Isaiah 24 · Verse 21

Isaiah 24:21

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.
Isaiah 24:21, King James Version

Isaiah 24:21 in other translations

BSBIn that day the LORD will punish the host of heaven above and the kings of the earth below.
WEBIt will happen in that day that the LORD will punish the army of the high ones on high, and the kings of the earth on the earth.
ASVAnd it shall come to pass in that day, that Jehovah will punish the host of the high ones on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.
YLTAnd it hath come to pass, in that day, Jehovah layeth a charge on the host of the high place in the high place, And on the kings of the land on the land.
DARBYAnd it shall come to pass in that day, that Jehovah will punish the host of the high ones on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.
BBEAnd in that day the Lord will send punishment on the army of the high ones on high, and on the kings of the earth on the earth.
WebsterAnd it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.

What does Isaiah 24:21 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
21. host of ... high ones--the heavenly host, that is, either the visible host of heaven (the present economy of nature, affected by the sun, moon, and stars, the objects of idolatry, being abolished, Is 65:17; 60:19, simultaneously with the corrupt polity of men); or rather, "the invisible rulers of the darkness of this world," as the antithesis to "kings of the earth" shows. Angels, moreover, preside, as it were, over kingdoms of the world (Da 10:13, 20, 21).

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 21 On high - upon the earth - That is, the ecclesiastical and civil polity of the Jews, which shall be destroyed. The nation shall continue in a state of depression and dereliction for a long time. The image seems to be taken from the practice of the great monarchs of that time; who, when they had thrown their wretched captives into a dungeon, never gave themselves the trouble of inquiring about them; but let them lie a long time in that miserable condition, wholly destitute of relief, and disregarded. God shall at length revisit and restore his people in the last age: and then the kingdom of God shall be established in such perfection, as wholly to obscure and eclipse the glory of the temporary, typical, preparative kingdom now subsisting.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Isaiah 24:16-23

Believers may be driven into the uttermost parts of the earth; but they are singing, not sighing. Here is terror to sinners; the prophet laments the miseries he saw breaking in like a torrent; and the small number of believers. He foresees that sin would abound. The meaning is plain, that evil pursues sinners. Unsteady, uncertain are all these things. Worldly men think to dwell in the earth as in a palace, as in a…

Read the full comment on Isaiah 24:16-23 →

Isaiah 24:21 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְהָיָה֙ve.ha.Yahand it will beH1961
בַּיּ֣וֹםbai.Yomin the dayH3117
הַה֔וּאha.Hu'<the> thatH1931
יִפְקֹ֧דyif.Kodhe will visit [judgment]H6485
יְהוָ֛הYah.wehYahwehH3068
עַל\־'al-onH5921
צְבָ֥אtze.Va'[the] host ofH6635
הַמָּר֖וֹםha.ma.Romthe heightH4791
בַּמָּר֑וֹםba.ma.Romin the height[s]H4791
וְעַל\־ve.'al-and onH5921
מַלְכֵ֥יmal.Khei[the] kings ofH4428
הָאֲדָמָ֖הha.'a.da.Mahthe earthH127
עַל\־'al-onH5921
הָאֲדָמָֽה\׃ha.'a.da.Mahthe earthH127

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Isaiah 24:21

  • Psalms 76:12

    He shall cut off the spirit of princes: he is terrible to the kings of the earth.

  • Zechariah 14:12-19

    And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the Lord shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour. And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance. And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague. …

  • Isaiah 34:2-17

    For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood. And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree. For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Idumea, and upon the people of my curse, to judgment. …

  • Psalms 149:6-9

    Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a twoedged sword in their hand; To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people; To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; To execute upon them the judgment written: this honour have all his saints. Praise ye the Lord.

  • Revelation 19:18-21

    That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.

  • Revelation 6:14-17

    And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

  • Revelation 18:9

    And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,

  • Isaiah 10:12

    Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.

  • Revelation 17:14

    These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

  • Isaiah 10:25-27

    For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction. And the Lord of hosts shall stir up a scourge for him according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb: and as his rod was upon the sea, so shall he lift it up after the manner of Egypt. And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.

  • Isaiah 14:1-2

    For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob. And the people shall take them, and bring them to their place: and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the Lord for servants and handmaids: and they shall take them captives, whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors.

  • Joel 3:19

    Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, for the violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the Lord.
10:25-27; 14:1,2; 25:10-12; 34:2-17; Ps 76:12; 149:6-9
Eze 38:1-39:29; Joe 3:9-17,19; Hag 2:21,22; Zec 14:12-19
Re 6:14-17; 17:14; 18:9; 19:18-21
punish. Heb. visit upon.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Isaiah 24:20

    The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.

  • Isaiah 24:21

    And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.

  • Isaiah 24:22

    And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.

Read all of Isaiah 24

Isaiah 24:21 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y acontecerá en aquel día, que Jehová visitará sobre el ejército sublime en lo alto, y sobre los reyes de la tierra que hay sobre la tierra.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et il arrivera, en ce jour-là, que l’ Éternel visitera l’armée d’en haut, en haut, et les rois de la terre, sur la terre.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und es wird geschehen an jenem Tage, da wird Jehova heimsuchen die Heerschar der Höhe in der Höhe, und die Könige der Erde auf der Erde.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Et erit: in die illa visitabit Dominus super militiam cæli in excelso, et super reges terræ qui sunt super terram;