6:8 sworn by himself. Similar to oaths in Gen. 22:16; Ex. 32:13; Is. 45:23, here indicating that the judicial sentence is unalterable (Heb. 6:13 note).

pride of Jacob. This refers both to Israel’s pride and to that in which they took pride—their military strength. The word translated “strongholds” has the sense of “fortified palace” or “citadel.”