And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord: That the heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes: and the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall be amazed.
וְהָיָ֤ה בַיּוֹם־הַהוּא֙ נְאֻם־יְהוָ֔ה יֹאבַ֥ד לֵב־הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ וְלֵ֣ב הַשָּׂרִ֑ים וְנָשַׁ֙מּוּ֙ הַכֹּ֣הֲנִ֔ים וְהַנְּבִיאִ֖ים יִתְמָֽהוּ׃
2 Church Fathers comment on this verse
The spirit of the ruler will cease. This is the essence of severe trials, as they strip humanity of the reason bestowed by creation. In times of extreme dread, all stability is lost. The prophets, specifically the false ones, will be left in shock. Why? Because occurrences will not unfold as they anticipated; instead, the outcomes will defy their expectations.
On that day, declares the Lord, the hearts of both the king and the princes will fail, the priests will be filled with dread, and the prophets will stand in astonishment. When the thief plunders the church of the Lord and His wrath descends upon us, then all assistance becomes futile. The heart of the king, which should be guided by God, will wither, and the hearts of the wise princes will also falter. God has turned the wisdom of this world into foolishness, as they did not recognize Him (1 Corinthians 1:19-21). The priests, who were meant to instruct the people in the law of the Lord and protect them from the fierce predator, will be driven to madness (as translated in the LXX, where ‘madmen’ is rendered from ‘mindset’).
The prophets also will be in awe or, as Aquila interpreted the Hebrew term ieihmau, will be rendered insane. Who can remain sane, who can retain courage, when witnessing their kings, princes, priests, and prophets—once towering figures—now powerless before the lion?
Passages read together with this verse.
THEOSIS