What Does Isaiah 10:13 Mean in the King James?
For he saith, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I am prudent: and I have removed the bounds of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man:
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The conqueror calls boundary-breaking wisdom because he mistakes power in his hand for power that begins in him.
THE MEANING
This verse brings the self-made voice into the present: “my hand,” “my wisdom,” followed by borders moved, stores plundered, and people subdued. It shows how a claim of insight can make domination sound like competence.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The lie is that what you accomplish through skill originates wholly in you, and that taking from others proves wisdom.
THE ROOT
חָכְמָתִי
chokhmati
GROWS FROM
חכם
ch-k-m
To be wise or skillful.
This root can carry practical skill as well as wisdom. The speaker presents his conquest as evidence of both: not just “I know,” but “I know how to do this.”
ALSO GROWS
chakam: Wise, skillful.
חָכָם
The same root frames wisdom as a capacity expressed in action.
chokhmah: Wisdom, skill.
חָכְמָה
This is the noun behind the speaker’s claim that his actions come from his wisdom.
chachamim: Wise ones, skilled people.
חֲכָמִים
The plural carries the same idea of wisdom as a practiced human capacity.
נְבֻנוֹתִי
nevunoti
GROWS FROM
בין
bin
To discern, distinguish, or understand.
“prudent” in this verse is nevunoti. The speaker’s claim is that he understands and can discern. Beside “wisdom,” this makes his self-portrait one of insight put to work in the removal of other peoples’ boundaries and possessions.
ALSO GROWS
binah: Understanding, discernment.
בִּינָה
It shows that the speaker’s “prudence” belongs to the language of comprehension.
tevunah: Insight, understanding.
תְּבוּנָה
This branch connects discernment with the ability to grasp how things work.
navon: Discerning, understanding.
נָבוֹן
This describes the person who claims the insight expressed by the root.
THE PATTERN
Power becomes self-deception when it treats its reach as proof that it is its own source.
Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood.The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?THE THREAD
And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.The Hebrew repeats both כֹּחַ (koach, strength or power) and יָד (yad, hand), echoing the claim almost word for word. The next verse names the power to gain wealth as something given, exposing the difference between wielding strength and originating it.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us