Isaiah 9:10 Study Bible: "The bricks have fallen, but we will build with cut stone. The sycamore fig trees have been cut down, but we will put cedars in their place."

◄ Isaiah 9:10 ►

"The bricks have fallen, but we will rebuild with finished stone; the sycamores have been felled, but we will replace them with cedars."

Study Bible

“The bricks have fallen,

Israel’s ruin followed the Assyrian assaults that devastated the Northern Kingdom. Rather than receiving the damage as God’s warning and turning from sin, Ephraim responded with defiant confidence. Bricks, readily made from clay, picture the frailty of human security. The builders of Babel also used brick in their proud attempt to establish a name apart from God (Genesis 11:3–4).

Neh 1:3 And they told me, “The remnant who survived the exile…
2Ki 25:10 And the whole army of the Chaldeans under…
Lam 2:9 Her gates have sunk into the ground; He has destroyed…

but we will rebuild with finished stone;

The people intended to replace what had been lost with something stronger and more impressive. Their resolve was not repentance but self-exaltation. God had permitted judgment because of their persistent idolatry and rebellion, yet they imagined that wealth, labor, and determination could reverse its effects. “Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it” (Psalm 127:1).

1Ki 6:7 The temple was constructed using finished stones…
1Ki 5:17 And the king commanded them to quarry large, costly stones…
1Ki 7:9 All these buildings were constructed with costly stones…

the sycamores have been felled,

The loss of productive trees represented the stripping away of prosperity and stability. Sycamore wood was common and useful in Israel, and its destruction reflected the wider devastation of fields, homes, and communities under invasion. The Lord’s judgment had touched the blessings Israel had enjoyed without gratitude or obedience.

1Ch 27:28 Baal-hanan the Gederite was in charge of the olive…
1Ki 10:27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, …
Amo 7:14 “I was not a prophet,” Amos replied, “nor was I the son…”…

but we will replace them with cedars.”

Cedars of Lebanon were costly, durable, and associated with royal buildings and the temple constructed by Solomon (1 Kings 5:6). Israel’s plan to replace sycamores with cedars revealed prideful ambition: they would make their nation greater after judgment without seeking the God who had chastened them. Their words anticipated further discipline, for the Lord opposes human strength that refuses to humble itself before Him.

1Ki 5:6 Now therefore, order that cedars of Lebanon be cut down…
1Ki 5:8 “I have received your message; I will do all you desire”…
2Ch 2:8 Send me also cedar, cypress, and algum logs from Lebanon,…

Persons / Places / Events

1. Israel
The northern kingdom of Israel is the primary audience of this prophecy. They are experiencing judgment due to their disobedience and pride.

2. Prophet Isaiah
The author of the book, Isaiah is delivering God's message to the people of Israel, warning them of the consequences of their actions.

3. Assyrian Invasion
The historical context involves the Assyrian Empire's invasion, which led to the destruction of parts of Israel, symbolized by the fallen bricks and cut-down sycamores.

4. Bricks and Dressed Stone
Symbolic of Israel's defiance and determination to rebuild stronger despite God's judgment.

5. Sycamores and Cedars
Represent the nation's pride and self-reliance, choosing to replace what was lost with something perceived as superior.

Teaching Points

Pride and Self-Reliance
The verse highlights the danger of relying on human strength and wisdom instead of seeking God's guidance and help.

Divine Judgment and Response
It serves as a reminder that God's judgment is an opportunity for repentance, not defiance.

True Restoration
True restoration comes from aligning with God's will, not merely rebuilding with better materials.

Symbolism of Materials
The choice of materials (bricks vs. dressed stones, sycamores vs. cedars) symbolizes the futility of human pride and the need for humility before God.

Lessons from History
Reflect on historical examples of nations or individuals who faced similar situations and learn from their responses.

Bible Study Questions

1. How does the attitude of Israel in Isaiah 9:10 reflect our own tendencies to rely on self-effort rather than seeking God's guidance?

