Isaiah 17:9

⁷ At that day shall a man look to his Maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel.

⁸ And he shall not look to the altars, the work of his hands, neither shall respect that which his fingers have made, either the groves, or the images.

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.

¹⁰ Because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation, and hast not been mindful of the rock of thy strength, therefore shalt thou plant pleasant plants, and shalt set it with strange slips:

¹¹ In the day shalt thou make thy plant to grow, and in the morning shalt thou make thy seed to flourish: but the harvest shall be a heap in the day of grief and of desperate sorrow.

This was said to Israel at a particular time, so it is wise to read it together with the surrounding text. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: In that day their strong cities will be like forsaken thickets and summits, abandoned to the Israelites and to utter desolation.
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.
WEB: In that day, their strong cities will be like the forsaken places in the woods and on the mountain top, which were forsaken from before the children of Israel; and it will be a desolation.
ASV: In that day shall their strong cities be as the forsaken places in the wood and on the mountain top, which were forsaken from before the children of Israel; and it shall be a desolation.
DARBY: In that day shall his strong cities be as the forsaken tract in the woodland, and the mountain-top which they forsook before the children of Israel; and there shall be desolation.
BLB: In that day the cities of his strength will be like the abandoned forest and summit that they abandoned before the faces of the sons of Israel; and it will be a desolation.

ÅB: På den tid skal Israels faste byer bli som de forlatte steder i skogen og på høydene, de som ble forlatt for Israels barns skyld, og landet skal bli til en ørken.
OTB: På den dagen skal deres befestede byer være som forlatte steder i skogen, eller som grener igjen før israelittene; og landet skal bli øde.
B1930: På den tid skal Israels faste byer bli som de forlatte steder i skogen og på høidene, de som blev forlatt for Israels barns skyld, og landet skal bli til en ørken.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Isaiah 27:10
Yet the defenced city shall be desolate, and the habitation forsaken, and left like a wilderness: there shall the calf feed, and there shall he lie down, and consume the branches thereof.
Read in context
Amos 3:11–15
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; An adversary there shall be even round about the land; and he shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces shall be spoiled.
Read in context
Hosea 10:14
Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy fortresses shall be spoiled, as Shalman spoiled Beth-arbel in the day of battle: the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.
Read in context
Isaiah 17:4–5
And in that day it shall come to pass, that the glory of Jacob shall be made thin, and the fatness of his flesh shall wax lean.
Read in context
Hosea 13:15–16
Though he be fruitful among his brethren, an east wind shall come, the wind of the LORD shall come up from the wilderness, and his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up: he shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels.
Read in context
Amos 7:9
And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.
Read in context
Micah 7:13
Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings.
Read in context
Isaiah 28:1–4
Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower, which are on the head of the fat valleys of them that are overcome with wine!
Read in context