הָאֹמְרִ֗ים יְמַהֵ֧ר יָחִ֛ישָׁה מַעֲשֵׂ֖הוּ לְמַ֣עַן נִרְאֶ֑ה וְתִקְרַ֣ב וְתָבֹ֗ואָה עֲצַ֛ת קְדֹ֥ושׁ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל וְנֵדָֽעָה׃
The Voice of the Scoffer
Isaiah 5:19 places us in the mouth of the arrogant: those who dare the God of Yisra’el to act, mocking divine delay and justice. But the verse doesn’t merely quote their defiance — it mirrors it in grammar. The Hebrew is laced with jussive verbs, cohortative structures, and rhetorical inversion. Their words are arranged in commands, not prayers — in provocations, not petitions. The syntax is deliberate: the scoffer disguises rebellion as eagerness, and grammar becomes the very vessel of blasphemy.
The Hidden Grammar
The verse opens with a participial subject:
הָאֹמְרִ֗ים — “those who say…” (Qal participle, masculine plural)
What follows is a sequence of jussive and cohortative verbs:
- יְמַהֵ֧ר יָחִ֛ישָׁה מַעֲשֵׂ֖הוּ — “Let Him hasten, let Him speed up His work”
- לְמַ֣עַן נִרְאֶ֑ה — “so that we may see it”
- וְתִקְרַ֣ב וְתָבֹ֗ואָה — “Let it draw near and come”
- עֲצַ֛ת קְדֹ֥ושׁ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל — “the counsel of the Holy One of Yisra’el”
- וְנֵדָֽעָה — “and let us know”
Notice the interplay between 3rd person jussives (יְמַהֵר, יָחִישָׁה, תִקְרַב, תָבֹואָה) and 1st person cohortatives (נִרְאֶה, נֵדָעָה). The speakers mockingly urge God to act, pretending readiness to believe once He performs. The repeated structure is not genuine invocation — it is grammatical mimicry of piety, laced with sarcasm.
Echoes Across the Tanakh
Psalm 10:11 — אָמַ֣ר בְּלִבּ֣וֹ שָׁכַ֣ח אֵ֑ל הִסְתִּ֥יר פָּנָ֗יו בַּל־רָאָֽה לָנֶֽצַח — “He says in his heart, ‘God has forgotten.’” The inward blasphemy is captured through indicative verbs masquerading as observation.
2 Peter 3:4 (LXX echo) — “Where is the promise of His coming?” A mocking tone inherited from this Isaianic passage, showing that ancient mockery echoes into later scripture.
Isaiah 28:15 — כִּֽי־אֲמַרְתֶּ֞ם כָּרַ֤תְנוּ בְרִית֙ אֶת־מָ֔וֶת — “Because you have said, ‘We have made a covenant with death.’” Like 5:19, the divine rebuke quotes human speech dripping with self-deception.
Syntax in Motion
The structure of the verse breaks into two rhetorical halves:
[b>יְמַהֵר יָחִישָׁה מַעֲשֵׂהוּ] = “Let Him hasten, let Him speed His work”
↓
[b>לְמַעַן נִרְאֶה] = “so that we may see”
———————————————
[b>וְתִקְרַב וְתָבֹואָה עֲצַת קְדֹושׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל] = “Let the counsel of the Holy One draw near and come”
↓
[b>וְנֵדָעָה] = “and let us know”
The pairing of jussives with cohortatives forms a rhetorical device called ironic eschatological expectation: the mockers speak in the grammar of those who await God’s intervention, but their tone and context invert it. The phrase עֲצַת קְדֹושׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל is usually prophetic and holy — here, it becomes an object of challenge: “Let’s see if He dares.”
When Words Create Worlds
Isaiah 5:19 is grammar weaponized. The mockers don’t break commandments; they imitate the prophets — syntactically. They say, “Let God act!” but they don’t seek revelation — they seek evidence to mock. Jussives become reverse prayers. Cohortatives become invitations to scoff.
Hebrew gives them the tools of the righteous — volitional verbs, messianic phrasing — and lets them hang themselves with it. This is where the power of Biblical Hebrew lies: not only in what is said, but in how even pious forms can become forms of rebellion.
| Hebrew Feature | Description | Example from Tanakh |
|---|---|---|
| Jussive Verb | 3rd person volitional verb, often used in commands or pleas | יְמַהֵר יָחִישָׁה (Isaiah 5:19) |
| Cohortative Verb | 1st person volitional, used to express intent or shared resolve | נִרְאֶה, נֵדָעָה (Isaiah 5:19) |
| Irony Through Syntax | Using holy forms to convey mockery or rebellion | וְתָבֹואָה עֲצַת קְדֹושׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל (Isaiah 5:19) |
When Volition Veils Defiance
Isaiah 5:19 is a grammar of defiance dressed in sacred robes. Its jussives are not hope; they’re heckles. Its cohortatives are not unity with God’s will; they’re dare-laced defiance. Hebrew here teaches us that the heart behind the verb matters — and sometimes, the holiest words are turned against their source. This is what it means for grammar to become judgment.
