God’s Word Translation
Isaiah 48:4
4I know that you are stubborn. Like iron, you are hardheaded. Like bronze, nothing gets through your thick skull.
Isaiah 48:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Because I knew that thou art obstinate, and thy neck is an iron sinew, and thy brow brass;
- New International Version (NIV)For I knew how stubborn you were; your neck muscles were iron, your forehead was bronze.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Because I know that you are obstinate, and your neck is an iron sinew and your forehead brass,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Because I knew that you were obstinate, And your neck was an iron sinew, And your brow bronze,
Context of Isaiah 48:4
2You call yourselves ⌞citizens⌟ of the holy city. You depend on the God of Israel. His name is the Lord of Armies. 3From the beginning I revealed to you what would happen. These words came out of my mouth, and I made them known. Suddenly, I acted, and they happened. I know that you are stubborn. Like iron, you are hardheaded. Like bronze, nothing gets through your thick skull. 5That is why I revealed to you what would happen long ago. I told you about them before they happened. ⌞I did this⌟ so you couldn’t say, “My gods have done these things. My carved idols and my metal idols have commanded them to happen.” 6You’ve heard these words. Now look at all this. Won’t you admit it? From now on I will reveal to you new things, hidden things that you do not know.
Read all of Isaiah 48Isaiah 48:4 word by word
מִדַּעְתִּ֕י כִּ֥י קָשֶׁ֖ה אָ֑תָּה וְגִ֤יד בַּרְזֶל֙ עָרְפֶּ֔ךָ וּמִצְחֲךָ֖ נְחוּשָֽׁה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 48:4
- Isaiah 46:12Listen to me, you stubborn people who are far from being righteous.
- Psalms 78:8Then they will not be like their ancestors, a stubborn and rebellious generation. Their hearts were not loyal. Their spirits were not faithful to God.
- Zechariah 7:11“But people refused to pay attention. They shrugged their shoulders at me and shut their ears so that they couldn’t hear.
- Jeremiah 5:3Lord, your eyes look for the truth. You strike these people, but they don’t feel it. You crush them, but they refuse to be corrected. They are more stubborn than rocks. They refuse to turn back.
- Ezekiel 3:4He said to me, “Son of man, go to the people of Israel, and speak my words to them.
- Daniel 5:20But when he became so arrogant and conceited that he became overconfident, he was removed from the royal throne. His honor was taken away from him.
- Romans 2:5Since you are stubborn and don’t want to change the way you think and act, you are adding to the anger that God will have against you on that day when God vents his anger. At that time God will reveal that his decisions are fair.
- Hebrews 3:13Encourage each other every day while you have the opportunity. If you do this, none of you will be deceived by sin and become stubborn.
- Exodus 32:9The Lord added, “I’ve seen these people, and they are impossible to deal with.
- Exodus 33:3Go to that land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not be with you, because you are impossible to deal with, and I would destroy you on the way.”
- Deuteronomy 10:16So circumcise your uncircumcised hearts, and don’t be impossible to deal with any longer.
- Deuteronomy 31:27I know how rebellious you are. You are impossible to deal with. While I am alive and still with you, you are rebelling against the Lord. How much more rebellious will you be after I die?
- 2 Kings 17:14But they refused to listen. They became as impossible to deal with as their ancestors who refused to trust the Lord their God.
- 2 Chronicles 30:8Don’t be impossible to deal with like your ancestors. Reach out for the Lord. Come to his holy place that he made holy forever. Serve the Lord your God, and he will turn his burning anger away from you.
- 2 Chronicles 36:13Zedekiah also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar had made Zedekiah swear an oath of allegiance to him in God’s name. But Zedekiah became so stubborn and so impossible to deal with that he refused to turn back to the Lord God of Israel.
- Nehemiah 9:16But they—our own ancestors—acted arrogantly. They became stubborn and wouldn’t obey your commands.
Commentaries on Isaiah 48:4
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Because I knew that thou art obstinate - I made these frequent predictions, and fulfilled them in this striking manner, because I knew that as a people, you were prone to unbelief, and in order that you might have the most full and undoubted demonstration of the truth of what was declared. As they were disinclined to credit his promises, and as he saw that in their long captivity they would be prone to disbelieve what he had said respecting their…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-11This prophecy is a disputation, a speech in which the prophet argues a set of points against his audience.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. obstinate--Hebrew, "hard" (De 9:27; Eze 3:7, Margin). iron sinew--inflexible (Ac 7:51). brow brass--shameless as a harlot (see Jr 6:28; 3:3; Eze 3:7, Margin).Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 48:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 48
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
Commentaries