Isaiah 66:16

Old Testament Major Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Isaiah 66:16 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “For by fire will Jehovah execute judgment, and by his sword, upon all flesh; and the slain of Jehovah shall be many.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

For by fire will Jehovah execute judgment, and by his sword, upon all flesh; and the slain of Jehovah shall be many.
Isaiah 66:16 — American Standard Version

Context — Isaiah 66

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
16For by fire will Jehovah execute judgment, and by his sword, upon all flesh; and the slain of Jehovah shall be many.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“For by fire, and by his sword, will the Lord plead with all flesh, &c.] With the Mahometans, the Turks, the Ottoman empire, against whom he will call for a sword, and will rain upon them fire and brimstone, signified by Gog and Magog, (<263822>Ezekiel 38:22 39:6) and with the other antichristian powers at the battle of Armageddon; and when the fourth vial will be poured upon the sun, and men will be scorched with fire; (see <661608> Revelation 16:8,9,16 19:20,21): and the slain of the Lord shall be many; that is, those that will be slain by the Lord, both in the attempt of the Turks to recover the land of Canaan out of the hands of the Jews, possessed of it; whose numbers of slain will be so…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Rather, "With fire will Jehovah judge, and with His sword (He will judge) all flesh." The parallelism and collocation of the Hebrew words favor this (Isa 65:12). all flesh--that is, all who are the objects of His wrath. The godly shall be hidden by the Lord in a place of safety away from the scene of judgment (Isa 26:20-21; Psa 31:20; Th1 4:16-17).”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“For by fire and by his sword - The sword is an instrument by which punishment is executed (see the notes at Isaiah 34:5; compare Romans 13:4). Will he plead with all flesh - Or rather, he will judge (נשׁפט nı̂shephaṭ), that is, he will execute his purposes of vengeance on all the human race. Of course, only that part is intended who ought to be subject to punishment; that is, all his foes. And the slain of the Lord shall be many - The number of those who shall be consigned to woe shall be immense - though in the winding up of the great drama at the close of the world, there is reason to hopethat a large proportion of the race, taken as a whole, will be saved. Of past generations, indeed,…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Plead - God at first pleads with sinners by words, but if he cannot so prevail, he will plead with them in a way by which he will overcome; by fire, pestilence and blood. All flesh - Thus he threatens to do with all the wicked Jews. The slain - Those whom God should cause to be slain. Isaiah 66:17”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“Isa 27:1, Isa 34:5-10; Eze 38:21, Eze 38:22, Eze 39:2-10; Rev 19:11-21 Isaiah 66:17”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“Jehovah appears with these warlike terrors because He is coming for a great judgment. "For in the midst of fire Jehovah holds judgment, and in the midst of His sword with all flesh; and great will be the multitude of those pierced through by Jehovah." The fire, which is here introduced as the medium of judgment, points to destructive occurrences of nature, and the sword to destructive occurrences of history. At the same time all the emphasis is laid here, as in Isa 34:5-6 (cf., Isa 27:1), upon the direct action of Jehovah Himself. The parallelism in Isa 66:16 is progressive. Nishpat 'ēth, "to go into judgment with a person," as in Eze 38:22 (cf., עם in Isa 3:14, Joe 3:2; Ch2 22:8; μετά,…”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification