When were the prophecies in Isaiah 3 1-17 fullfilled?

Answer 1

Isaiah 3:1-17 is a list of various oracles and complaints about Jerusalem and its people. Many of these are open to various interpretations.

The verses were written at a time of great danger for Jerusalem, as Assyria asserted its authority over the region, and talk in general terms about the persecutions to come. Judah had indeed fallen. A rebellion in 700 BCE resulted in much of the territory being transferred to Philistine sovereignty, and Jerusalem was only allowed to keep a small surrounding area in return for payment of heavy tribute. These payments and the loss of the farming wealth in the lost lands, already meant that Jerusalem was ruined.

The chapter is highly pessimistic, without making it clear just what Isaiah thought would happen next.

Verse 17 begins Isaiah's complaints against the women of Jerusalem, whom he believed to be too proud and to make themselves too attractive in public.

Answer 2

Isaiah 3:1-17 is a list of various oracles and complaints about Jerusalem and its people. Many of these are open to various interpretations.

The verses were written at a time of great danger for Jerusalem, as Assyria asserted its authority over the region, and talk in general terms about the persecutions to come. Judah had indeed fallen. A rebellion in 700 BCE resulted in much of the territory being transferred to Philistine sovereignty, and Jerusalem was only allowed to keep a small surrounding area in return for payment of heavy tribute. These payments and the loss of the farming wealth in the lost lands, already meant that Jerusalem was ruined.

The chapter is highly pessimistic, without making it clear just what Isaiah thought would happen next.

Verse 17 begins Isaiah's complaints against the women of Jerusalem, whom he believed to be too proud and to make themselves too attractive in public. Verses 18-23, containing a catalogue of female accessories is probably the work of a later writer.

As with the earlier oracles, the warning of impending defeat could be interpreted in various ways, including defeat at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, in the seventh century. I have already mentioned that preceding verses are probably the work of a later writer, as are some of the following verses in chapter 4, so verses 25-26 could also be later additions.