Grammar Analysis: Isaiah 51:17-22¶

Text¶

Hebrew (v.17): הִתְעֹורְרִי הִתְעֹורְרִי קוּמִי יְרוּשָׁלִַם אֲשֶׁר שָׁתִית מִיַּד יְהוָה אֶת־כֹּוס חֲמָתֹו אֶת־קֻבַּעַת כֹּוס הַתַּרְעֵלָה שָׁתִית מָצִית׃

Hebrew (v.22): כֹּה־אָמַר אֲדֹנַיִךְ יְהוָה וֵאלֹהַיִךְ יָרִיב עַמֹּו הִנֵּה לָקַחְתִּי מִיָּדֵךְ אֶת־כֹּוס הַתַּרְעֵלָה אֶת־קֻבַּעַת כֹּוס חֲמָתִי לֹא־תֹוסִיפִי לִשְׁתֹּותָהּ עֹוד׃

KJV: - 51:17 — Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, [and] wrung [them] out. - 51:18 — [There is] none to guide her among all the sons [whom] she hath brought forth; neither [is there any] that taketh her by the hand of all the sons [that] she hath brought up. - 51:19 — These two [things] are come unto thee; who shall be sorry for thee? desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword: by whom shall I comfort thee? - 51:20 — Thy sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all the streets, as a wild bull in a net: they are full of the fury of the LORD, the rebuke of thy God. - 51:21 — Therefore hear now this, thou afflicted, and drunken, but not with wine: - 51:22 — Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God [that] pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, [even] the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again.

Word-by-Word Parsing¶

Isaiah 51:17¶

#	Hebrew	Lemma	Parsing	Gloss
1	הִתְעֹורְרִי	עור	Verb.Hithpael.Impv.2fs	be awake (rouse yourself)
2	הִתְעֹורְרִי	עור	Verb.Hithpael.Impv.2fs	be awake (rouse yourself)
3	קוּמִי	קום	Verb.Qal.Impv.2fs	arise
4	יְרוּשָׁלִַם	ירושׁלם	PropN.s.Abs	Jerusalem (vocative)
5	אֲשֶׁר	אשׁר	Relative particle	who / which
6	שָׁתִית	שׁתה	Verb.Qal.Perf.2fs	(you fs) have drunk
7	מִיַּד	מן + יד	Prep + Noun.s.Cst	from the hand of
8	יְהוָה	יהוה	PropN.ms	YHWH
9	אֶת־כֹּוס	את + כוס	Obj.marker + Noun.fs.Cst	the cup of
10	חֲמָתֹו	חמה	Noun.fs.Abs + 3ms suffix	his burning wrath
11	אֶת־קֻבַּעַת	את + קבעת	Obj.marker + Noun.fs.Cst	the goblet of
12	כֹּוס	כוס	Noun.fs.Cst	the cup of
13	הַתַּרְעֵלָה	תרעלה	Art + Noun.fs.Abs	the reeling/staggering
14	שָׁתִית	שׁתה	Verb.Qal.Perf.2fs	(you fs) have drunk
15	מָצִית	מצה	Verb.Qal.Perf.2fs	(you fs) have drained

Isaiah 51:18¶

#	Hebrew	Lemma	Parsing	Gloss
1	אֵין־מְנַהֵל	אין + נהל	Neg + Verb.Piel.Ptcp.ms	there is no one guiding
2	לָהּ	ל + 3fs	Prep + suffix	for her
3	מִכָּל־בָּנִים	מן + כל + בן	Prep + Noun.ms.Cst + Noun.mp	of all the sons
4	יָלָדָה	ילד	Verb.Qal.Perf.3fs	(she) bore
5	וְאֵין	ו + אין	Conj + Neg	and there is no one
6	מַחֲזִיק	חזק	Verb.Hiphil.Ptcp.ms	grasping / taking hold
7	בְּיָדָהּ	ב + יד + 3fs	Prep + Noun + suffix	by her hand
8	מִכָּל־בָּנִים	מן + כל + בן	Prep + Noun.mp	of all the sons
9	גִּדֵּלָה	גדל	Verb.Piel.Perf.3fs	(she) reared

Isaiah 51:19¶

#	Hebrew	Lemma	Parsing	Gloss
1	שְׁתַּיִם	שׁנים	Noun.fd.Abs	two (dual)
2	הֵנָּה	הנה	PersPron.3fp	they (fp)
3	קֹרְאֹתַיִךְ	קרא	Verb.Qal.Ptcp.fp + 2fs	they-who-befall-you
4	מִי	מי	IntPron	who?
5	יָנוּד	נוד	Verb.Qal.Impf.3ms	will sympathize/waver
6	לָךְ	ל + 2fs	Prep + suffix	for you
7	הַשֹּׁד	ה + שׁד	Art + Noun.ms	the violence/devastation
8	וְהַשֶּׁבֶר	ו + ה + שׁבר	Conj + Art + Noun.ms	and the breaking
9	וְהָרָעָב	ו + ה + רעב	Conj + Art + Noun.ms	and the famine
10	וְהַחֶרֶב	ו + ה + חרב	Conj + Art + Noun.fs	and the sword
11	מִי	מי	IntPron	who?
12	אֲנַחֲמֵךְ	נחם	Verb.Piel.Impf.1s + 2fs	(shall) I comfort you

Isaiah 51:20¶

#	Hebrew	Lemma	Parsing	Gloss
1	בָּנַיִךְ	בן	Noun.mp + 2fs	your sons
2	עֻלְּפוּ	עלף	Verb.Pual.Perf.3p	have been overcome/fainted
3	שָׁכְבוּ	שׁכב	Verb.Qal.Perf.3p	they lie
4	בְּרֹאשׁ	ב + ראשׁ	Prep + Noun.ms.Cst	at the head of
5	כָּל־חוּצֹות	כל + חוץ	Noun.ms.Cst + Noun.mp	all streets
6	כְּתֹוא	כ + תאו	Prep + Noun.ms	like a wild-ox/antelope
7	מִכְמָר	מכמר	Noun.ms	(in a) net
8	הַמְלֵאִים	ה + מלא	Art + Verb.Qal.Ptcp.mp	the ones filled
9	חֲמַת־יְהוָה	חמה + יהוה	Noun.fs.Cst + PropN	the wrath of YHWH
10	גַּעֲרַת	גערה	Noun.fs.Cst	the rebuke of
11	אֱלֹהָיִךְ	אלהים + 2fs	Noun.mp + suffix	your God

Isaiah 51:21¶

#	Hebrew	Lemma	Parsing	Gloss
1	לָכֵן	לכן	Adv	therefore
2	שִׁמְעִי־נָא	שׁמע + נא	Verb.Qal.Impv.2fs + Interj	hear, please
3	זֹאת	זאת	DemPron.fs	this
4	עֲנִיָּה	עני	Adj.fs	afflicted (one, fs)
5	וּשְׁכֻרַת	ו + שׁכר	Conj + Adj.fs.Cst	and drunken of
6	וְלֹא מִיָּיִן	ו + לא + מן + יין	Conj + Neg + Prep + Noun	but not from wine

Isaiah 51:22¶

#	Hebrew	Lemma	Parsing	Gloss
1	כֹּה־אָמַר	כה + אמר	Adv + Verb.Qal.Perf.3ms	thus says
2	אֲדֹנַיִךְ	אדון + 2fs	Noun.mp + suffix	your Lord (pluralis majestatis)
3	יְהוָה	יהוה	PropN.ms	YHWH
4	וֵאלֹהַיִךְ	ו + אלהים + 2fs	Conj + Noun.mp + suffix	and your God
5	יָרִיב	ריב	Verb.Qal.Impf.3ms	(who) contends for
6	עַמֹּו	עם + 3ms	Noun.ms + suffix	his people
7	הִנֵּה	הנה	Interj	behold
8	לָקַחְתִּי	לקח	Verb.Qal.Perf.1s	I have taken
9	מִיָּדֵךְ	מן + יד + 2fs	Prep + Noun + suffix	from your hand
10	אֶת־כֹּוס	את + כוס	Obj.marker + Noun.fs.Cst	the cup of
11	הַתַּרְעֵלָה	ה + תרעלה	Art + Noun.fs	the reeling
12	אֶת־קֻבַּעַת	את + קבעת	Obj.marker + Noun.fs.Cst	the goblet of
13	כֹּוס	כוס	Noun.fs.Cst	the cup of
14	חֲמָתִי	חמה + 1s	Noun.fs + suffix	my wrath
15	לֹא־תֹוסִיפִי	לא + יסף	Neg + Verb.Hiphil.Impf.2fs	you shall not add / continue
16	לִשְׁתֹּותָהּ	ל + שׁתה + 3fs	Prep + Verb.Qal.InfCon + suffix	to drink it
17	עֹוד	עוד	Adv	again / any more

Key Grammatical Features¶

1. Hithpael Imperative doubled — הִתְעֹורְרִי הִתְעֹורְרִי (v.17)¶

Form: Verb.Hithpael.Imperative.2fs (from עור, "rouse"), repeated for intensification.
Function: The Hithpael stem carries a reflexive/iterative nuance — "rouse yourself!" The doubled imperative is an emphatic call for Jerusalem to shake off the stupor caused by the cup. It pairs with קוּמִי (Qal Impv.2fs, "arise") to form a three-fold rousing call.
Significance: The stem itself signals that Jerusalem has been passive — knocked down by the cup. The Hithpael places the action of rising back upon her own agency ("wake yourself"). The same formula recurs in Isa 52:1 (עוּרִי עוּרִי to Zion), binding this passage to the exile-reversal oracle that follows.
Grammar reference: (no dedicated Hithpael stem entry yet); see grammar-reference/hebrew/imperative-mood.md for imperative functions.

2. Qal Perfect 2fs chain — שָׁתִית … שָׁתִית מָצִית (v.17)¶

Form: Three Qal Perfect 2fs verbs addressed to Jerusalem: שָׁתִית ("you have drunk"), שָׁתִית ("you have drunk"), מָצִית ("you have drained").
Function: The perfect aspect in Hebrew prophetic discourse presents the action as completed from the speaker's vantage — Jerusalem's drinking of the cup is a done deed. The second שָׁתִית immediately followed by מָצִית ("drained") is a rhetorical intensification: she has not merely sipped — she has drunk to the bottom.
Significance: The verbal sequence is asyndetic (no waw between שָׁתִית and מָצִית) — the terse juxtaposition creates a cumulative weight. The parsing highlights the completeness of the judgment already endured, which sets up the reversal in v.22 (לָקַחְתִּי Qal Perf.1s, "I have taken").

3. Double construct chain — קֻבַּעַת כֹּוס הַתַּרְעֵלָה (vv.17, 22)¶

Form: Three-member construct chain: קֻבַּעַת (fs.Cst) → כֹּוס (fs.Cst) → הַתַּרְעֵלָה (fs.Abs, articular).
Function: Parallel construct chains cannot normally both take the article, but the article on the absolute noun at the end of the chain definitizes the whole phrase: "the goblet of the cup of the reeling." This is a pleonastic doublet — קֻבַּעַת (a rare word for a deep bowl/goblet) and כֹּוס (the standard word for cup) are stacked for vivid emphasis.
Significance: The rare קֻבַּעַת (only 4 OT occurrences, concentrated in this passage) intensifies the imagery. A construct like this is not redundant — it specifies both the vessel and its contents: the staggering-drink comes in a deep goblet. In v.22 the same chain appears with חֲמָתִי ("my wrath") as the absolute, forming an exact inverse parallelism with v.17's חֲמָתֹו ("his wrath") — the first-person suffix in v.22 signals the divine speaker's direct claim.
Grammar reference: grammar-reference/hebrew/construct-state.md, grammar-reference/hebrew/construct-chain-suffix.md

4. Messenger formula + Participial epithets — כֹּה אָמַר … יָרִיב עַמֹּו (v.22)¶

Form: Prophetic messenger formula (כֹּה אָמַר + subject) with compound subject (אֲדֹנַיִךְ יְהוָה וֵאלֹהַיִךְ) followed by a yiqtol clause (יָרִיב עַמֹּו) functioning as an epithet: "your God [who] contends for his people."
Function: יָרִיב is Qal Imperfect 3ms from ריב. In this slot it is not a future-tense verb but a relative/characterizing imperfect — "the one who pleads / contends." The imperfect captures the habitual, ongoing character of YHWH's advocacy for his covenant people. The 2fs suffixes on אֲדֹנַיִךְ and אלֹהַיִךְ personalize the address: "your Lord, your God."
Significance: The clause frames the cup-removal in v.22 not as arbitrary clemency but as covenant advocacy — the same God whose wrath filled the cup (v.17 חֲמָתֹו) is the one who pleads the cause of his people. The 3ms suffix on עַמֹּו binds Jerusalem to him: she is his people.
Grammar reference: grammar-reference/hebrew/qal-imperfect.md

5. Hiphil Imperfect 2fs with negative + Infinitive Construct — לֹא תֹוסִיפִי לִשְׁתֹּותָהּ (v.22)¶

Form: לֹא + תֹוסִיפִי (Verb.Hiphil.Impf.2fs from יסף "add/continue") + לִשְׁתֹּותָהּ (Verb.Qal.InfCon from שׁתה + 3fs suffix + ל preposition) + עֹוד ("again").
Function: The Hiphil of יסף in the idiom לֹא תֹוסִיפִי + infinitive construct means "you shall not continue/keep on [doing X]" or "you shall no more [do X]." The negated imperfect here is a promissory prohibition — a divine guarantee, not a command. The 3fs suffix on the infinitive (-ָהּ) refers back to the cup (כֹּוס, fs): "to drink it."
Significance: This is the hinge of the reversal. In v.17 Jerusalem drank (שָׁתִית Qal.Perf.2fs) — completed, done. In v.22 she will no longer continue to drink — permanent cessation. The idiom תֹוסִיפִי + infinitive frames the prohibition in terms of repetition: the cup has been drunk once (past perfect), and the pattern ends now.
Grammar reference: grammar-reference/hebrew/hiphil-imperfect.md

Clause Structure¶

v.17 — Asyndetic imperative cluster + relative clause¶

Three ZIm0 clauses (bare imperative, Q-domain / direct speech): [Pred] הִתְעֹורְרִי × 2, then [Pred] קוּמִי.
One Voct clause: [Voct] יְרוּשָׁלִַם — Jerusalem as the vocative addressee.
One xQt0 relative clause: [Rela] אֲשֶׁר [Pred] שָׁתִית [Adju] מִיַּד יְהוָה [Objc] אֶת־כֹּוס חֲמָתֹו — the relative ties the vocative to the accusation.
Followed by another xQt0 completing the drinking imagery (the "goblet of the cup of reeling" as fronted object).

v.22 — Messenger formula + Pendens + Promise¶

Clause 1 (xQtX): [Modi] כֹּה [Pred] אָמַר [Subj] אֲדֹנַיִךְ יְהוָה וֵאלֹהַיִךְ — standard prophetic messenger formula.
Clause 2 (ZYq0): [Pred] יָרִיב [Objc] עַמֹּו — characterizing yiqtol epithet.
Clause 3 (xQt0): [Intj] הִנֵּה [Pred] לָקַחְתִּי [Cmpl] מִיָּדֵךְ [Objc] אֶת־כֹּוס הַתַּרְעֵלָה — the performative declaration ("I have taken").
Clause 4 (CPen = Casus Pendens / fronted element): [Frnt] אֶת קֻבַּעַת כֹּוס חֲמָתִי — the goblet is fronted for emphasis.
Clause 5 (xYq0): [Nega] לֹא [Pred] תֹוסִיפִי … — the promissory prohibition.

The CPen (casus pendens) structure in v.22 is exegetically significant: by fronting "the goblet of the cup of my wrath" as an independent element, the text underlines that this specific vessel — the one Jerusalem drained in v.17 — is the thing YHWH is now removing. The fronting binds v.22 back to v.17 as a deliberate reversal.

Construct Chain Summary¶

Verse	Chain	Meaning
17	יַד יְהוָה	hand of YHWH (source of the cup)
17	כֹּוס חֲמָתֹו	cup of his wrath
17	קֻבַּעַת כֹּוס הַתַּרְעֵלָה	goblet of the cup of the reeling
22	כֹּוס הַתַּרְעֵלָה	cup of the reeling
22	קֻבַּעַת כֹּוס חֲמָתִי	goblet of the cup of my wrath

Notice the chiastic substitution: in v.17 the cup is "his wrath / the reeling"; in v.22 the phrases are reversed — "the reeling / my wrath." The second member of each pair is bonded by suffix to YHWH (3ms in v.17, 1s in v.22), which signals the shift from third-person prophetic description to first-person divine speech.

Exegetical Flow Across the Unit¶

vv.17-20 — Qal Perfects (שָׁתִית, מָצִית, עֻלְּפוּ, שָׁכְבוּ, יָלָדָה, גִּדֵּלָה) paint completed devastation. Jerusalem has drunk, her sons have fainted, no one guides her. The Pual עֻלְּפוּ (v.20) is a passive intensive — the sons have been made to faint; the cup's agency did this to them.
v.21 — לָכֵן ("therefore") pivots. The Qal Imperative שִׁמְעִי־נָא addresses the same 2fs subject (Jerusalem) now named as עֲנִיָּה ("afflicted") and שְׁכֻרַת וְלֹא מִיָּיִן ("drunken, but not from wine") — a construct adjective phrase identifying the source of the stupor as the cup, not wine.
v.22 — The messenger formula introduces YHWH's direct first-person speech. הִנֵּה + Qal Perfect 1s (לָקַחְתִּי) is a performative perfect — the act of taking occurs in the speaking ("Behold, I hereby remove"). The negated Hiphil imperfect + infinitive construct seals the act: never again.

Cross-References¶

Grammar library¶

grammar-reference/hebrew/imperative-mood.md — imperative functions and urgency
grammar-reference/hebrew/qal-imperfect.md — characterizing vs future yiqtol
grammar-reference/hebrew/hiphil-imperfect.md — Hiphil causative and idiomatic uses (including יסף + InfCon)
grammar-reference/hebrew/construct-state.md — construct relationships and definiteness
grammar-reference/hebrew/construct-chain-suffix.md — three-member chains with suffixed absolute

Word studies¶

word-studies/H3563-kowc.md — כֹּוס, "cup" (recipient of contents)
word-studies/TR-kowc-poterion.md — translation pairing cup → poterion (Revelation links)
word-studies/H2534-chemah.md — חֵמָה, "heat, burning wrath"
word-studies/TR-chemah-thymos.md — חֵמָה → θυμός (wrath carried into NT)
word-studies/H3068-yhwh.md — the divine name
word-studies/H5162-nacham.md — נחם (v.19: "who shall comfort you?")

Gaps in library (candidates for future entries)¶

Hithpael stem entry (reflexive/iterative) — no canonical entry yet; Isa 51:17 הִתְעֹורְרִי would be a showcase occurrence
Pual stem entry (passive intensive) — v.20 עֻלְּפוּ
Casus pendens / fronted element grammar — v.22 clause 4 is a textbook case
קֻבַּעַת (qubba'at) — rare "goblet/bowl" noun with 4 OT occurrences; worthy word study
תַּרְעֵלָה (tar'elah) — "reeling, staggering" with even narrower distribution

Summary¶

The unit is a chiastic drinking-oracle. v.17 opens with three imperatives demanding Jerusalem rouse herself from the stupor caused by drinking YHWH's cup; the Qal perfects document that drinking as a completed act. vv.18-20 describe the aftermath (sons fainted, streets full of dead, no comforter) in cumulative perfects. v.21 pivots with לָכֵן and a new imperative (שִׁמְעִי). v.22 reverses the oracle through the messenger formula, a performative 1s perfect (לָקַחְתִּי), a fronted casus pendens that reactivates the exact construct chain from v.17, and a promissory negated Hiphil imperfect sealing the never-again. The grammar itself embodies the theological movement from judgment-completed to judgment-removed.