2. In what ways can we identify and address areas of pride in our lives that may lead us away from God's will?

3. How do the symbols of bricks and dressed stones, sycamores and cedars, speak to the quality of our spiritual foundations?

4. What lessons can we learn from the consequences faced by Israel that can be applied to our personal or communal lives today?

5. How do the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament about building on a solid foundation relate to the message of Isaiah 9:10?

Connections to Other Scriptures

Amos 5:11
This verse also speaks of judgment and the futility of human efforts against divine will, similar to Israel's defiance in Isaiah 9:10.

Matthew 7:24-27
Jesus' parable of the wise and foolish builders highlights the importance of building on a solid foundation, contrasting with Israel's prideful rebuilding efforts.

1 Corinthians 3:12-15
Paul discusses building with materials that will withstand testing, paralleling the idea of rebuilding with dressed stones and cedars.

Sermons

A Drinking Song	Prof. J. Skinner, D. D.	Isaiah 9:10
Beautiful Words of Varying Import	J. Parker, D. D.	Isaiah 9:10
Building with Hewn Stone	J. Parker, D. D.	Isaiah 9:10
Israel's Presumption	Prof . S. H. Driver, D. D.	Isaiah 9:10
The Sycamore	Prof . S. H. Driver, D. D.	Isaiah 9:10
Wise Lessons from Wicked Lips	A. Scott.	Isaiah 9:10
The Evil Spirit of Defiance	W. Clarkson	Isaiah 9:8-12

People

Aram, David, Isaiah, Jacob, Manasseh, Naphtali, Rezin, Syrians

Places

Galilee, Jordan River, Midian, Samaria

Topics

Bricks, Build, Buildings, Cedars, Change, Changed, Cut, Dressed, Fallen, Felled, Fig, Hewn, Rebuild, Renew, Replace, Smooth, Stone, Stones, Sycamore, Sycamores, Sycomores, Trees

Dictionary of Bible Themes

Isaiah 9:10

     4366   stones
     5239   bricks
     5340   house
     5403   masons
     5478   property, houses

Isaiah 9:8-10

4424 cedar
5212 arts and crafts

Isaiah 9:9-10

5793 arrogance

Library

May 27. "The Government Shall be Upon his Shoulder" (Isa. Ix. 6).
"The government shall be upon His shoulder" (Isa. ix. 6). You cannot make the heart restful by stopping its beating. Belladonna will do that, but that is not rest. Let the breath of life come--God's life and strength--and there will be sweet rest. Home ties and family affection will not bring it. Deliverance from trouble will not bring it. Many a tried heart has said: "If this great trouble was only gone, I should have rest." But as soon as one goes another comes. The poor, wounded deer on the mountain …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

The Kingdom and the King
'The people that walked in darkness hare seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined. 3. Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy: they joy before Thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil. 4. For Thou hast broken the yoke of His burden, and the staff of His shoulder, the rod of His oppressor, as in the day of Midian. 5. For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Nativity
'Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as His mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. 19. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily. 20. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Sun Rising Upon a Dark World
The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon then hath the light shined. C ontrasts are suited to illustrate and strengthen the impression of each other. The happiness of those, who by faith in MESSIAH, are brought into a state of peace, liberty, and comfort, is greatly enhanced and heightened by the consideration of that previous state of misery in which they once lived, and of the greater misery to which they were justly exposed. …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1

Characters and Names of Messiah
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. S uch was the triumphant exultation of the Old Testament Church! Their noblest hopes were founded upon the promise of MESSIAH; their most sublime songs were derived from the prospect of His Advent. By faith, which is the substance of things hoped for, they considered the gracious declarations …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1

December the Twenty-Fourth Entering in at Lowly Doors
"Unto us a Child is born." --ISAIAH ix. 1-7. How gentle the coming! Who would have had sufficient daring of imagination to conceive that God Almighty would have appeared among men as a little child? We should have conceived something sensational, phenomenal, catastrophic, appalling! The most awful of the natural elements would have formed His retinue, and men would be chilled and frozen with fear. But He came as a little child. The great God "emptied Himself"; He let in the light as our eyes were …
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year

Harvest Joy
"Thou hast magnified the nation, and increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil."--Isaiah 9:3. Notice that I make a correction in the version from which I am reading. The Authorized Version has it, "Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy." This is not consistent with the connection; the Revised Version has very properly put it, "Thou hast multiplied the nation, thou hast increased their joy." I have not …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 38: 1892

His Name --Wonderful!
My dear friends, we live to-day upon the verge of that bright spot. The world has been passing through these clouds of darkness, and the light is gleaming on us now, like the glintings of the first rays of morning. We are coming to a brighter day, and "at evening time it shall be light." The clouds and darkness shall be rolled up as a mantle that God needs no longer, and he shall appear in his glory, and his people shall rejoice with him. But you must mark, that all the brightness was the result …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 4: 1858

His Name --The Counsellor
We shall now enter upon the discussion of this title which is given to Christ, a title peculiar to our Redeemer; and you will see why it should be given to him and why there was a necessity for such a Counsellor. Now, our Lord Jesus Christ is a Counsellor in a three-fold sense. First, he is God's Counsellor; he sits in the cabinet council of the King of heaven; he has admittance into the privy chamber, and is the Counsellor with God. In the second place, Christ is a Counsellor in the sense which …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 4: 1858

His Name --The Mighty God
The term here used for God, El, is taken from a Hebrew or root, which, as I take it, signifies strength; and perhaps a literal translation even of that title might be, "The Strong one," the strong God. But there is added to this an adjective in the Hebrew, expressive of mightiness, and the two taken together express the omnipotence of Christ, his real deity and his omnipotence, as standing first and foremost among the attributes which the prophet beheld. "The mighty God." I do not propose this morning …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859

A Christmas Question
This morning, however, the principal object of my discourse, and, indeed, the sole one, is to bring out the force of those two little words, "unto us." For you will perceive that here the full force of the passage lies. "For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given." The divisions of my discourse are very simple ones. First, is it so? Secondly, if it is so, what then? Thirdly, if it is not so, what then? I. In the first place, IS IT SO? Is it true that unto us a child is born, unto us a Son …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 6: 1860

The Same Text Further Explained.
For His Only-begotten Son might, ye Arians, be called Father' by His Father, yet not in the sense in which you in your error might perhaps understand it, but (while Son of the Father that begat Him) Father of the coming age' (Isa. ix. 6, LXX). For it is necessary not to leave any of your surmises open to you. Well then, He says by the prophet, A Son is born and given to us, whose government is upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Angel of Great Counsel, mighty God, Ruler, Father of the …
Athanasius—Select Works and Letters or Athanasius

Two Famous Versions of the Scriptures
[Illustration: (drop cap B) Samaritan Book of the Law] By the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea, on the coast of Egypt, lies Alexandria, a busy and prosperous city of to-day. You remember the great conqueror, Alexander, and how nation after nation had been forced to submit to him, until all the then-known world owned him for its emperor? He built this city, and called it after his own name. About a hundred years before the days of Antiochus (of whom we read in our last chapter) a company of Jews …
Mildred Duff—The Bible in its Making

Two Things to be Observed in Gratuitous Justification.
1. The glory of God remains untarnished, when he alone is acknowledged to be just. This proved from Scripture. 2. Those who glory in themselves glory against God. Objection. Answer, confirmed by the authority of Paul and Peter. 3. Peace of conscience obtained by free justification only. Testimony of Solomon, of conscience itself, and the Apostle Paul, who contends that faith is made vain if righteousness come by the law. 4. The promise confirmed by faith in the mercy of Christ. This is confirmed …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Christ's Prophetic Office
'The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet,' &c. Deut 18:85. Having spoken of the person of Christ, we are next to speak of the offices of Christ. These are Prophetic, Priestly, and Regal. 'The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet.' Enunciatur hic locus de Christo. It is spoken of Christ.' There are several names given to Christ as a Prophet. He is called the Counsellor' in Isa 9:9. In uno Christo Angelus foederis completur [The Messenger of the Covenant appears in Christ alone]. …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

