Therefore is the anger of the LORD kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
Therefore is the anger of the Lord kindled. Josiah and Huldah had this passage in sight in 2 Kings 22:13; 2 Kings 22:17. The fundamental passage is Deuteronomy 29:27
The hills did tremble. This probably fixes the date of this chapter as it refers to the earthquake in the days of Uzziah (Amos 1:1; Zechariah 14:5). The earth trembled as if conscious of the presence of God (Jeremiah 4:24; Habakkuk 3:6).
And their carcases were torn, х kacuwchaah (H5478), is taken by the English version as Pual, from kaasach, to cut off or tear. But the pointing is opposed, because the first letter has patach with dagesh, not shªwa following. Also the verb "were" ( tªhiy (H1961)) is not usually put before the participle Pual, as it would be here in this view (Piscator). There take the kª- as the particle like, as, and suchah, dung] - rather, were as dung (Psalms 83:10). So the Septuagint, Vulgate, Chaldaic, Arabic, and Syriac (cf. Lamentations 3:45).
For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still. This burden of the prophet's strains with dirge-like monotony, is repeated at Isaiah 9:12; Isaiah 9:17; Isaiah 9:21; Isaiah 10:4. With all the past calamities, still heavier judgments are impending; which he specifies in the rest of the chapter, (Leviticus 26:14, etc.)