Isaiah 9:15 (ASV)

Passage

The elder and the honorable man, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.

Nearby Context

Isaiah 9:13 Yet the people have not turned unto him that smote them, neither have they sought Jehovah of hosts.

Isaiah 9:14 Therefore Jehovah will cut off from Israel head and tail, palm-branch and rush, in one day.

Isaiah 9:15 The elder and the honorable man, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.

Isaiah 9:16 For they that lead this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.

Isaiah 9:17 Therefore the Lord will not rejoice over their young men, neither will he have compassion on their fatherless and widows; for every one is profane and an evil-doer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "elder", "honorable", "head", "prophet", "teacheth", "lies", and "tail". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "elder" and "honorable", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "Therefore Jehovah will cut off from Israel..." into verse 16's "For they that lead this people cause...", so "elder" and "honorable" belong inside that flow. In Isaiah context, the local focus is the Holy One of Israel, judgment and restoration, the servant of the LORD, and Zion's hope.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "elder" and "honorable" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.