The Upbringing of Jewish Children
The tenderness of the bond which united Jewish parents to their children appears even in the multiplicity and pictorialness of the expressions by which the various stages of child-life are designated in the Hebrew. Besides such general words as "ben" and "bath"--"son" and "daughter"--we find no fewer than nine different terms, each depicting a fresh stage of life. The first of these simply designates the babe as the newly--"born"--the "jeled," or, in the feminine, "jaldah"--as in Exodus 2:3, 6, 8. …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

The Disciple, -- Master, if Thou Wouldst Make a Special Manifestation of Thyself to The...
The Disciple,--Master, if Thou wouldst make a special manifestation of Thyself to the world, men would no longer doubt the existence of God and Thy own divinity, but all would believe and enter on the path of righteousness. The Master,--1. My son, the inner state of every man I know well, and to each heart in accordance with its needs I make Myself known; and for bringing men into the way of righteousness there is no better means than the manifestation of Myself. For man I became man that he might …
Sadhu Sundar Singh—At The Master's Feet

Of the Name of God
Exod. iii. 13, 14.--"And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you." We are now about this question, What God is. But who can answer it? Or, if answered, who can understand it? It should astonish us in …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Humility is the Root of Charity, and Meekness the Fruit of Both. ...
Humility is the root of charity, and meekness the fruit of both. There is no solid and pure ground of love to others, except the rubbish of self-love be first cast out of the soul; and when that superfluity of naughtiness is cast out, then charity hath a solid and deep foundation: "The end of the command is charity out of a pure heart," 1 Tim. i. 5. It is only such a purified heart, cleansed from that poison and contagion of pride and self-estimation, that can send out such a sweet and wholesome …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Wesley's Hymns Reconsidered
Bernard Manning A paper read before the Cambridge University Methodist Society on February 9, 1939. SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE, sometime Scholar of Jesus College in the University of Cambridge, once wrote some ingenious verses {Metrical Feet: Lesson for a Boy.} to help his sons to remember the chief sorts of metre. If Coleridge had been a Methodist instead of a pilgrim from Anglicanism to Unitarianism and back again, he would have needed to do no such thing: he would have needed only to advise his boys …
Bernard L. Manning—The Hymns of Wesley and Watts: Five Papers

The Lord's Prayer.
(Jerusalem. Thursday Night.) ^D John XVII. ^d 1 These things spake Jesus; and lifting up his eyes to heaven [the action marked the turning of his thoughts from the disciples to the Father], he said, Father, the hour is come [see pp. 116, 440]; glorify thy Son, that the son may glorify thee: 2 even as thou gavest him authority over all flesh, that to all whom thou hast given him, he should give eternal life. [The Son here prays for his glorification, viz.: resurrection, ascension, coronation, etc., …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Peace
Grace unto you and peace be multiplied. I Pet 1:1. Having spoken of the first fruit of sanctification, assurance, I proceed to the second, viz., Peace, Peace be multiplied:' What are the several species or kinds of Peace? Peace, in Scripture, is compared to a river which parts itself into two silver streams. Isa 66:12. I. There is an external peace, and that is, (1.) (Economical, or peace in a family. (2.) Political, or peace in the state. Peace is the nurse of plenty. He maketh peace in thy borders, …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

How those who Fear Scourges and those who Contemn them are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 14.) Differently to be admonished are those who fear scourges, and on that account live innocently, and those who have grown so hard in wickedness as not to be corrected even by scourges. For those who fear scourges are to be told by no means to desire temporal goods as being of great account, seeing that bad men also have them, and by no means to shun present evils as intolerable, seeing they are not ignorant how for the most part good men also are touched by them. They are to be admonished …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

Messiah's Entrance into Jerusalem
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: He is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. -- And He shall speak peace unto the heathen. T he narrowness and littleness of the mind of fallen man are sufficiently conspicuous in the idea he forms of magnificence and grandeur. The pageantry and parade of a Roman triumph, or of an eastern monarch, as described in history, exhibit him to us …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1

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