Isaiah 5 · Verse 8

Isaiah 5:8

Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!

Isaiah 5:8, King James Version

Isaiah 5:8 in other translations

BSB	Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field until no place is left and you live alone in the land.
WEB	Woe to those who join house to house, who lay field to field, until there is no room, and you are made to dwell alone in the middle of the land!
ASV	Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no room, and ye be made to dwell alone in the midst of the land!
YLT	Woe to those joining house to house, Field to field they bring near, till there is no place, And ye have been settled by yourselves In the midst of the land!
DARBY	Woe unto them that add house to house, that join field to field, until there is no more room, and that ye dwell yourselves alone in the midst of the land!
BBE	Cursed are those who are joining house to house, and putting field to field, till there is no more living-space for any but themselves in all the land!
Webster	Woe to them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there is no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!

What does Isaiah 5:8 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

Is 5:8-23. Six Distinct Woes against Crimes.

8. (Le 25:13; Mi 2:2). The jubilee restoration of possessions was intended as a guard against avarice. till there be no place--left for any one else. that they may be--rather, and ye be. the earth--the land.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 8 Wo unto them that - lay field to field "You who lay field unto field" - Read תקריבו takribu, in the second person; to answer to the verb following. So Vulgate.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Isaiah 5:8-23

Here is a woe to those who set their hearts on the wealth of the world. Not that it is sinful for those who have a house and a field to purchase another; but the fault is, that they never know when they have enough. Covetousness is idolatry; and while many envy the prosperous, wretched man, the Lord denounces awful woes upon him. How applicable to many among us! God has many ways to empty the most populous cities. Those who set their hearts upon the world, will justly be disappointed. Here is woe to those who dote upon the pleasures and the delights of sense. The use of music is lawful; but when it draws away the heart from God, then it becomes a sin to us. God's judgments have seized them, but they will not disturb themselves in their pleasures. The judgments are declared. Let a man be ever so high, death will bring him low; ever so mean, death will bring him lower. The fruit of these judgments shall be, that God will be glorified as a God of power. Also, as a God that is holy; he shall be owned and declared to be so, in the righteous punishment of proud men. Those are in a woful condition who set up sin, and who exert themselves to gratify their base lusts. They are daring in sin, and walk after their own lusts; it is in scorn that they call God the Holy One of Israel. They confound and overthrow distinctions between good and evil. They prefer their own reasonings to Divine revelations; their own devices to the counsels and commands of God. They deem it prudent and politic to continue profitable sins, and to neglect self-denying duties. Also, how light soever men make of drunkenness, it is a sin which lays open to the wrath and curse of God. Their judges perverted justice. Every sin needs some other to conceal it.

Matthew Henry, 1706 · public domain

Isaiah 5:8 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.

ה֗וֹיHowoe to!H1945

מַגִּיעֵ֥יma.gi.'Ei[those who] make touchH5060

בַ֙יִת֙va.yit<of> a houseH1004

בְּבַ֔יִתbe.Va.yit<in> a houseH1004

שָׂדֶ֥הsa.Deha fieldH7704

בְשָׂדֶ֖הve.sa.Dehon a fieldH7704

יַקְרִ֑יבוּyak.Ri.vuthey bring nearH7126

עַ֚ד'aduntilH5704

אֶ֣פֶס'E.festhere notH657

מָק֔וֹםma.Kom[is] roomH4725

וְהֽוּשַׁבְתֶּ֥םve.hu.shav.Temand you are made to dwellH3427

לְבַדְּכֶ֖םle.va.de.Khemto alone youH905

בְּקֶ֥רֶבbe.Ke.revin [the] midst ofH7130

הָאָֽרֶץ\׃ha.'A.retzthe landH776

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

Cross references for Isaiah 5:8

Micah 2:2
And they covet fields, and take them by violence; and houses, and take them away: so they oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage.
Habakkuk 2:9-12
Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil! Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting off many people, and hast sinned against thy soul. For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it. Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and stablisheth a city by iniquity!
Jeremiah 22:13-17
Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour’s service without wages, and giveth him not for his work; That saith, I will build me a wide house and large chambers, and cutteth him out windows; and it is cieled with cedar, and painted with vermilion. Shalt thou reign, because thou closest thyself in cedar? did not thy father eat and drink, and do judgment and justice, and then it was well with him? He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him: was not this to know me? saith the Lord. …
Luke 12:16-24
And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. …
1 Kings 21:16-20
And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it. And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it. And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine. …
Matthew 23:13
But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
Ezekiel 11:15
Son of man, thy brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel wholly, are they unto whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, Get you far from the Lord: unto us is this land given in possession.
Ezekiel 33:24
Son of man, they that inhabit those wastes of the land of Israel speak, saying, Abraham was one, and he inherited the land: but we are many; the land is given us for inheritance.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

them.
Jer 22:13-17; Mic 2:2; Hab 2:9-12; Mt 23:14; Lu 12:16-24
field.
1Ki 21:16-20
they. Heb. ye placed.
Eze 11:15; 33:24

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

Context

Isaiah 5:7
For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.
Isaiah 5:8
Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!
Isaiah 5:9
In mine ears said the Lord of hosts, Of a truth many houses shall be desolate, even great and fair, without inhabitant.

Read all of Isaiah 5

Isaiah 5:8 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	¡Ay de los que juntan casa con casa, y allegan heredad á heredad hasta acabar el término! ¿Habitaréis vosotros solos en medio de la tierra?
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Malheur à ceux qui ajoutent maison à maison, qui joignent champ à champ, jusqu’à ce qu’il n’y ait plus de place et que vous habitiez seuls au milieu du pays.
German Elberfelder 1871	Wehe denen, die Haus an Haus reihen, Feld an Feld rücken, bis gar kein Raum mehr ist, und ihr allein seßhaft seid inmitten des Landes!
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Væ qui conjungitis domum ad domum, et agrum agro copulatis usque ad terminum loci! Numquid habitabitis vos soli in medio terræ?