Isaiah 6 12

Isaiah 6:12 kjv

And the LORD have removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.

Isaiah 6:12 nkjv

The LORD has removed men far away, And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

Isaiah 6:12 niv

until the LORD has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken.

Isaiah 6:12 esv

and the LORD removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

Isaiah 6:12 nlt

until the LORD has sent everyone away,
and the entire land of Israel lies deserted.

Isaiah 6 verses

Isaiah 6 12 meaning

This verse declares a severe divine judgment: the Lord Himself will cause the extensive deportation of the people from their homeland, resulting in widespread desolation and emptiness throughout the very heart of the land. It signifies a profound, active, and comprehensive removal orchestrated by God, leading to utter ruin and abandonment of once-inhabited areas.

Isaiah 6 12 Context

Isaiah 6 recounts the prophet's commissioning by God. After a sublime vision of God's holiness (vv. 1-7) and his confession of sin, Isaiah is purified and responds to God's call to prophesy (v. 8). However, the message God gives him is stark: the people will hear God's word but refuse to understand, see but refuse to perceive, leading to their spiritual hardening (vv. 9-10). Troubled, Isaiah asks, "How long, O Lord?" (v. 11). Verse 12 is part of God's answer, detailing the severity and duration of the judgment—the land will be thoroughly devastated and depopulated until a mere remnant (v. 13) is left. Historically, this foreshadows the destructive invasions by the Assyrians and, more completely, the Babylonian exile in the 6th century BC, when the Judean population was forcibly removed, and the land lay desolate for decades. The cultural context includes the common Ancient Near Eastern practice of deportation as a tool of empire, here enacted by God Himself.

Isaiah 6 12 Word analysis

• And the Lord (`wa-YHWH`): Connects to the previous verse. The Divine Name YHWH (Yahweh) emphasizes that this removal is not accidental or merely political, but a deliberate, sovereign act of Israel's covenant God. It highlights His absolute control over historical events and His righteous judgment.
• shall remove men (`yarḥiq ha'adam`):
  • `yarḥiq`: Hifil imperfect of `רָחַק` (`rachaq`), meaning "to be far, remove." The Hifil stem makes it causative, "He shall cause to be far, He shall remove." This points to God actively orchestrating the deportation.
  • `ha'adam`: "The mankind," or "the humanity." Refers to the collective population, indicating a large-scale, comprehensive removal, not just a select few.
• far away (`marḥeiq`): An infinitive absolute acting adverbially, intensifying the verb "shall remove." It strongly emphasizes the great distance and thoroughness of the removal. They will be taken very far from their home.
• and the forsaken places (`wa-ha'azuvah`):
  • `ha'azuvah`: Feminine singular noun derived from `עָזַב` (`azav`), "to abandon, forsake, leave." It describes that which is left desolate, deserted, or abandoned. This noun vividly paints a picture of empty, neglected towns, villages, and cultivated fields.
• shall be many (`rabbah tihlẹh`):
  • `rabbah`: Feminine singular adjective meaning "much, many, great, abundant." It indicates the widespread nature and high number of these desolate places.
  • `tihlẹh`: Future form of "to be." These abandoned places will not be few or localized but will become exceedingly numerous and pervasive across the land.
• in the midst of the land (`b'qerev ha'aretz`):
  • `b'qerev`: "In the midst of, within, in the interior." This is not just referring to peripheral regions but to the very core, the populated and cultivated areas, of the country.
  • `ha'aretz`: "The land," specifically referring to the promised land of Judah. This indicates that no part of the nation will be spared this desolation.

• "And the Lord shall remove men far away": This phrase highlights God's direct agency and decisive action in executing judgment. The removal will be profound in distance, signifying a complete severance from the promised inheritance due to persistent sin.
• "and the forsaken places shall be many in the midst of the land": This describes the stark consequence of God's action. The depopulation will be so extensive that the land will be characterized by pervasive emptiness and ruin, affecting even its central, most vital areas. This phrase depicts the physical landscape reflecting the spiritual desolation of a people hardened against God.

Isaiah 6 12 Bonus section

The severity described in Isaiah 6:12, where the Lord actively "removes" and renders the land "many forsaken places," implicitly communicates the breaking of the covenant relationship. Part of the covenant was security in the land (Lev 26:6-7, Deut 28:1-14); conversely, expulsion was a core curse of disobedience (Lev 26:33-35, Deut 28:63-64). Thus, this verse directly states the enforcement of these curses. The azuvah (forsaken place) is an ancient way of speaking of what happens when divine protection is withdrawn, and people are no longer inhabiting the place for which they were created or promised. Furthermore, the complete desolation, to the extent of affecting "the midst of the land," can be understood as an "undoing" of creation or the undoing of settlement, echoing a return to primeval emptiness, signifying utter societal and national collapse.

Isaiah 6 12 Commentary

Isaiah 6:12 reveals the terrifying extent of God's answer to "How long?" following the people's spiritual hardening. It's a divine declaration of catastrophic national judgment, prophesying a forced mass exodus of the population, specifically orchestrated by the Lord Himself. The removal will not be slight but will carry the people far away, creating a landscape characterized by pervasive emptiness and ruin. This points directly to historical events like the Assyrian conquests and the Babylonian exile, where Judah was stripped of its people and left desolate. The "forsaken places" are not just remote corners, but the "midst of the land," indicating thorough destruction affecting the nation's core. The verse underscores God's absolute sovereignty, not just in bestowing blessings but also in administering severe corrective discipline to a people who, despite hearing, refused to understand or return. It warns that continued spiritual indifference and rebellion lead inevitably to a tangible loss of God's presence and land.