Isaiah 49:20

Isaiah 49:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The children which thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say again in thine ears, The place is too strait for me: give place to me that I may dwell.
• New International Version (NIV)The children born during your bereavement will yet say in your hearing, ‘This place is too small for us; give us more space to live in.’
• English Standard Version (ESV)The children of your bereavement will yet say in your ears: 'The place is too narrow for me; make room for me to dwell in.'
• New King James Version (NKJV)The children you will have, After you have lost the others, Will say again in your ears, ‘The place is too small for me; Give me a place where I may dwell.’

Context of Isaiah 49:20

18Look all round you! See all your people as they return together.’ The Lord says, ‘I tell you clearly, as the God who lives, you will be happy with your people. They will make you beautiful again, like a bride with her beautiful jewels. 19Enemies have destroyed your land. Its towns have become heaps of stones. But soon your land will be too small for all your people to live in. The enemies who destroyed you will be far away from you. The children who were born in a foreign land will return to you. You will hear them say, “This place is too small for us. Find more room for us to live in.” 21Then you will think, “Who gave me all these children? Who is their father? I was alone, with no husband. They killed my children or they took them away to a foreign land. I could no longer give birth. So where did all these children come from?” ’ 22The Almighty Lord says, ‘Look! I will lift up my hand, to call the nations. I will raise up a flag as a sign to those people. Then they will bring back your sons and your daughters. They will carry them in their arms and on their shoulders.

Isaiah 49:20 word by word

ע֚וֹד יֹאמְר֣וּ בְאָזְנַ֔יִךְ בְּנֵ֖י שִׁכֻּלָ֑יִךְ צַר־לִ֥י הַמָּק֖וֹם גְּשָׁה־לִּ֥י וְאֵשֵֽׁבָה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• The childrenבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• which thou shalt have, after thou hast lostשִׁכֻּלִיםshikkûlîym · bereavementH7923
• the other, shall sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• again in thine earsאֹ֫זֶן'ôzen · earH241
• The placeמָקוֹםmâqôm mâqôm meqômâh meqômâh · placeH4725
• too straitצַרtsar tsâr · narrowH6862
• for me: giveנָגַשׁnâgash · to approach: approachH5066
• to me that I may dwellיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427

Cross-references for Isaiah 49:20

• Isaiah 60:4Look all round you! All your people are coming together to return to you. Your sons are coming from far away, and they carry your daughters in their arms.
• Hosea 1:10In the future, nobody will be able to count the number of Israel's people. They will be as much as the sand on the shore of the sea. God has said to them, ‘You are not my people.’ But at that time, he will say to them, ‘You are children of the God who lives!’
• Matthew 3:9Do not say to yourselves, “We are in the family of Abraham. God will surely not punish us.” Listen! God can take these stones and make children for Abraham out of them!
• Galatians 4:26But Abraham's wife, Sarah, is a picture of the new Jerusalem that is above. Sarah was a free person, not a slave, and she is like our mother.
• Isaiah 51:3Surely, the Lord will comfort Zion's people. He will take care of the buildings that enemies have destroyed. Zion's land that is now a wilderness will become like the beautiful Garden of Eden. It will be the Lord's own garden! People will be happy again in Zion. They will sing with joy to thank God.
• Isaiah 54:1‘Sing with joy, you woman who could not give birth to any children. You have never known the pain of a child's birth, but now shout loudly with joy. Be happy, because the woman who is alone will have many children. She will have more children than the woman who has a husband.’ That is what the Lord says.
• Joshua 17:14Joseph's descendants asked Joshua, ‘Why have you given only one part of the land for us to live in? The Lord has blessed us with many children, so there are many people in our tribe.’
• 2 Kings 6:1One day, the group of prophets said to Elisha, ‘The place where we meet with you is too small for us.

Commentaries on Isaiah 49:20

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20The children which thou shalt have - The increase of the population shall be so great. After thou hast lost the other - Hebrew, The sons of thy widowhood.‘ That is, after thou hast lost those that have been killed in the wars, and those that have died in captivity in a distant land, there shall be again a great increase as if they were given to a widowed mother. And perhaps the general truth is taught here, that the persecution of the people of God will…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-23Verses 18-23 Zion is addressed as an afflicted widow, bereaved of her children. Numbers flock to her, and she is assured that they come to be a comfort to her. There are times when the church is desolate and few in number; yet its desolations shall not last for ever, and God will repair them. God can raise up friends for returning Israelites, even among Gentiles. They shall bring their children, and make them thy children. Let all deal tenderly and…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19-21The population growth would extend beyond Israel to include people from other nations who turn to the Lord (see Isaiah 56:6–8; Revelation 7:9). make room: The increased population would need space far beyond Israel's traditional borders (see also Zechariah 2:4).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2020. children ... after ... other--rather, "the children of thy widowhood," that is, the children of whom thou hast been bereft during their dispersion in other lands (see on Is 47:8) [Maurer]. again--rather, "yet." give place--rather, "stand close to me," namely, in order that we may be the more able to dwell in in the narrow place [Horsley]. Compare as to Israel's spiritual children, and the extension of the gospel sphere, Ro 15:19, 24; 2Co 10:14-16. But…Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 49:20

• Church
• Gentiles
• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ

In the dictionaries

• Church
• Forget
• Mouth
• Bereave; Bereaver; Bereft
• Isaiah
• Loss
• Mark, the Gospel According to
• Saviour
• Strait; Straiten; Straitly
• Isaiah, Book of

Commentaries on Isaiah 49

• 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
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings