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ISAIAH CHAPTER 11
OBSERVATION STAGE
The purpose of
the observation stage is to maintain focus on the text at hand within the
normative rules of language, context and logic 
. This
limits the observer to the content offered by the book of Isaiah. This
will serve to avoid going on unnecessary tangents elsewhere; and more
importantly, it will provide the framework for a proper and objective
comparison with passages located elsewhere in Scripture.
Remember that something elsewhere may be true, but in the text at hand it may not be in view.
(Isa 11:1 HOLMAN) "Then a shoot will [have grown] from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit.
(Isa 11:2 KJV) And the Spirit of the LORD shall [have rested] upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;
(Isa 11:3 NKJV) His delight is in the fear of the LORD, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears;
(Isa 11:4 YLT) And He [has] judged in righteousness the poor, and [has] decided in uprightness [i.e., in equity] for the humble [in the sense of the lowly] of [the earth]; And has [struck] the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He [puts] the wicked to death.
(Isa 11:5 NKJV) Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, And faithfulness the belt of His waist.
(Isa 11:6 NKJV) The wolf also shall [have dwelt] with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little child shall lead them.
(Isa 11:7 NKJV) The cow and the bear shall graze; Their young ones shall lie down together; And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
(Isa 11:8 NKJV) The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den.
(Isa 11:9 NKJV) They shall not hurt [lit., do evil toward] nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea.
(Isa 11:10 NKJV) And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be glorious.
(Isa 11:11 NKJV) It shall come to pass in that day That the LORD shall set His hand again the second time To recover the remnant of His people who are left, From Assyria and Egypt, From Pathros and Cush, From Elam and Shinar, From Hamath and the islands of the [Mediterranean] sea.
(Isa 11:12 NKJV) [And] He will [have] set up a banner for the nations, And will [have assembled] the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth.
(Isa 11:13 ASV) The envy also of Ephraim shall [have departed], and they that vex Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not [cause distress to] Ephraim.
(Isa 11:14 NKJV) But they shall [have flown] down upon the shoulder of the Philistines toward the west [lit., seaward], Together they plunder the people of the east; they shall [plunder] Edom and Moab; and the [children] of Ammon [obeying] them
(Isa 11:15 NKJV) [And] the LORD will [have utterly destroyed] the tongue of the Sea of Egypt; With His mighty wind He will [have shaken] His fist over the [Euphrates] River, And [thus have made it into] seven streams, [so that] men [will have crossed over it] dryshod.
(Isa 11:16 HOLMAN) [And] there will be a highway for the remnant of His people who will survive from Assyria [in the sense of descendants from the ancient generation of Israelites were captured by Assyria], as there was for Israel when they came up from the land of Egypt."
(Isa 11:1 HOLMAN) "Then a shoot will [have grown] from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit. (Isa 11:2 KJV) His delight is in the fear of the LORD, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears; (Isa 11:3 NKJV) His delight [= a metaphorical meaning of the Hebrew word transliterated, "ruwach," meaning His scent or spirit, in the sense of the prevailing response which defines His essence - that which characterizes Him] is in the fear of the LORD [in the sense of reverance and obedience to the LORD], And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears; (Isa 11:4 YLT) And He [has] judged in righteousness the poor, and [has] decided in uprightness [i.e., in equity] for the humble [in the sense of the lowly] of [the earth]; And has [struck] the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He [puts] the wicked to death. (Isa 11:5 NKJV) Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, And faithfulness the belt of His waist." =
Although chapter 10 ends in the timeframe of the people of ancient Assryia and the LORD's punishment of them; and although chapter 11 begins with the conjunction rendered "then" in the HOLMAN version; the timeframe of chapter eleven verse one does not continue in the same ancient timeframe. Chapter 10 ends with the LORD's destruction of Assyria and "Then" it goes far into the future when an individual Man will have descended from "the stump of Jesse." The Hebrew word transliterated "geza' " rendered "stump" in the HOLMAN version may refer to the stump of a felled tree (cf. Job 14:8), or a newly planted tree - a shoot, (Isa 40:24). In view of the context of the last phrase of Isa 11:1 rendered "and a branch from his roots will bear fruit," the meaning of "stump" is the best rendering for "geza.' " The portrayal of the Davidic dynasty as a stump of a tree is an accurate portrayal of the line of David at the time the Humanity of the Messiah was born. At that time the line of David had not had royal power for nearly six hundred years. Since the Jesse referred to was in the line of David; then the shoot which will have grown from the stump of Jesse will be a Descendant of David. Although the Assyrians nearly destroyed Judah short of the gate of Jerusalem, the kings of Judah continued in the line of David until the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in 586 B.C. Hence the portrayal of a tree stump cut off close to the roots, pictures the loss of royal power of Israel and especially a descendant of David. Instead there is the image of the lowly condition of those descendants. Nevertheless, a shoot will grow from the stump of David's descendant, Jesse who was never king, but whose Descendant will bear the fruit of the Righteousness of God. He will rule over His Eternal Kingdom on the throne of David as described in the next 15 verses, (cf. Isa 9:1-7). The Hebrew word transliterated "yiphreh" rendered "will bear fruit" in the HOLMAN version follows the MT and is supported by 1QIsa. On the other hand, the LXX(B) refers back to the Hebrew word "iprAH" rendered "will sprout." Either would support the sense of bearing fruit, (Isa 11:1).
And at that time, the Spirit of the LORD shall have rested upon the Descendant in the sense of a permanent indwelling in Him. Furthermore, the Descendant shall permanently receive the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. Note that all three Persons of the Trinity are in view in vv. 1-2. Verse 3 goes on to declare that this Descendant's delight is in the fear of the LORD. The Hebrew word transliterated "ruwach," rendered "delight" in the NKJV refers to the Descendant's scent or spirit. It is used in this verse in the metaphorical sense of His prevailing response; i.e., that which defines the Descendant's essence - that which characterizes Him. The phrase rendered "the fear of the LORD" in the NKJV is in the sense of trust, obedience and worship of the LORD. Hence, Isaiah writes that this Descendant will not judge by what He sees with His eyes; and He will not execute justice by what He hears with His ears. He will not limit Himself to His finite Humanity - as do all other human judges, who have often misused their office to oppress the needy and the poor. Instead Isaiah indicates that He will judge by the counsel, wisdom and understanding of the LORD through the work of the Holy Spirit in Him. So He will have judged in righteousness the poor, and will have decided in uprightness, i.e., equity for the humble in the sense of the lowly. Whereupon, Isaiah declared that this Descendant will have struck the earth with the rod of His mouth - implying condemnatory judgment of unrighteous people throughout the earth, for the context is universal and not limited to Israel, as some contend. With the breath of His lips He puts the wicked to death. All of these attributes are reserved for God alone - yet, being God, He will be a Descendant of David - a Man. Isaiah goes on to write that Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins And Faithfulness the belt of His waist, [in the sense that His reign will be characterized by the Righteousness, (cf. 9:7; 16:5) and the Faithfulness of God as if they were integral parts of Him as a belt and a sash are essential, key foundational elements of His clothing - implying deity.
Note that the Child born of Israel, the Son given to them, is in view when He comes of age to function as Messiah exercising the attributes of the wisdom, understanding and counsel of the LORD via the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD with a further view of when He comes to His Righteous rule in the Eternal Kingdom of God. For reasons stated above - especially those which describe His attributes, which are those of God, this Descendant of Jesse cannot be king Hezekiah or some other king of Judah, as some contend, (Isa 11:2-5; cf. 6-16).
