6.11
The Book of Isaiah 6.11 · How long, Lord?6.11How long, Lord?
Isaiah asks how long this must last. The answer is a picture of ruin: empty cities and a ruined land.
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וָאֹמַר1
wā-ʾōmar
And I said
, עַד־2
ʿaḏ-
until
מָתַי3
mātay
when
אֲדֹנָי4
ʾăḏōnāy
my Lordmy lords
וַיֹּאמֶר5
wa-yyōʾmer
And he said
, עַד6
ʿaḏ
Until
אֲשֶׁר7
ʾăšer
part. of relation
אִם־8
ʾim-
hypoth. part.
עָרִים9
ʿārîm
cities
שָׁאוּ10
šāʾû
lie in ruinsthey are devastated
מֵאֵין11
mē-ʾên
withoutfrom there being none
יוֹשֵׁב12
yôšēḇ
inhabitantone dwelling
, וּבָתִּים13
ū-ḇāttîm
and houses
מֵאֵין14
mē-ʾên
withoutfrom there being none
אָדָם15
ʾāḏām
anyonea human
, וְהָאֲדָמָה16
wə-hā-ʾăḏāmâ
and the landand the ground
תִּשָּׁאֶה17
tiššāʾeh
is laid wasteis devastated
, שְׁמָמָה׃18
šəmāmâ
desolatedesolation
And I said, “Until when, my Lord?” And he said, “Until cities lie in ruins without inhabitant, and houses without anyone, and the land is laid waste, desolate.”
And I said, “Until when, my Lord?” And he said, “Until cities lie in ruins without inhabitant, and houses without anyone, and the land is laid waste, desolate.”
6.12
The Book of Isaiah 6.12 · The LORD sends people far away6.12The LORD sends people far away
The desolation widens. The people are removed, and the land is left with many empty places.
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And the LORD removes the people far away, and the forsaken places will be many in the midst of the land.
“How long, my Lord?” is the cry of the lament psalms (Psalm 6:3, 13:1). The answer is a list of ruins: cities without inhabitants, houses without people, the land a waste. Isaiah lived to see the Assyrian armies do much of this in the north and in Judah (Isaiah 1:7–9).