Favor · the best way to learn the Bible
Isaiah 15 Bible study: The burden of Moab
Isaiah's "I am undone" (6:5) is the very verb of Ar and Kir "brought to nothing" (15:1). And in a burden spoken over Moab, the heart that speaks cries out with the same verb as Moab's own towns: "Heshbon cries out" (15:4), "My heart cries out for Moab!" (15:5).
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the words behind the words, what most readers miss, and how it all leads to Jesus.
First week free, then $10 a month per person
“My heart cries out for Moab! Her nobles flee to Zoar, to Eglath Shelishiyah; for they go up by the ascent of Luhith with weeping; for on the way to Horonaim, they raise up a cry of destruction.”
Try it · Did you catch it?
“In Isaiah 15, the people of Moab go up to the high places to weep.”
Is that in Isaiah 15, or not? Make your call.
What's really going on
"The burden of Moab"
The chapter opens with a heading: "The burden of Moab" (15:1) (tap burden). It is the third of the burdens in this part of the book, after "The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw" (Isaiah 13:1) and "This burden" (Isaiah 14:28), spoken to Philistia (Isaiah 14:29). Then one line comes twice: "For in a night, Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to nothing. For in a night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to nothing" (15:1) (tap laid waste, brought to nothing). Here is what almost everyone misses: brought to nothing is the verb Isaiah used of himself when he saw the King: "Woe is me! For I am undone" (Isaiah 6:5). In Hebrew both are damah, and Isaiah has the verb only three times, once in 6:5 and twice in 15:1. The chapter doesn't say who laid Ar and Kir waste, or why. It begins with the ruin already come, "in a night".
Honest questions
Questions people ask about Isaiah 15
That was a taste
The rest of Isaiah 15 is waiting in Favor
- A whole land in mourning
- "My heart cries out for Moab!"
- Dry waters, and waters of blood
- The same lament in Jeremiah 48
- Towns named before
- 7 questions as you read
- 9 more Hebrew words
- A short check at the end
- Your notes, saved as you go
Favor reads the Bible in order, so you'll reach Isaiah 15 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.
The Hebrew word behind it
זָעַקza'aqsay za-AK
Brown-Driver-Briggs: "cry, cry out, call", and for this use, "cry, cry out, in need". Strong's: "to shriek (from anguish or danger)". "Heshbon cries out with Elealeh" (15:4), and "My heart cries out for Moab!" (15:5): the same verb, first for a town and then for the heart of the one who speaks. Isaiah has it five times, and two verses before this burden it is said to Philistia: "Howl, gate! Cry, city!" (Isaiah 14:31). The cry of "a cry of destruction" (15:5) and of "the cry has gone around the borders of Moab" (15:8) is za'aqah, a noun Strong's gives as "from 2199", this verb.
For your group
Isaiah 15 Bible study questions
- 1"My heart cries out for Moab!" (15:5). The cry is for Moab, the people the burden is spoken over. Whose trouble, outside your own circle, has moved you, and what did you do with it?
- 2Town after town weeps in this chapter (15:2-5), and the chapter lets the grief be heard without hurrying past it. What helps you let grief be grief, your own or someone else's?
- 3"For the cry has gone around the borders of Moab" (15:8). Whose cries around you might be easy to miss?
Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Isaiah 15 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.
Start a Bible studyThe best way to learn the Bible
Favor opens up every chapter as you read.
Favor is a Bible study app for your phone or computer. It takes you through the Bible one chapter at a time, a few minutes a day, and shows you what's really there: the words behind the words, the moments most people miss, and how the whole story fits together. For you. For everyone.
Every chapter explains itself
As you read, short notes open up what's really going on, the details most readers walk past, and the honest questions people ask.
The Hebrew and Greek behind it
Tap a highlighted word to see the original, how to say it, and what it means, checked against the original-language texts.
Every page leads to Jesus
Watch promises made in Genesis kept in Jesus. Each line lights up on your map as you read.
Better together
Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together.
- 1
Start your free week
Sign up in a minute with your email.
- 2
Read a few minutes a day
Each chapter opens itself up as you go. Tap what you're curious about.
- 3
Bring your people, if you like
Send one link. Everyone reads the same chapter, then meets to talk.
First week free, then $10 a month per person
Questions
What is Favor?
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.
How much does it cost?
Your first week is free. After that it's $10 a month per person, the same for everyone, including groups and churches. There are no tiers and nothing extra to unlock.
Can I read Isaiah 15 straight away?
Favor takes the Bible as one story, in order, so you'll reach Isaiah 15 with everything that leads up to it in view. Start from Genesis, or meet Jesus first in the Gospels. You can read the text of any chapter in Favor's Look up whenever you like.
Do I need a group?
No. Many people read on their own. If you'd like to read with others, start a Bible study and share one link. Everyone's answers stay private until you meet.
I've never really read the Bible. Is this for me?
Yes. Favor starts where you are and explains as it goes. The questions along the way aren't marked right or wrong: you answer, then see what the text shows.
Which Bible does Favor use?
The World English Bible, a modern, readable translation in the public domain. God's name appears as "the LORD", as in most English Bibles.
Is Favor tied to a church?
No. Favor is non-denominational. Where Christians read a passage differently, it shows the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.
Start with Isaiah 15
The best way to learn the Bible. For you. For everyone.
There's a seat for you at the table.
Start your free weekFirst week free, then $10 a month per person · Log in
Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home