Isaiah 1:30
New International Version
You will be like an oak with fading leaves, like a garden without water.

New Living Translation
You will be like a great tree with withered leaves, like a garden without water.

English Standard Version
For you shall be like an oak whose leaf withers, and like a garden without water.

Berean Standard Bible
For you will become like an oak whose leaves are withered, like a garden without water.

King James Bible
For ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water.

New King James Version
For you shall be as a terebinth whose leaf fades, And as a garden that has no water.

New American Standard Bible
For you will be like an oak whose leaf withers away, Or like a garden that has no water.

NASB 1995
For you will be like an oak whose leaf fades away Or as a garden that has no water.

NASB 1977
For you will be like an oak whose leaf fades away, Or as a garden that has no water.

Legacy Standard Bible
For you will be like an oak whose leaf withers away Or as a garden that has no water.

Amplified Bible
For you will be like an oak whose leaf withers and dies And like a garden that has no water.

Christian Standard Bible
For you will become like an oak whose leaves are withered, and like a garden without water.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
For you will become like an oak whose leaves are withered, and like a garden without water.

American Standard Version
For ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water.

Contemporary English Version
You will be like a grove of trees dying in a drought.

English Revised Version
For ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
You will be like an oak whose leaves wither and like a garden without water.

Good News Translation
You will wither like a dying oak, like a garden that no one waters.

International Standard Version
You'll be like an oak whose leaf is withering, like an unwatered garden.

Majority Standard Bible
For you will become like an oak whose leaves are withered, like a garden without water.

NET Bible
For you will be like a tree whose leaves wither, like an orchard that is unwatered.

New Heart English Bible
For you shall be as an oak whose leaf fades, and as a garden that has no water.

Webster's Bible Translation
For ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water.

World English Bible
For you shall be as an oak whose leaf fades, and as a garden that has no water.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
For you are as an oak whose leaf is fading, "" And as a garden that has no water.

Young's Literal Translation
For ye are as an oak whose leaf is fading, And as a garden that hath no water.

Smith's Literal Translation
For ye shall be as an oak the leaf withering, and as a garden which there no water to it.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
When you shall be as an oak with the leaves falling off, and as a garden without water.

Catholic Public Domain Version
when you were like an oak with falling leaves, and like a garden without water.

New American Bible
You shall become like a terebinth whose leaves wither, like a garden that has no water.

New Revised Standard Version
For you shall be like an oak whose leaf withers, and like a garden without water.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
For they shall be like an oak whose leaves have fallen, and like a garden that has no water.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because they will be as the oak that sheds its leaves and like a garden that has no water
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
For ye shall be as a terebinth whose leaf fadeth, And as a garden that hath no water.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
For they shall be as a turpentine tree that has cast its leaves, and as a garden that has no water.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Corruption of Zion
29Surely you will be ashamed of the sacred oaks in which you have delighted; you will be embarrassed by the gardens that you have chosen. 30For you will become like an oak whose leaves are withered, like a garden without water. 31The strong man will become tinder and his work will be a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the flames.…

Cross References
Jeremiah 17:8
He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its roots toward the stream. It does not fear when the heat comes, and its leaves are always green. It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it cease to produce fruit.

Psalm 1:3
He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.

Ezekiel 17:24
Then all the trees of the field will know that I am the LORD. I bring the tall tree down and make the low tree tall. I dry up the green tree and make the withered tree flourish. I, the LORD, have spoken, and I have done it.’”

Hosea 9:16
Ephraim is struck down; their root is withered; they cannot bear fruit. Even if they bear children, I will slay the darlings of their wombs.

Matthew 21:19
Seeing a fig tree by the road, He went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. “May you never bear fruit again!” He said. And immediately the tree withered.

Luke 13:6-9
Then Jesus told this parable: “A man had a fig tree that was planted in his vineyard. He went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. / So he said to the keeper of the vineyard, ‘Look, for the past three years I have come to search for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Therefore cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ / ‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone again this year, until I dig around it and fertilize it. ...

Jeremiah 11:16
The LORD once called you a flourishing olive tree, beautiful with well-formed fruit. But with a mighty roar He will set it on fire, and its branches will be consumed.

Ezekiel 19:12
But it was uprooted in fury, cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit. Its strong branches were stripped off and they withered; the fire consumed them.

Job 8:11-13
Does papyrus grow where there is no marsh? Do reeds flourish without water? / While the shoots are still uncut, they dry up more quickly than grass. / Such is the destiny of all who forget God; so the hope of the godless will perish.

Psalm 92:12-14
The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. / Planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God. / In old age they will still bear fruit; healthy and green they will remain,

Matthew 7:19
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

John 15:6
If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers. Such branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned.

Mark 11:20-21
As they were walking back in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered from its roots. / Peter remembered it and said, “Look, Rabbi! The fig tree You cursed has withered.”

