The Meaning of Isaiah 51:17 Explained

Isaiah 51:17

KJV: 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.

YLT: Stir thyself, stir thyself, rise, Jerusalem, Who hast drunk from the hand of Jehovah The cup of His fury, The goblet, the cup of trembling, thou hast drunk, Thou hast wrung out.

Darby: Arouse thyself, arouse thyself, stand up, Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of Jehovah the cup of his fury. Thou hast drunk, hast drained out the goblet-cup of bewilderment:

ASV: Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, that hast drunk at the hand of Jehovah the cup of his wrath; thou hast drunken the bowl of the cup of staggering, and drained it.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

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. 

What does Isaiah 51:17 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Jerusalem had drunk a powerful liquid at the hand of her God. He had given her punishment to drink for her sins (cf. Mark 10:38). Drinking a cup of wine is a figure of judgment (cf. Isaiah 29:9; Isaiah 63:6; Psalm 75:8; Jeremiah 25:15-16; Revelation 14:10). Jerusalem now lay in a state of stupor but needed to arise because the Lord had a future for her.

Context Summary

Isaiah 51:12-23 - "the Captive Exile Shall Be Loosed"
During the Sepoy mutiny in India, when a number of English men and women were shut up in a quarter of Cawnpore, expecting a terrible death by assault or slow starvation, a torn page of the Bible, containing this passage, was found on the street pavement and was of unspeakable comfort. Oh, the blessedness of appropriating Isaiah 51:16! See Isaiah 49:7.
We are too apt to forget that God pleads the cause of His people, even when they have sinned and have reduced themselves to sore straits, Isaiah 51:17 and Isaiah 51:22. We think more of the earth than of the over-arching skies; of the fading grass than of the tree of Life; of man than of God. The near obscures the distant, and the flaring earth lights, the shine of the stars! Root yourself in God! Think of Him who sits at the right hand of the throne, the seat of resistless, ceaseless energy! Believe that God has placed Himself between you and all enemies and circumstances which threaten. To fear all day is impossible in face of these paragraphs. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 51

1  An exhortation after the pattern of Abraham, to trust in Christ
3  By reason of his comfortable promises,
4  Of his righteous salvation
7  And man's mortality
9  Christ by his sanctified arm defends his from the fear of man
17  He bewails the afflictions of Jerusalem
21  And promises deliverance

What do the individual words in Isaiah 51:17 mean?

Awake awake Stand up Jerusalem that You who have drunk at the hand of Yahweh - the cup of His fury the dregs of the cup of trembling You have drunk [And] drained [it] out
הִתְעוֹרְרִ֣י הִֽתְעוֹרְרִ֗י ק֚וּמִי יְר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר שָׁתִ֛ית מִיַּ֥ד יְהוָ֖ה אֶת־ כּ֣וֹס חֲמָת֑וֹ קֻבַּ֜עַת כּ֧וֹס הַתַּרְעֵלָ֛ה שָׁתִ֖ית מָצִֽית

הִתְעוֹרְרִ֣י  Awake 
Parse: Verb, Hitpael, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: עוּר 
Sense: to rouse oneself, awake, awaken, incite.
הִֽתְעוֹרְרִ֗י  awake 
Parse: Verb, Hitpael, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: עוּר 
Sense: to rouse oneself, awake, awaken, incite.
ק֚וּמִי  Stand  up 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: קוּם 
Sense: to rise, arise, stand, rise up, stand up.
יְר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם  Jerusalem 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: יְרוּשָׁלַםִ  
Sense: the chief city of Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah after the split.
אֲשֶׁ֥ר  that 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
שָׁתִ֛ית  You  who  have  drunk 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person feminine singular
Root: שָׁתָה  
Sense: to drink.
מִיַּ֥ד  at  the  hand 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
יְהוָ֖ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
כּ֣וֹס  the  cup 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: כֹּוס 
Sense: cup.
חֲמָת֑וֹ  of  His  fury 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: חֵמָא 
Sense: heat, rage, hot displeasure, indignation, anger, wrath, poison, bottles.
קֻבַּ֜עַת  the  dregs 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: קֻבַּעַת  
Sense: cup.
כּ֧וֹס  of  the  cup 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: כֹּוס 
Sense: cup.
הַתַּרְעֵלָ֛ה  of  trembling 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: תַּרְעֵלָה  
Sense: reeling, staggering.
שָׁתִ֖ית  You  have  drunk 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person feminine singular
Root: שָׁתָה  
Sense: to drink.
מָצִֽית  [And]  drained  [it]  out 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person feminine singular
Root: מָצָה  
Sense: to drain, drain out.