EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Isaiah 49:5
5The Lord chose me to be his servant, even before I was born. He chose me to bring Jacob's descendants back to himself. He chose me to bring Israel's people together to serve him. As a result, the Lord will honour me. He is the one who makes me strong. The Lord, my God, says,
Isaiah 49:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And now, saith the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength.
- New International Version (NIV)And now the Lord says— he who formed me in the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him and gather Israel to himself, for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord and my God has been my strength—
- English Standard Version (ESV)And now the Lord says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him— for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord, and my God has become my strength—
- New King James Version (NKJV)“And now the Lord says, Who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, To bring Jacob back to Him, So that Israel is gathered to Him (For I shall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, And My God shall be My strength),
Context of Isaiah 49:5
3He said to me, ‘You are my servant, Israel. Because of you, I will cause people to know that I am great.’ 4I said, ‘My work has been useless. I have worked hard with no results.’ But the Lord will do what is right for me. He will give me what I deserve for my work. The Lord chose me to be his servant, even before I was born. He chose me to bring Jacob's descendants back to himself. He chose me to bring Israel's people together to serve him. As a result, the Lord will honour me. He is the one who makes me strong. The Lord, my God, says, 6‘As my servant, I have a greater job for you to do. It will not only be to make Jacob's tribes strong again. It will not only be to bring back Israel's people that I have kept safe. It will also be your job to bring light to the other nations. You will show people all over the world that I have the power to save them.’ 7The Lord is Israel's Redeemer, their Holy God. Nations refuse to accept his servant. Their people hate him and their rulers have made him their slave. The Lord says to his servant, ‘Kings will see you and they will rise up to respect you. Princes will bend down low in front of you. They will see that the Lord is faithful. He is Israel's Holy God, who has chosen you to serve him.’
Read all of Isaiah 49Isaiah 49:5 word by word
וְעַתָּ֣ה׀ אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֗ה יֹצְרִ֤י מִבֶּ֙טֶן֙ לְעֶ֣בֶד ל֔וֹ לְשׁוֹבֵ֤ב יַֽעֲקֹב֙ אֵלָ֔יו וְיִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל ל֣וֹ יֵאָסֵ֑ף וְאֶכָּבֵד֙ בְּעֵינֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה וֵאלֹהַ֖י הָיָ֥ה עֻזִּֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And now, saithאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- that formedיָצַרyâtsar · to form: formedH3335
- me from the wombבֶּ֫טֶןbeţen · belly: wombH990
- his servantעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
- to bringשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
- Jacobיַעֲקֹבya‛ăqôb · JacobH3290
- againשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
- to him, Though Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- be not gatheredאָסַף'âsaph · to gatherH622
- yet shall I be gloriousכָּבֵדkâbad kâbêd · to honor: honourH3513
- in the eyesעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eyeH5869
- and my Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- shall be my strengthעֹז‛ôz ‛ôz · strengthH5797
Cross-references for Isaiah 49:5
- Isaiah 49:1Listen to me, you islands. Listen carefully, you people who live far away. The Lord called me to serve him before I was born. Before my mother gave birth, he used my name to speak to me.
- Isaiah 46:8Remember this, you people who do not obey me. Think about it carefully.
- Matthew 15:24Jesus replied to his disciples, ‘God has sent me to help only the people of Israel. They are like sheep that have lost their way.’
- Acts 10:36This is the message that God has sent to the people of Israel. He told us the good news about Jesus Christ, who is the Lord of all people. Because of Jesus, we can now come near to God again.
- Romans 15:8Remember this: Christ became a servant of the Jews so that they could understand God's true message. He showed them that God has now done what he promised to their ancestors.
- Matthew 21:37After that, the master sent his own son to the farmers. He thought, “The farmers will surely respect my son.”
- Matthew 23:37Jerusalem, Jerusalem! Your people have killed God's prophets. They have thrown stones to kill other people that God has sent to you. Many times, I have wanted to bring all of your people near to me. A female bird covers her babies with her body to make them safe. But you would not let me keep you from danger like that.
- Luke 19:42He said, ‘You need to know what would really help you. Then you could have lived without trouble. But now, you are unable to understand properly.
- 1 Thessalonians 2:15People like that even killed the Lord Jesus. They killed God's prophets, too. They also did bad things against us, so that we had to leave their towns. They make God become angry. They are enemies of all people,
- Psalms 110:1The Lord God said to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right side until I win against your enemies. Then you will be able to put your feet on them.’
- Matthew 3:17Then a voice spoke from heaven, which said, ‘This man is my Son and I love him. He makes me very happy.’
- Matthew 11:27My Father has given me authority over all things. Only the Father really knows me, his Son. Only I really know my Father, because I am his Son. I also choose to tell some people about him. Then they also know him.
- Matthew 17:5While Peter was still speaking, a bright cloud appeared. It covered them all. A voice spoke from the cloud and it said, ‘This is my Son and I love him. He makes me very happy. Listen to him.’
- Matthew 28:18Jesus went near to them and he said to them, ‘God has given me authority over everyone and everything. I have all authority in heaven and in this world.
- John 3:35The Father loves the Son. He has given his Son authority over all things.
- John 5:20The Father loves the Son. He shows the Son all the things that he himself does. And the Father will show the Son even greater things to do than these. Those greater things will surprise you even more than what you have already seen.
Commentaries on Isaiah 49:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5And now, saith the Lord "And now, thus saith Jehovah" - The word כה coh, before אמר amar, is dropped out of the text: it is supplied by eight MSS. (two ancient) of Dr. Kennicott's, two of De Rossi's, and the Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate. Though Israel be not gathered "And that Israel unto him might be gathered" - Five MSS. (two ancient) confirm the Keri, or marginal correction of the Masoretes, לו lo, unto him, instead of לא lo, not, in the text; and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5And now, saith the Lord that formed me - This verse contains the reason why he cherished the hope that his work would not be unaccepted. The reason is, that Yahweh had said to him that he should be glorious in his eyes, and that he would be his strength. He stood so high in his favor, and he had such assurances of that favor, that he could confidently commit himself to his care. That formed thee from the womb - Who appointed me before I was born to the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-7God planned to rescue the Israelites from exile. But an important question remained. How could sinful Israel serve the Holy One again? God would make a way to remove Israel’s sin. He would restore their fellowship with him. This means he would bring them back into a right relationship with himself. The way would be through the promised Servant. This Servant would come for Israel and for all nations. He was first introduced in Isaiah 42:1–9. n this…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. The reason why He was confident that His work would be accepted and rewarded, namely, because He is "glorious in the eyes of Jehovah," &c. to bring Jacob again to him--(Mt 15:24; Ac 3:26). Though Israel be not gathered--metaphor from a scattered flock which the shepherd gathers together again; or a hen and her chickens (Mt 23:37). Instead of the text "not," the Keri has the similar Hebrew word, "to Him," which the parallelism favors: "And that Israel…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 49:5
In the dictionaries
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
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