Note that this messianic theme was also in view earlier in Isa 9:1-7:
****** EXCERPT FROM CHAPTER 9 ******
Or
continue on with Isa 11:6-16 
(Isa 8:16 NKJV) '''[Isaiah said to] Bind up the testimony, Seal up the law among my disciples. (Isa 8:17 YLT) And I have waited for [the LORD], Who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob, And I have looked for Him. (Isa 8:18 NKJV) Here am I and the children whom the Lord has given me! [We] are for signs and wonders in Israel From the Lord of hosts, Who dwells in Mount Zion. (Isa 8:19 NKJV) And when they say to you, 'Seek those who are mediums and wizards, who whisper and mutter,' should not a people seek their God? [Should they seek] the dead on behalf of the living? (Isa 8:20 NKJV) To the law and to the testimony! If they [are not speaking] according to this word, it is because [there is] no light in them. (Isa 8:21 NKJV) They will pass through it hard-pressed and hungry; and it shall happen, when they are hungry, that they will be enraged and curse their king and their God, and look upward. (Isa 8:22 NKJV) Then they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and [they will be] driven into darkness. (Isa 9:1 NKJV) Nevertheless the [darkness] will not be upon her who is distressed As when at first He [the LORD] [treated with contempt] The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, And afterward more heavily oppressed her, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, In Galilee of the Gentiles. (Isa 9:2 NKJV) The people who [who are walking] in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt [are dwelling] in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined. (Isa 9:3 KJV) [You have] multiplied the nation, [have you] not increased the joy? They [rejoice] before [You] according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice [to divide] the spoil. (Isa 9:4 NKJV) For You have broken the yoke of his burden And the staff of his shoulder, The rod of his oppressor, As in the day of Midian. (Isa 9:5 HOLMAN) [For the warrior's trampling sandle] and the garments [rolled in the blood of battle] will be burned as fuel for the fire. (Isa 9:6 NKJV) "For unto us [Israel, Isa 1:1, 8:18] a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isa 9:7 NKJV) Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this." =
In the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible, Isaiah chapter 8 ends with the verse which most translated versions have indicated as Isa 9:1. In that verse, the ancient Israelite tribal allotments of Zebulun and Naphtali - the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali - which refer to the northern portion of Israel were caused by the LORD to be oppressed and then invaded by Assyria and annexed by Tiglath-pileser III in 733-732 B.C. This included Galilee. The phrase rendered ''The way of the sea" refers to Sharon or Philistia. It describes a major international highway running through this region. This is the only time this phrase appears in Scripture, but it appears often in Assyrian and Egyptian records. The invading Assyrian soldiers took that route when they invaded the Northern Kingdom. The phrase rendered "Galilee of the Gentiles" refers to the area of Gilead and southeast Syria, when it was under Gentile domination. The Assyrians carved out three provinces for themselves from these areas in three campaigns. These lands were the first to feel the distress caused by Assyrian invasion. But there will be a time when darkness of oppression will not be upon Israel, (Isa 9:1).
Past tenses in Isa 9:2 continue to speak of future events, such that the future was described by the prophet as having already occurred. Light stands for God's blessings, presence, and revelation - all characterized by His absolute Righteousness, (cf. Isa 2:5). The phrase rendered "shadow of death," means the darkness of separation from the fellowship of God and His Righteousness. Past generations of the people of Israel had been walking in darkness for centuries; but a future generation of them would see a great light, which the passage will indicate is embodied in His incarnate Son, (Isa 9:2).
In the future the LORD will multiply the number of His people. Their joy will be increased as those who rejoiced at harvest time or as men of battle who rejoiced in dividing the spoils of war. In view of the context, Isa 9:3b is best rendered, "[You have] multiplied the nation, [have you] not increased the joy? They [rejoice] before [You] according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice [to divide] the spoil," (Isa 9:3).
And the reason for joy being brought upon the Israelites is that the LORD will finally break the yoke of oppression upon His people. For generations, God's chosen people, the Israelites had been dwelling in the land of the shadow of death, (Isa 9:2), experiencing invasions by such as Egypt, Assyria and Babylon. The phrases rendered "the yoke of his burden," "the staff of his shoulder" and "the rod of his oppressor" in Isa 9:4 refer to the oppression of the people of Israel. The word rendered "yoke" referred to that which controlled and caused a burden upon Israel, "the staff" to that which struck the shoulder in punishment, "the rod" to that which oppressed them; and the word rendered "his" to the agent of the LORD used to discipline His people, such as Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, etc.
(Isa 10:24 NKJV) "Therefore thus says the LORD God of hosts: 'O My people, who dwell in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrian. He shall strike you with a rod and lift up his staff against you, in the manner of Egypt.
(Isa 10:25 NKJV) For yet a very little while and the indignation will cease, as will My anger in their destruction.'
(Isa 10:26 NKJV) And the LORD of hosts will stir up a scourge for him like the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; as His rod was on the sea, so will He lift it up in the manner of Egypt.
(Isa 10:27 NKJV) It shall come to pass in that day that his burden will be taken away from your [Israel's] shoulder, And his yoke from your neck, and the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil"
The breaking of oppression which the LORD imposed upon Israel to discipline her was paralleled to "The day of Midian" which referred to the miraculous defeat of the Midianites by Gideon brought about supernaturally by the LORD, (Isa 9:4).
The passage in Isaiah chapter 9 goes on to explain that the sandles of the soldier and the garments rolled in blood, (a tactic of war to frighten enemies in an impending battle), would be burned, i.e., the implements of warfare would be destroyed. So the darkness of war would be no more, (Isa 9:5).
Isaiah 9:6-7 explained why the people of Israel would be delivered from its generations of darkness: It would be accomplished through One Who would be born of Israel: (Isa 9:6 NKJV) "For unto us [Israel, Isa 1:1, 8:18] a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isa 9:7 NKJV) Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this."
