Isaiah Chapter 64 · Verse 11
Our holy and our beautiful house, where our fathers praised thee, is burned up with fire: and all our pleasant things are laid waste.
Original Language Analysis
בֵּ֧ית
house
H1004
בֵּ֧ית
house
Strong's:
H1004
Word #:
1 of 13
a house (in the greatest variation of applications, especially family, etc.)
קָדְשֵׁ֣נוּ
Our holy
H6944
קָדְשֵׁ֣נוּ
Our holy
Strong's:
H6944
Word #:
2 of 13
a sacred place or thing; rarely abstract, sanctity
וְתִפְאַרְתֵּ֗נוּ
and our beautiful
H8597
וְתִפְאַרְתֵּ֗נוּ
and our beautiful
Strong's:
H8597
Word #:
3 of 13
ornament (abstractly or concretely, literally or figuratively)
אֲשֶׁ֤ר
H834
אֲשֶׁ֤ר
Strong's:
H834
Word #:
4 of 13
who, which, what, that; also (as an adverb and a conjunction) when, where, how, because, in order that, etc
הִֽלְל֙וּךָ֙
praised
H1984
הִֽלְל֙וּךָ֙
praised
Strong's:
H1984
Word #:
5 of 13
to be clear (orig. of sound, but usually of color); to shine; hence, to make a show, to boast; and thus to be (clamorously) foolish; to rave; causativ
אֲבֹתֵ֔ינוּ
where our fathers
H1
אֲבֹתֵ֔ינוּ
where our fathers
Strong's:
H1
Word #:
6 of 13
father, in a literal and immediate, or figurative and remote application
הָיָ֖ה
H1961
הָיָ֖ה
Strong's:
H1961
Word #:
7 of 13
to exist, i.e., be or become, come to pass (always emphatic, and not a mere copula or auxiliary)
וְכָל
H3605
וְכָל
Strong's:
H3605
Word #:
10 of 13
properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense)
מַחֲמַדֵּ֖ינוּ
and all our pleasant things
H4261
מַחֲמַדֵּ֖ינוּ
and all our pleasant things
Strong's:
H4261
Word #:
11 of 13
delightful; hence, a delight, i.e., object of affection or desire
Cross References
2 Kings 25:9And he burnt the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burnt he with fire.Lamentations 1:7Jerusalem remembered in the days of her affliction and of her miseries all her pleasant things that she had in the days of old, when her people fell into the hand of the enemy, and none did help her: the adversaries saw her, and did mock at her sabbaths.2 Chronicles 36:19And they burnt the house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof.Jeremiah 52:13And burned the house of the LORD, and the king's house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, and all the houses of the great men, burned he with fire:Ezekiel 24:21Speak unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the excellency of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left shall fall by the sword.Lamentations 2:7The Lord hath cast off his altar, he hath abhorred his sanctuary, he hath given up into the hand of the enemy the walls of her palaces; they have made a noise in the house of the LORD, as in the day of a solemn feast.
Historical Context
The temple's destruction was Israel's greatest catastrophe - the place where heaven met earth, where God's name dwelt, reduced to ashes. This loss exceeds any other.
Questions for Reflection
- What spiritual treasures in your life have been 'laid waste'?
- How does the loss of sacred spaces affect worship?
Analysis & Commentary
'Our holy and our beautiful house, where our fathers praised thee, is burned up with fire: and all our pleasant things are laid waste.' The temple ('our holy and beautiful house') is specifically mourned. The Hebrew 'tiph'artenu' (our beauty/glory) emphasizes what the temple meant to them. 'Burned with fire' is devastating final judgment. 'All our pleasant things' (machmaddim - treasures, delights) are destroyed.