With arrows and with bows shall men come thither; because all the land shall become briers and thorns.

ISAIAH 7:24KJV
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Isaiah 7:24 (KJV)

What does Isaiah 7:24 mean?

Isaiah 7:24 describes how people will only enter the land with arrows and bows because the whole area will be overgrown with briers and thorns. This verse paints a picture of a place that has become wild and dangerous, no longer cultivated or safe for ordinary life.

The prophet Isaiah is speaking to King Ahaz of Judah, warning him about the consequences of rejecting God's guidance. The verse shows that the land, once farmed and lived in, will be so neglected and overrun that only hunters or armed people will dare to go there. It is part of a larger prophecy about coming judgment and devastation due to the people's unfaithfulness.

The Hebrew behind Isaiah 7:24

  • בַּחִצִּים (ḥiṣṣīm, "arrows") and בַּקֶּשֶׁת (qešet, "bows") both refer to weapons used for hunting or protection. Their mention highlights that the land is no longer safe or settled, but wild and possibly dangerous.
  • שָׁמִיר (shamir, "briers") and שָׂיִר (śayir, "thorns") describe tough, invasive plants. These words emphasize neglect and abandonment, showing that the land is no longer cared for or fruitful.

Why Isaiah 7:24 matters

  • Isaiah 7:24 clarifies that the devastation is so complete that normal farming or living is impossible; only those prepared for danger will enter.
  • This verse connects to the wider warning in Isaiah 7, where God tells Ahaz that rejecting His help leads to ruin, not just for the king but for the land itself.
  • The vivid imagery of wild growth and armed entry helps the reader grasp the seriousness of the consequences Isaiah is describing.

Where else these words appear

“thorns” Hebrew H7898 · used in 7 verses

  • Isaiah 5:6 And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
  • Isaiah 7:25 And on all hills that shall be digged with the mattock, there shall not come thither the fear of briers and thorns: but it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for the treading of lesser cattle.
  • Isaiah 10:17 And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day;

“briers” Hebrew H8068 · used in 11 verses

  • Isaiah 5:6 And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
  • Isaiah 9:18 For wickedness burneth as the fire: it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forest, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke.
  • Isaiah 32:13 Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns and briers; yea, upon all the houses of joy in the joyous city:

“arrows” Hebrew H2671 · used in 50 verses

  • Genesis 49:23 The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him:
  • 2 Chronicles 26:15 And he made in Jerusalem engines, invented by cunning men, to be on the towers and upon the bulwarks, to shoot arrows and great stones withal. And his name spread far abroad; for he was marvellously helped, till he was strong.
  • Proverbs 7:23 Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.

“bows” Hebrew H7198 · used in 74 verses

  • Genesis 9:13 I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.
  • 2 Chronicles 17:17 And of Benjamin; Eliada a mighty man of valour, and with him armed men with bow and shield two hundred thousand.
  • Isaiah 66:19 And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.