Since it is the LORD Who gives children to man; and since a child was born to Israel, a Son given; then this implied that the LORD had given His Son to be born as a child of Israel - an Israelite - the Son adding Humanity to His eternal essence of Deity. Whereupon, the passage declared that His name would be called Mighty God, Everlasting Father, implying Diety as well as Perfect Humanity. The first person plural "us" referring to Israel in the phrase rendered, "For unto us [Israel, Isa 1:1, 8:18] a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given," in the NKJV, implies a link to the passage of the virgin birth in Isa 7:14:
(Isa 7:14 NKJV) "Therefore the LORD Himself will give you [plural] a sign: 'Behold, [a] virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel,' [which means God is with us]."
****** END OF EXCERPT FROM CHAPTER 9 ******
(Isa 11:1 HOLMAN) "Then a shoot will [have grown] from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit. (Isa 11:2 KJV) And the Spirit of the LORD shall [have rested] upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; (Isa 11:3 NKJV) His delight is in the fear of the LORD, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears; (Isa 11:4 YLT) And He [has] judged in righteousness the poor, and [has] decided in uprightness [i.e., in equity] for the humble [in the sense of the lowly] of [the earth]; And has [struck] the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He [puts] the wicked to death. (Isa 11:5 NKJV) Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, And faithfulness the belt of His waist. (Isa 11:6 NKJV) The wolf also shall [have dwelt] with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little child shall lead them. (Isa 11:7 NKJV) The cow and the bear shall graze; Their young ones shall lie down together; And the lion shall eat straw like the ox. (Isa 11:8 NKJV) The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den. (Isa 11:9 NKJV) They shall not hurt [lit., do evil toward] nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea. =
In view of the appearance of the Descendant of Jesse, His indwelling by the Spirit, His demonstration of His innate fear of the LORD as Messiah to come, Isaiah moves to the description of the age in which the Messiah comes to begin His Eternal Kingdom on the earth: "The wolf also shall [have dwelt] with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling [in the sense of the best, well fed yearling which is used for sacrifice] together; And a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; Their young ones shall lie down together; And the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den. So predator will no longer be predator. All animals will demonstrate a respect and submission, even benevolence and protection toward human beings during the reign of the LORD in His eternal kingdom. Note that these changes in the animal life are literal, and not to be taken figuratively as some contend. They are possible because the Creator is Sovereign and declared through Isaiah that these changes would be characteristic of His Kingdom on earth in literal language. The restoration of human beings to God is implied in phrase "For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of God As the waters cover the sea" in the NKJV which in turn implies the complete and thorough restoration of the world's environment from its fallen condition. So the world's entire ecological system including plants, animals and people will be in harmony with the Righteous rule of the LORD. In His reign, nature will be at peace with itself and with man. Contrary to what some contend, the Eternal Kingdom rule has not yet begun, since these factors do not characterize any age of history so far: Animal life shall not hurt [lit., do evil toward] nor destroy in all My holy mountain [in the sense that the entire earth will be in that day the LORD's holy mountain], For the earth - plants, animals and people - shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea - in the sense of everything being obedient to Him - all the people, animals and plants. Peace and tranquility will reign throughout His Kingdom - "As the waters cover the sea," (cf. Isa 9:7); (Isa 11:6-9).
(Isa 11:10 NKJV) "And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be glorious. (Isa 11:11 NKJV) It shall come to pass in that day That the LORD shall set His hand again the second time To recover the remnant of His people who are left, From Assyria and Egypt, From Pathros and Cush, From Elam and Shinar, From Hamath and the islands of the [Mediterranean] sea. (Isa 11:12 NKJV) [And] He will [have] set up a banner for the nations, And will [have assembled] the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth. (Isa 11:13 ASV) The envy also of Ephraim shall [have departed], and they that vex Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not [cause distress to] Ephraim. (Isa 11:14 NKJV) But they shall [have flown] down upon the shoulder of the Philistines toward the west [lit., seaward], Together they plunder the people of the east; they shall [plunder] Edom and Moab; and the [children] of Ammon [obeying] them. (Isa 11:15 NKJV) [And] the LORD will [have utterly destroyed] the tongue of the Sea of Egypt; With His mighty wind He will [have shaken] His fist over the [Euphrates] River, And [thus have made it into] seven streams, [so that] men [will have crossed over it] dryshod. (Isa 11:16 HOLMAN) [And] there will be a highway for the remnant of His people who will survive from Assyria [in the sense of descendants from the ancient generation of Israelites were captured by Assyria], as there was for Israel when they came up from the land of Egypt." =
And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse. As a tree root is the source of life to the tree, so the Root of Jesse, in the line of David, is portrayed as the source of the life to the world. In that day, He shall stand as a Banner - a rallying symbol Who will draw all the peoples of the world to Him: "For the Gentiles shall seek Him" in the sense of coming to a knowledge of Him, trusting and worshipping Him. His "resting place" in the sense of where He sits, i.e., His throne in the Temple - the resting place of God, (cf. Isa 60:13)] shall be glorious, i.e., filled with the visible glory of God. This is an open declaration that this Root of Jesse is God incarnate. Note that this period of rule, considering the references to the sea and the nations in verse 10, ("Gentiles), is for all the peoples of the world, and not to be limited the Israel, as some contend, (Isa 11:10).
