling quietude before any true spiritual restoration can begin.