Charles Ellicott Commentary Isaiah 9:15

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

The ancient and honourable ... —Compare Isaiah 3:2-3, for the meaning of the words. These, the prophet seems to say, were the true leaders of the people. The ideal work of the prophet was, indeed, that of a teacher who was to lead even them, but corruptio optimi pessima; and to Isaiah, as to Jeremiah, there was no class so contemptible and base as that of spiritual guides whose policy was that of a time-serving selfishness. The verse is rejected by some critics as a marginal note that has found its way into the text; but the prophet may well have given his own interpretation of this formula. (Isaiah 29:10; Jeremiah 14:14; Jeremiah 23:9–40.)