Jeremiah 6:9
This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Glean the remnant of Israel as thoroughly as a vine. Pass your hand once more like a grape gatherer over the branches.”

Ezekiel 31:3-14
Look at Assyria, a cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches that shaded the forest. It towered on high; its top was among the clouds. / The waters made it grow; the deep springs made it tall, directing their streams all around its base and sending their channels to all the trees of the field. / Therefore it towered higher than all the trees of the field. Its branches multiplied, and its boughs grew long as it spread them out because of the abundant waters. ...


Treasury of Scripture

For you shall be as an oak whose leaf fades, and as a garden that has no water.

ye shall be

Isaiah 5:6
And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.

Jeremiah 17:5,6
Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD…

Ezekiel 17:9,10,24
Say thou, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Shall it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off the fruit thereof, that it wither? it shall wither in all the leaves of her spring, even without great power or many people to pluck it up by the roots thereof…

garden

Isaiah 58:11
And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

Jeremiah 31:12
Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the LORD, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd: and their soul shall be as a watered garden; and they shall not sorrow any more at all.

Ezekiel 31:4
The waters made him great, the deep set him up on high with her rivers running round about his plants, and sent out her little rivers unto all the trees of the field.

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Isaiah 1
1. Isaiah complains of Judah for her rebellion
5. He laments her judgments
10. He upbraids their whole service
16. He exhorts to repentance, with promises and threats
21. Bewailing their wickedness, he denounces God's judgments
25. He promises grace
28. And threatens destruction to the wicked














For you will become
This phrase indicates a future state or condition, suggesting a transformation or consequence that is inevitable. In the Hebrew text, the verb used here is "וִהְיִיתֶם" (vihyitem), which is in the imperfect tense, often used to denote actions that are not yet completed. This implies a prophetic warning, emphasizing the certainty of the outcome if the current path is continued. Theologically, it serves as a call to repentance, urging the audience to change their ways to avoid this fate.

like an oak
The oak tree, or "אֵלָה" (elah) in Hebrew, is often a symbol of strength and endurance in the Bible. However, in this context, the comparison is ironic. The oak, typically robust and resilient, is here depicted as vulnerable and decaying. This imagery would resonate with the original audience, who would understand the oak as a symbol of what they should be—strong and steadfast in faith—but are not due to their spiritual decay.

whose leaves are withered
Withered leaves signify death, decay, and a lack of vitality. In the Hebrew, "נֹבֶלֶת" (novelet) conveys the idea of something that is fading or falling away. This imagery is powerful, illustrating the spiritual barrenness of the people. Just as leaves wither when disconnected from their life source, so too do the people when they turn away from God. This serves as a vivid reminder of the consequences of spiritual neglect and disobedience.

like a garden
Gardens in biblical times were places of beauty, sustenance, and life. The Hebrew word "כְּגַנָּה" (kegannah) evokes images of lushness and fertility. However, the comparison here is to a garden that is lacking its essential life-giving element. This stark contrast highlights the potential for what could be—a life full of spiritual abundance—versus the reality of what is—a life devoid of spiritual nourishment.

without water
Water is a critical symbol in the Bible, often representing life, cleansing, and the Holy Spirit. The absence of water, "מַיִם" (mayim), in this context, signifies a lack of spiritual sustenance and divine presence. In the arid climate of the ancient Near East, water was a precious resource, essential for survival. Thus, a garden without water is doomed to wither and die, just as a soul without God is spiritually barren. This serves as a poignant metaphor for the necessity of remaining connected to God, the source of all life and vitality.

(30) Ye shall be . . .--Men were to think of the pleasant places that had tempted them, not as they had seen them, fresh and green, but as burnt up and withered, and then were to see in that desolation a parable of their own future. The word for "strong" occurs only in Amos 2:9, where we find "strong as the oaks."

Verse 30. - Ye shall be as an oak, etc. Contrast the case of the godly, whose "leaf shall not wither" (Psalm 1:3).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
For
כִּ֣י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

you will become
תִֽהְי֔וּ (ṯih·yū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

like an oak
כְּאֵלָ֖ה (kə·’ê·lāh)
Preposition-k | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 424: An oak, other strong tree

whose leaves
עָלֶ֑הָ (‘ā·le·hā)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person feminine singular
Strong's 5929: A leaf, foliage

are withered,
נֹבֶ֣לֶת (nō·ḇe·leṯ)
Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular construct
Strong's 5034: To wilt, to fall away, fail, faint, to be foolish, wicked, to despise, disgrace

like a garden
וּֽכְגַנָּ֔ה (ū·ḵə·ḡan·nāh)
Conjunctive waw, Preposition-k | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 1593: A garden

without
אֵ֥ין (’ên)
Adverb
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

water.
מַ֖יִם (ma·yim)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 4325: Water, juice, urine, semen


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OT Prophets: Isaiah 1:30 For you shall be as an oak (Isa Isi Is)
Isaiah 1:29
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