Spoke 10

Isaiah 10 - 2 Samuel

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:

Isaiah 10 (vs. 13)

The name of the Tenth Letter, (Yod), derives from (Yad, Hand), as discussed in the article Holy Hands. This manifests prominantly in Isaiah 10 where Yad appears six times. The word Yad is very common; it appears 92 times in Isaiah, yielding an average of about 1.4 hits per chapter. The absolute maximum is found in two chapters, 10 and 37, where it appears six times in each.

This means that the first maximal appearance of Yad in Isaiah occurs in Chapter 10, which corresponds to its ordinal poistion in the Alphabet. Although this is significant, it doesn't stand out as brightly as the absolute first appearance of Beyt in Chapter 2, Gimel in Chapter 3, and Nun (in the form Neen) in Chapter 14. Yet, despite the lack of overwhelming statistical evidence we have seen elsewhere, we still do witness the theme of Yad clearly displayed here in Isaiah 10.

The first mention of the Hand in Isaiah 10 is found in verse 5:

5) O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation. 6) I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. 7) Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy and cut off nations not a few. 8) For he saith, Are not my princes altogether kings? 9) Is not Calno as Carchemish? is not Hamath as Arpad? is not Samaria as Damascus?

10) As my hand hath found the kingdoms of the idols, and whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria; 11) Shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols? 12) Wherefore 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.

The reference to the Hand begins with God using it as a symbol of His Power, the Rod of His Anger and the Staff of His Indignation. And though it is God Almighty who is using these nations for His own purposes, they think they are ruling by the strength of their own hand:

13) 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:

Note that here the hand is the symbol of Strength and Action - by my hand I have done it. There is a close relation between the words for "done" ( ,Asah), and Ten (, Eser). Asah is variously translated as work, make, act (with effect), produce, finish, and done. All of this relates to the symbolic meaning of the Number 10 and the Letter Yod, the Letter of Action. This is why there are Ten Commandments to govern our Actions.

14) And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people: and as one gathereth eggs that are left, have I gathered all the earth; and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped.

15) 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.

Now we have the contrast between the Power of the Hand versus the passive weakness of inanimate objects wielded by the Hand. God is using this here as a symbol of His Power, and the foolishness of those who oppose Him.

Finally, Isaiah 10 closes with the enemy of Zion able to do nothing but "shake his hand" while the Lord lops off the bough of his power:

32) As yet shall he remain at Nob that day: he shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem. 33) Behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, shall lop the bough with terror: and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down, and the haughty shall be humbled. 34) And he shall cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one.