Isaiah 8:19-21
Isaiah 8:20 is the original source of the saying "To the Law and to the Testimony", taken from the King James Bible.
19 Now if people say to you, “Consult the ghosts and the familiar spirits that chirp and mutter; should not a people consult their gods, the dead on behalf of the living, 20 for teaching and for instruction?” surely, those who speak like this will have no dawn! 21 They will pass through the land,[a] greatly distressed and hungry; when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will curse[b] their king and their gods. They will turn their faces upward,
- [a] Heb it
- [b] Or curse by
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
19 Now, should people say to you, “Inquire of the ghosts and familiar spirits that chirp and moan; for a people may inquire of its divine beings[a]—of the dead on behalf of the living—20 for instruction and message," surely, for one who speaks thus there shall be no dawn.[b] 21 And he shall go about in it wretched and hungry; and when he is hungry, he shall rage and revolt against his king and his divine beings. He may turn his face upward 22 or he may look below, but behold,
Distress and darkness, [c]with no daybreak;
Straitness and gloom, with no dawn.
- [a] I.e., the shades of the dead; cf. 1 Sam. 28.13.
- [b] This sentence would read well after v. 22.
- [c] Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
19 And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? 20 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. 21 And they shall pass through it, hardly bestead and hungry: and it shall come to pass, that when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king and their God, and look upward.
Modern Translations that follow the King James translation
19 When someone tells you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God’s instruction and the testimony of warning. If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. 21 Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. (NIV)
19 They will say to you, “Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations. Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?” 20 Then you must recall the LORD’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened. 21 They will pass through the land destitute and starving. Their hunger will make them angry, and they will curse their king and their God as they look upward.
19 And when they say to you, “Inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter,” should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living? 20 To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn. 21 They will pass through the land,[a] greatly distressed and hungry. And when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will speak contemptuously against[b] their king and their God, and turn their faces upward.
- [a] Hebrew it
- [b] Or speak contemptuously by
Notes
From The Jewish Study Bible Notes to Isaiah 8:19-21:
A polemic against other forms of divination. It may date to the period of the Syro-Ephraimite crisis, but it could also fit many other periods. 'Ghosts and familiar spirits' are the demigods and deified ancestors to whom some Judeans, following Canaanite and Mesopotamian religious models, turned for guidance. Cf. Leviticus 20:27; Deuteronomy 18:9-15; 1 Samuel ch. 28.
From the NET Bible Notes to Isaiah 8:20:
tn Heb "to [the] instruction and to [the] testimony." The words "then you must recall" are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 19-20a are one long sentence, reading literally, "When they say to you , to the instruction and to the testimony." On the identity of the "instruction" and "testimony" see the notes at v. 16.
[Notes at v. 16: 8:16 tn Heb "seal [the] instruction among my followers." The "instruction" probably refers to the prophet's exhortations and warnings. When the people are judged for the sins, the prophet can produce these earlier messages and essentially say, "I told you so." In this way he can authenticate his ministry and impress upon the people the reality of God's authority over them.]
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