Isaiah 17:9
ESV
In that day their strong cities will be like the deserted places of the wooded heights and the hilltops, which they deserted because of the children of Israel, and there will be desolation.
NIV
In that day their strong cities, which they left because of the Israelites, will be like places abandoned to thickets and undergrowth. And all will be desolation.
NASB
On that day their strong cities will be like abandoned places in the forest, Or like branches which they abandoned before the sons of Israel; And the land will be a desolation.
CSB
On that day their strong cities will be like the abandoned woods and mountaintops that were abandoned because of the Israelites; there will be desolation.
NLT
Their largest cities will be like a deserted forest, like the land the Hivites and Amorites abandoned when the Israelites came here so long ago. It will be utterly desolate.
KJV
In that day shall his strong cities be as a forsaken bough, and an uppermost branch, which they left because of the children of Israel: and there shall be desolation.
NKJV
In that day his strong cities will be as a forsaken bough And an uppermost branch, Which they left because of the children of Israel; And there will be desolation.
What does Isaiah 17:9 mean?
This seems to compare the deserted cities of Israel in Isaiah's time with the abandoned heights in the land during the time of Joshua and the Judges. The strong cities of Israel will be desolate following the Assyrian destruction of the land. Those not slaughtered by the Assyrians will eventually be deported out of the land to keep them from revolting against their oppressors. The survivors that remain will be so few that entire cities will become ghost towns. The arrival of the Israelites in the Promised Land, and their defeat of so many Canaanite peoples, caused the Canaanite worship centers on hilltops and high places to be abandoned. Nobody was left to worship the Canaanite gods there.Sadly, Israel was eventually drawn into the worship of those same Canaanite gods. Even though the Lord had given them victory in the land they were still drawn to the desire for more (Judges 2:16–19). Now the Lord's destruction had come on His own people—to shake them loose of their dependence on worthless gods. He would remind and return them to dependence on Him.
Isaiah 17:1–14 begins as a prophecy of the destruction of Damascus, the capital of Syria. Israel will nearly be wiped out along with it. Survivors of both nations will exist on scraps. The remnant of Israel will finally look to their Maker for help instead of praying to false idols. This remnant will experience grief and pain because they have forgotten the God of their salvation. Still, the Lord God has the power to drive away enemies like dust against a strong wind.
What begins as an oracle against Damascus becomes a description of the consequences of Israel's faithlessness As well as the Lord's ability to save them. Damascus will become a heap of ruins. Ephraim will be nearly wiped out along with it. The glory of both will be wasted away like a once healthy man starving and living on scraps. Finally, Israel will look to their Maker instead of to idols they have made with their hands. They forgot the God of their salvation, the One who can chase away the storms of the enemy nations.
