23 Give ear, and hear my voice;
give attention, and hear my speech.
24 Does he who plows for sowing plow continually?
Does he continually open and harrow his ground?
25 When he has leveled its surface,
does he not scatter dill, sow cumin,
and put in wheat in rows
and barley in its proper place,
and emmer as the border? – Emmer is a variety of wheat. There are 3 question marks before now in this passage. The answers are ‘no’, ‘no’ and ‘yes’ – as probably you know already!
26 For he is rightly instructed;
his God teaches him. – Question – is this the sort of thing that the God talked about with Adam and Eve as He walked in the garden with them? Obviously He talked about much deeper life issues, eg what would cause death to come!
27 Dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
nor is a cart wheel rolled over cumin,
but dill is beaten out with a stick,
and cumin with a rod.
28 Does one crush grain for bread?
No, he does not thresh it forever;
when he drives his cart wheel over it
with his horses, he does not crush it.
29 This also comes from the LORD of hosts;
he is wonderful in counsel
and excellent in wisdom. -I find this section a bit hard to understand, but the New KJV is much easier for me to understand – here it is for comparison! It seems more simple. (NKJV) 27 For the black cummin is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
Nor is a cartwheel rolled over the cummin; – cummin comes in three varieties white, brown and black!
But the black cummin is beaten out with a stick,
And the cummin with a rod.
28 Bread flour must be ground;
Therefore he does not thresh it forever,
Break it with his cartwheel,
Or crush it with his horsemen.
29 This also comes from the LORD of hosts,
Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance.
Comment: ‘Woe to Ephraim and Jerusalem’ is the title given by translators to chapter 28 of Isaiah, so why is this agricultural lesson included? God has started ‘ploughing the ground in the foregoing part of this prophecy, and He will continue to do so in chapter 29. But He is allowing the ‘ploughing’ of discipline in order to prepare Israel for the planting of His blessing. Chapter 29 has a few more ‘woes’ for the people (and us?) to hear but ends up with “Jacob shall not now be ashamed,
Nor shall his face now grow pale;
But when he sees his children,
The work of My hands, in his midst,
They will hallow My name,
And hallow the Holy One of Jacob,
And fear the God of Israel.
These also who erred in spirit will come to understanding,
And those who complained will learn doctrine.” -Doctrine is the basis of behaviour! Every time we say the ‘Lord’s Prayer’ we used the word ‘hallow’. In this age not too many know what it means? The dictionary meaning is, ‘to honour as holy; consider sacred; venerate.’
Exodus 20: 2-3, 5,7 – “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before me……You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God,….. “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
Prayer: Our Father, You who inhabit the whole Universe. I would truly honour and venerate Your Holy Name.
As I read it! 