"And it shall come to pass in that day That the LORD shall set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people [the first recovery pointing to the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt where the whole nation was brought out of slavery and into the promised land, (Exodus 11:12-16; cf. Isa 11:16). The second time, the LORD Himself will gather the godly remnant of His people from the areas where they were scattered in the ancient times: They will come from the [SOUTH:] "From Assyria and Egypt, From Pathros [i.e., 'Upper Egypt' - one of the three divisions of Egypt south of Memphis and north of Aswan] and Cush [Ethiopia, south of Egypt, now Abyssinia, and the southern parts of Arabia, along the Red Sea]; [EAST] From Elam [Persia, especially the southern part of it now called Susiana, lying north of the western end of the Persian Gulf ] and Shinar [The Babylonian heartland, lying in the south-eastern part of the Tigris-Euphrates valley] [NORTH] From Hamath [a Syrian city, a small kingdom on the Orontes River] [WEST] and [from] the islands of the sea [the Mediterranean maritime nations and the far western regions beyond the sea], (Isa 11:11).
Furthermore, the gathering of the remnant of His people will be worldwide: [And] He will [have] set up a banner for the nations, And will [have assembled] the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth - the remnant of all twelve tribes will be gathered from everywhere on earth. Note that this second gathering of the remnant of the people of the LORD is not the same as the return of the remnant from Babylon under the edict of Cyrus as some contend; because this latter return was partial, not worldwide. Many Jews remained scattered throughout the world, (cf. Books of Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther). Furthermore, the detailed description of the complete and permanent return of all of God's people Israel from throughout the world as specifically stipulated in Isaiah chapter 11 has not yet occurred. Hence the return of Jews who were scattered after the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, or after the Bar Kokhba rebellion of about A.D. 132-135 or when Jews returned to Palestine in 1948, or any event so far in history up through 2011 is not in view. But what is in view will be that all of the jealousy and hostility between the tribes will be gone forever: "The envy also of Ephraim shall [have departed], and they that vex Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not [cause distress to] Ephraim," (Isa 11:12-13).
But they [the restored worldwide remant of Israel] shall [have flown] down upon the shoulder of the Philistines [as a bird attacking its prey] toward the west [lit., seaward], Together they plunder the people of the east; they shall [plunder] Edom and Moab; [Edom - south of Judah, from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea; "Moab"-- east of Jordan and the Dead Sea] and the [children] of Ammon [east of Judea, north of Moab, between the Arnon and Jabbok] [obeying] them [in the sense of the peoples who occupy that geographical area at the future time of the day of the LORD so that all who oppose Israel will be put down into submission throughout the world], (Isa 11:14).
[And] the LORD will [have utterly destroyed] [in the sense of drying up] the tongue of the Sea of Egypt [the Gulf of Suez], [destroyed in the sense that it no longer could be used as a waterway]; With His mighty wind He will [have shaken] His fist over the [Euphrates] River, [in the sense of breaking it up into seven streams] And [thus have made it into] seven [the number of completion] [shallow] streams, [so that] men [will have crossed over it] dryshod. [And] there will be a highway [i.e., a path completely clear of all obstructions] for the remnant of His people who will have descended from those of the Northern Kingdom that survived in captivity in Assyria [in the sense of descendants from the ancient generation of Israelites were captured by Assyria, a symbol of all of the people from all over the world who will return at that time], as there was for Israel when they [the entire nation of Israel in the first complete return] came up from the land of Egypt," (Isa 11:14-16).