Isaiah Chapter 33 · Verse 1
Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou wast not spoiled; and dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! when thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; and when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee.
Original Language Analysis
תּוּשַּׁ֔ד
and thou wast not spoiled
H7703
תּוּשַּׁ֔ד
and thou wast not spoiled
Strong's:
H7703
Word #:
2 of 16
properly, to be burly, i.e., (figuratively) powerful (passively, impregnable); by implication, to ravage
לֹ֣א
H3808
לֹ֣א
Strong's:
H3808
Word #:
4 of 16
not (the simple or abs. negation); by implication, no; often used with other particles
תּוּשַּׁ֔ד
and thou wast not spoiled
H7703
תּוּשַּׁ֔ד
and thou wast not spoiled
Strong's:
H7703
Word #:
5 of 16
properly, to be burly, i.e., (figuratively) powerful (passively, impregnable); by implication, to ravage
יִבְגְּדוּ
and dealest treacherously
H898
יִבְגְּדוּ
and dealest treacherously
Strong's:
H898
Word #:
6 of 16
to cover (with a garment); figuratively, to act covertly; by implication, to pillage
וְלֹא
H3808
וְלֹא
Strong's:
H3808
Word #:
7 of 16
not (the simple or abs. negation); by implication, no; often used with other particles
יִבְגְּדוּ
and dealest treacherously
H898
יִבְגְּדוּ
and dealest treacherously
Strong's:
H898
Word #:
8 of 16
to cover (with a garment); figuratively, to act covertly; by implication, to pillage
כַּהֲתִֽמְךָ֤
with thee! when thou shalt cease
H8552
כַּהֲתִֽמְךָ֤
with thee! when thou shalt cease
Strong's:
H8552
Word #:
10 of 16
to complete, in a good or a bad sense, literal, or figurative, transitive or intransitive
תּוּשַּׁ֔ד
and thou wast not spoiled
H7703
תּוּשַּׁ֔ד
and thou wast not spoiled
Strong's:
H7703
Word #:
11 of 16
properly, to be burly, i.e., (figuratively) powerful (passively, impregnable); by implication, to ravage
תּוּשַּׁ֔ד
and thou wast not spoiled
H7703
תּוּשַּׁ֔ד
and thou wast not spoiled
Strong's:
H7703
Word #:
12 of 16
properly, to be burly, i.e., (figuratively) powerful (passively, impregnable); by implication, to ravage
יִבְגְּדוּ
and dealest treacherously
H898
יִבְגְּדוּ
and dealest treacherously
Strong's:
H898
Word #:
14 of 16
to cover (with a garment); figuratively, to act covertly; by implication, to pillage
Cross References
Matthew 7:2For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.Isaiah 24:16From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous. But I said, My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me! the treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously; yea, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.Revelation 17:17For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.Isaiah 21:2A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.Isaiah 10:12Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.
Historical Context
Assyria conquered through terror—impaling captives, flaying alive, mass deportations, burning cities. They broke treaties routinely, invaded former allies. Isaiah prophesies divine reversal: Assyria will experience its own medicine. In 612 BC, Babylon and Medes destroyed Nineveh brutally—the spoiler spoiled. Sennacherib's assassination by his own sons (681 BC, Isaiah 37:38) exemplifies treachery repaid. God ensures moral justice even when delayed.
Questions for Reflection
- How does this principle—spoilers being spoiled, betrayers betrayed—reveal God's moral governance?
- When have you seen oppressors eventually experience the oppression they inflicted?
- How should certainty of divine justice affect our response to current injustice and persecution?
Analysis & Commentary
Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou wast not spoiled (הוֹי שׁוֹדֵד וְאַתָּה לֹא שָׁדוּד, hoy shoded ve'atah lo shadud)—woe to the שׁוֹדֵד (shoded, spoiler, plunderer, devastator) who wasn't שָׁדַד (shadad, spoiled, plundered). And dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee (וּבוֹגֵד וְלֹא־בָגְדוּ בוֹ, uvoged velo-vagedu vo)—who acts treacherously (בָּגַד, bagad) though none was treacherous to you. When thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; and when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee (כַּהֲתִמְךָ שׁוֹדֵד תּוּשַּׁד כַּנְּלֹתְךָ לִבְגֹּד יִבְגְּדוּ־בָךְ, kahatiṁka shoded tushad kanelotka livgod yivgedu-vakh).
The eighth and final woe targets the treacherous destroyer—most likely Assyria, though applicable to any oppressor. The poetic justice is precise: lex talionis applied by divine hand. The spoiler will be spoiled; the betrayer will be betrayed. Assyria's empire, built on brutality and covenant-breaking, will experience the same. Revelation 13:10 states: 'He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword.' Judgment matches crime. Habakkuk 2:8 declares similar principle: 'Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee.'