Isaiah 56:3

Isaiah 56:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the Lord, speak, saying, The Lord hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree.
• New International Version (NIV)Let no foreigner who is bound to the Lord say, “The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.” And let no eunuch complain, “I am only a dry tree.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, "The Lord will surely separate me from his people"; and let not the eunuch say, "Behold, I am a dry tree."
• New King James Version (NKJV)Do not let the son of the foreigner Who has joined himself to the Lord Speak, saying, “The Lord has utterly separated me from His people”; Nor let the eunuch say, “Here I am, a dry tree.”

Context of Isaiah 56:3

1This is what the Lord says, “Maintain justice and do righteousness, For My salvation is soon to come, And My righteousness and justice is soon to be revealed. 2Blessed (happy, fortunate) is the man who does this, And the son of man who takes hold of it, Who keeps the Sabbath without profaning it, And keeps his hand from doing any evil.” Do not let the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, “The Lord will most certainly separate me from His people.” And do not let the eunuch say, “Look, I am a dry tree.” 4This is what the Lord says, “To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths And choose what pleases Me, And hold firmly to My covenant, 5To them I will give in My house and within My walls a memorial, And a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which will not be cut off.

Isaiah 56:3 word by word

וְאַל־יֹאמַ֣ר בֶּן־הַנֵּכָ֗ר הַנִּלְוָ֤ה אֶל־יְהוָה֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר הַבְדֵּ֧ל יַבְדִּילַ֛נִי יְהוָ֖ה מֵעַ֣ל עַמּ֑וֹ וְאַל־יֹאמַר֙ הַסָּרִ֔יס הֵ֥ן אֲנִ֖י עֵ֥ץ יָבֵֽשׁ׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Neither let the sonבֵּןbên · son: type ofH1121
• of the strangerנֵכָרnêkâr · foreignH5236
• that hath joinedלָוָהlâvâh · to joinH3867
• himself to the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• speakאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• hath utterlyבָּדַלbâdal · to separateH914
• me from his peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• neither let the eunuchסָרִיסsârîys sâris · eunuchH5631
• a dryיָבֵשׁyâbêsh · dryH3002
• treeעֵץ‛êts · treeH6086

Cross-references for Isaiah 56:3

• Numbers 18:4They shall join you and attend to the duties of the Tent of Meeting—all the service of the tent—and no stranger [no layman, anyone who is not a Levite] may approach you [and your sons].
• Deuteronomy 23:1“He who has been castrated by having his testicles crushed or his male organ cut off shall not enter the congregation of the Lord.
• Zechariah 8:20“Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘It will come to pass that peoples and the inhabitants of many cities will come [to Jerusalem].
• Matthew 8:10When Jesus heard this, He was amazed and said to those who were following Him, “I tell you truthfully, I have not found such great faith [as this] with anyone in Israel.
• Acts 8:27So he got up and went; and there was an Ethiopian eunuch [a man of great authority], a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship,
• Acts 10:1Now at Caesarea [Maritima] there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Regiment,
• Acts 13:47For that is what the Lord has commanded us, saying, ‘I have placed You as a light for the Gentiles, So that You may bring [the message of eternal] salvation to the end of the earth.’ ”
• Acts 17:4And some of them were persuaded to believe and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large number of the God-fearing Greeks and many of the leading women.
• Acts 18:7Then he moved on from there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, who worshiped God and whose house was next door to the synagogue.
• Romans 2:10but glory and honor and inner peace [will be given] to everyone who habitually does good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
• Romans 16:9Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys.
• Ephesians 2:12remember that at that time you were separated from Christ [excluded from any relationship with Him], alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise [with no share in the sacred Messianic promise and without knowledge of God’s agreements], having no hope [in His promise] and [living] in the world without God.
• 1 Peter 1:1Peter, an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Jesus Christ, To those [elect—both Jewish and Gentile believers] who live as exiles, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia [Minor], and Bithynia, who are chosen
• Jeremiah 50:5They will ask the way to Zion, with their faces in that direction, saying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in an everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.’
• Zephaniah 2:11The Lord will be terrifying and awesome to them, for He will starve all the gods of the earth; and all the coastlands of the nations will bow down and worship Him, everyone from his own place.
• 1 Corinthians 6:17But the one who is united and joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.

Commentaries on Isaiah 56:3

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Neither let the son of the stranger - The foreigner who shall become a proselyte to the true religion. That hath joined himself - That has embraced the true faith, and become a worshipper of the true God. It is evidently implied here that there would be such proselytes, and that the true religion would be extended so as to include and embrace them. The idea is, that they should be admitted to the same privileges with those who had been long recognized as…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 3-8Verses 3-8 Unbelief often suggests things to discourage believers, against which God has expressly guarded. Spiritual blessings are unspeakably better than having sons and daughters; for children are a care, and may prove a grief and shame, but the blessings we partake of in God's house, are comforts which cannot be made bitter. Those who love the Lord truly, will serve him faithfully, and then his commandments are not grievous. Three things are promised…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Foreigners who commit themselves to the Lord would become full members of his covenant community. In earlier times, their participation had strict limits (Deuteronomy 23:3, 7–8). eunuch: In the past, a man who had been emasculated was not allowed to take part fully in the community (Deuteronomy 23:1). Both eunuchs and foreigners were seen as outside Israel’s holiness. They were considered on the edge of God’s people. But in the age to come, God would…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. God welcomes all believers, without distinction of persons, under the new economy (Ac 10:34, 35). joined ... to ... Lord--(Nu 18:4, 7). "Proselytes." separated--Proselytes from the Gentiles were not admitted to the same privileges as native Israelites. This barrier between Jews and Gentiles was to be broken down (Ep 2:14-16). eunuch--(Ac 8:27, &c.). Eunuchs were chamberlains over harems, or court ministers in general. dry tree--barren (compare Lu…Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 56:3

• Church
• Eunuch
• Gentiles
• Isaiah
• Righteous

In the dictionaries

• Chamberlain
• Gather
• Proselyte
• Isaiah
• Law in the Old Testament
• Sabbath
• Saviour
• Stranger and Sojourner (in the Old Testament)

Commentaries on Isaiah 56

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• 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
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings