Therefore will I put my hook, &c.— The meaning of the passage is plain, that God would so dispose matters by his providence, as to compel the Assyrian to return back with his army, circumscribing and leading him like a horse, or a wild beast, wherever and as he pleased. The metaphor, in the latter part, is plainly taken from a horse, an ass, or mule; but it is doubtful, whether the former metaphor alludes to the method by which they managed their hearts in the East, particularly the dromedaries, which are led by a cord fastened to a ring, run through the nostrils of the beast; or, to the absolute power that a man has over a fish which is fastened by the nose to his hook. See Ezekiel 19:4; Ezekiel 29:3.
Related Commentaries of Isaiah 37:29
Isaiah 37:29
29 Because thy rage against me, and thy tumult, is come up into mine ears, therefore will I put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.