Amplified Bible
Isaiah 42:3
3A broken reed He will not break [off] And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish [He will not harm those who are weak and suffering]; He will faithfully bring forth justice.
Isaiah 42:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
- New International Version (NIV)A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;
- English Standard Version (ESV)a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice.
- New King James Version (NKJV)A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.
Context of Isaiah 42:3
1“Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My Chosen One in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations. 2He will not call out or shout aloud, Nor make His voice heard in the street. A broken reed He will not break [off] And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish [He will not harm those who are weak and suffering]; He will faithfully bring forth justice. 4He will not be disheartened or crushed [in spirit]; [He will persevere] until He has established justice on the earth; And the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law.” 5This is what God the Lord says, He who created the heavens and stretched them out, Who spread out the earth and its produce, Who gives breath to the people on it And spirit to those who walk on it,
Read all of Isaiah 42Isaiah 42:3 word by word
קָנֶ֤ה רָצוּץ֙ לֹ֣א יִשְׁבּ֔וֹר וּפִשְׁתָּ֥ה כֵהָ֖ה לֹ֣א יְכַבֶּ֑נָּה לֶאֱמֶ֖ת יוֹצִ֥יא מִשְׁפָּֽט׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- A bruisedרָצַץrâtsats · to crushH7533
- reedקָנֶהqâneh · branch: stemH7070
- shall he not breakשָׁבַרshâbar · to breakH7665
- and the smokingכֵּהֶהkêheh · faintH3544
- flaxפִּשְׁתָּהpishtâh · flaxH6594
- shall he not quenchכָּבָהkâbâh · to quenchH3518
- he shall bring forthיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: sendH3318
- judgmentמִשְׁפָּטmishpâţ · justiceH4941
- unto truthאֱמֶת'emeth · truth: faithfulH571
Cross-references for Isaiah 42:3
- Isaiah 35:3Encourage the exhausted, and make staggering knees firm.
- Isaiah 40:11He will protect His flock like a shepherd, He will gather the lambs in His arm, He will carry them in His bosom; He will gently and carefully lead those nursing their young.
- Isaiah 50:4The Lord God has given Me [His Servant] the tongue of disciples [as One who is taught], That I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple [as One who is taught].
- Isaiah 57:15For the high and exalted One He who inhabits eternity, Whose name is Holy says this, “I dwell on the high and holy place, But also with the contrite and humble in spirit In order to revive the spirit of the humble And to revive the heart of the contrite [overcome with sorrow for sin].
- Isaiah 61:1The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because the Lord has anointed and commissioned me To bring good news to the humble and afflicted; He has sent me to bind up [the wounds of] the brokenhearted, To proclaim release [from confinement and condemnation] to the [physical and spiritual] captives And freedom to prisoners,
- Isaiah 66:2For all these things My hand has made, So all these things came into being [by and for Me],” declares the Lord. “But to this one I will look [graciously], To him who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who [reverently] trembles at My word and honors My commands.
- Psalms 103:13Just as a father loves his children, So the Lord loves those who fear and worship Him [with awe-filled respect and deepest reverence].
- Psalms 147:3He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds [healing their pain and comforting their sorrow].
- Jeremiah 30:12“For thus says the Lord, ‘Your wound is incurable And your injury is beyond healing.
- Jeremiah 31:18I have surely heard Ephraim (Israel) moaning and grieving, ‘You have chastised me, and I was chastised, Like a bull unaccustomed to the yoke or an untrained calf; Bring me back that I may be restored, For You are the Lord my God.
- Ezekiel 34:16“I will seek the lost, bring back the scattered, bandage the crippled, and strengthen the weak and the sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong [who have become hard-hearted and perverse]. I will feed them with judgment and punishment.
- Matthew 11:28“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavily burdened [by religious rituals that provide no peace], and I will give you rest [refreshing your souls with salvation].
- Matthew 18:11[For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.]
- Luke 22:31“Simon, Simon (Peter), listen! Satan has demanded permission to sift [all of] you like grain;
- John 20:19So when it was evening on that same day, the first day of the week, though the disciples were [meeting] behind barred doors for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.”
- Hebrews 2:17Therefore, it was essential that He had to be made like His brothers (mankind) in every respect, so that He might [by experience] become a merciful and faithful High Priest in things related to God, to make atonement (propitiation) for the people’s sins [thereby wiping away the sin, satisfying divine justice, and providing a way of reconciliation between God and mankind].
Commentaries on Isaiah 42:3
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3A bruised reed - The word reed‘ means the cane or calamus which grows up in marshy or wet places (Isaiah 36:6; see the note at Isaiah 43:24). The word, therefore, literally denotes that which is fragile, weak, easily waved by the wind, or broken down; and stands in contrast with a lofty and firm tree (compare Matthew 11:7): What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind?‘ The word here, therefore, may be applied to people who are…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The royal servant will be gentle with the oppressed and discouraged (see Isaiah 3:15; 41:17).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. bruised--"It pleased the Lord to bruise Him" (Is 53:5, 10; Ge 3:15); so He can feel for the bruised. As Is 42:2 described His unturbulent spirit towards His violent enemies (Mt 12:14-16), and His utter freedom from love of notoriety, so Is 42:3, His tenderness in cherishing the first spark of grace in the penitent (Is 40:11). reed--fragile: easily "shaken with the wind" (Mt 11:7). Those who are at best feeble, and who besides are oppressed by calamity…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 42:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 42
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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