Isaiah 11:3 - Exposition

And shall make him of quick understanding . This rendering of the original, though defended by Dr. Kay, is quite without support from any other passage where the same word is used. Modern writers almost all translate, either "the breath of his nostrils shall be in the fear of the Lord" (Herder, Ewald, Meier, Cheyne), or "a sweet savor shall he find in the fear of the Lord" (Gesenius, Delitzsch, Rosenmüller, Knobel). He shall not judge after the sight of his eyes. "God sooth the heart." Our Lord "knew men's thoughts" ( Matthew 9:4 , etc.), and therefore did not need to "judge according to the appearance" ( John 7:24 ). Thus his judgments were always righteous.