Isaiah 1:20 - Exposition

If ye refuse and rebel ; i.e. "if ye neither consent in will, nor obey in act, "antithetical to the two verbs in the first clause of Isaiah 1:19 . Ye shall be devoured ; or, ye shall be eaten . The same verb as in the latter clause of Isaiah 1:19 . With the sword. The metaphor is not a common one, but occurs in Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 2:30 ; Jeremiah 12:12 ; Jeremiah 46:10 , Jeremiah 46:14 ) and Nahum ( Nahum 2:13 ). The mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. A weighty ending, indicating the certainty of fulfillment, Jehovah, who cannot lie, has spoken; the result will assuredly follow.