Isaiah Chapter 2 verse 16 Holy Bible

ASV Isaiah 2:16

and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant imagery.
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BBE Isaiah 2:16

And on all the ships of Tarshish, and on all the fair boats.
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DARBY Isaiah 2:16

and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant works of art.
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KJV Isaiah 2:16

And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures.
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WBT Isaiah 2:16


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WEB Isaiah 2:16

For all the ships of Tarshish, And for all pleasant imagery.
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YLT Isaiah 2:16

And for all ships of Tarshish, And for all desirable pictures.
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Pulpit Commentary

Pulpit CommentaryVerse 16. - All the ships of Tarshish. "Ships of Tarshish" meant originally "ships built to sail to Tarshish;" but was used by the later writers for ships of a certain class or size (1 Kings 22:48; Psalm 48:7; Ezekiel 27:25). Tarshish was Tartessus, in Spain, and voyages thither were regarded as long and dangerous (Herod., 1:163). Consequently, the ships which were built for the Tartessian trade were of unusual size and strength. Uzziah had "built [i.e. rebuilt] Elath," in the eastern arm of the Red Sea, early in his reign (2 Kings 14:22), and no doubt maintained a fleet there, as Jehoshaphat had done (1 Kings 22:48). Elath remained in the possession of the Jews till the reign of Ahaz, when it was taken by Rezin, and restored to Edom (see 'Speaker's Commentary' on 2 Kings 16:6). Upon all pleasant pictures; Revised Version, all pleasant imagery. The exact word here translated "pictures" does not occur elsewhere in the Old Testament; but a cognate word is not uncommon. From the passages in which this cognate word occurs (especially Leviticus 26:1; Numbers 33:52; Proverbs 25:11; Ezekiel 8:12), it is concluded that works of art, of some sort or other, are intended. More than this can scarcely be determined. Dr. Kay thinks the term to include "sculptures and fresco-paintings." Mr. Cheyne translates "all delightful works of imagery." The sentiment is that the judgment of God will fall on the most valued contents of palaces and grand houses, no less than upon the forests and the mountains, the fortified places, and the national navy. All wilt be involved in one sweeping destruction.

Ellicott's Commentary

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(16) And upon all the ships of Tarshish.--The words point to the commerce in the Red Sea carried on by the fleets of Uzziah and Jotham (1Kings 22:48); perhaps also to that in the Mediterranean with Tarshish, or Tartessus (Spain), as in Jonah 1:3. The "ships of Tarshish" had come to be used generically for all ships of the class used in such commerce, whether crossing the Mediterranean to Spain, or circumnavigating Africa, or passing over the Persian Gulf to Ophir.Upon all pleasant pictures.--Literally, upon all imagery of delight (Comp. Leviticus 26:1; Numbers 33:52.) The combination of the phrase with "the ships of Tarshish" suggests the inference that it includes the works of art which were brought by them from East and West. For these, it would seem, there was a mania among the higher classes in Jerusalem, like that which in later times has fastened upon china, or pictures, or carvings in ivory. So the ships of Solomon brought gold and silver, and "ivory and apes and peacocks" (1Kings 10:22). The "ivory beds" of Amos 6:4, the "gold rings set with the beryl," the "ivory overlaid with sapphires," the "pillars of marble set upon sockets of fine gold" of Song of Solomon 5:14-15, the precious things in the treasury of Hezekiah (Isaiah 39:2), may be taken as examples of this form of luxury. The aestheticism of the Roman Empire, of the Renaissance of the fifteenth century, of the age of Louis XIV., of our own time and country, presents obvious parallels. . . .