Isaiah 17:4
4 And in that day [yowm] it shall come to pass, that the glory [kabowd] of Jacob [Ya`aqob] shall be
made thin [dalal], and the fatness [mashman] of his flesh [basar] shall
wax lean [razah]. KJV-Interlinear
4 Now it will come about in that
day that the glory of Jacob will fade, And the fatness of his flesh will become
lean. NASB
When the bible makes
reference to Jacob, it is typically referring to the entire Israelite nation
that originated out of Jacobs twelve sons. Thus the glory of Jacob. In contrast, when the bible makes reference
to David, it typically is referring to Christ and thus to all believers, both
Jew and gentile.
The context being laid
out in this passage is referencing Ephraim, or the northern kingdom made up of
the ten tribes that split away from Judah after Solomons death. This split came as a result of their
rejection of David as the chosen line, and their attempt to establish their own
dynasty line, or mans choice as an obvious rejection of Gods choice.
For this, Ephraim was
destroyed.
The southern kingdom will
also fade away from following God, but they will not be destroyed for yet another
century after the fall of Ephraim.
Those past events took
many decades and even centuries to come together.
In that day, is a
phrase that is non-specific but refers to the time period in which God brings
judgment. In this case the time period
is in the final days of history.
The terms, fade, and
made thin, and wax lean, are references to depressions, wasting away of health,
and general misery.
These next several
verses to verse eleven, convey the description of a once prosperous nation of
Israel, that will lose its glory, lose its prosperity, lose its health and lose
its population, with but a small remnant remaining. That small remnant will remain only because they
turn to God, namely Christ.
But during their fall,
life will not be pleasant, but one of terrible misery, suffering, and
depression, such as is caused by failing health, disease, and the general
wasting away of the physical body. And
as the body wastes away, so goes the description of the nation wasting away due
to its spiritual failure and resulting hardships placed on the nation from its
enemies.
