God’s Word Translation
Isaiah 51:18
18From all the children she gave birth to, there was no one to guide her. From all the children she raised, there was no one to take her by the hand.
Isaiah 51:18 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)There is none to guide her among all the sons whom she hath brought forth; neither is there any that taketh her by the hand of all the sons that she hath brought up.
- New International Version (NIV)Among all the children she bore there was none to guide her; among all the children she reared there was none to take her by the hand.
- English Standard Version (ESV)There is none to guide her among all the sons she has borne; there is none to take her by the hand among all the sons she has brought up.
- New King James Version (NKJV)There is no one to guide her Among all the sons she has brought forth; Nor is there any who takes her by the hand Among all the sons she has brought up.
Context of Isaiah 51:18
16I put my words in your mouth and sheltered you in the palm of my hand. I stretched out the heavens, laid the foundations of the earth, and said to Zion, “You are my people.” 17Wake up! Wake up! Stand up, Jerusalem! You drank from the cup in the Lord’s hand. That cup was filled with his anger. You drank from the bowl, the cup that makes people stagger, and you drained it! From all the children she gave birth to, there was no one to guide her. From all the children she raised, there was no one to take her by the hand. 19Twice as many disasters have happened to you. Who will feel sorry for you? Violence, destruction, famine, and war have happened to you. Who will comfort you? 20Your children have fainted. They lie sleeping at every street corner. They are like an antelope caught in a net. They experience the anger of the Lord, the fury of your God.
Read all of Isaiah 51Isaiah 51:18 word by word
אֵין־מְנַהֵ֣ל לָ֔הּ מִכָּל־בָּנִ֖ים יָלָ֑דָה וְאֵ֤ין מַחֲזִיק֙ בְּיָדָ֔הּ מִכָּל־בָּנִ֖ים גִּדֵּֽלָה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 51:18
- Isaiah 3:4“I will make boys their leaders. Children will govern them.”
- Isaiah 49:21Then you will ask yourself, “Who has fathered these ⌞children⌟ for me? I was childless and unable to have children. I was exiled and rejected. Who raised these ⌞children for me⌟? I was left alone. Where have they come from?”
- Psalms 88:18You have taken my loved ones and friends far away from me. Darkness is my only friend!
- Psalms 142:4Look to my right and see that no one notices me. Escape is impossible for me. No one cares about me.
- Matthew 9:36When he saw the crowds, he felt sorry for them. They were troubled and helpless like sheep without a shepherd.
- Matthew 15:14Leave them alone! They are blind leaders. When one blind person leads another, both will fall into the same pit.”
- Isaiah 41:13I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand and say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid; I will help you.’
- Isaiah 45:1This is what the Lord says about Cyrus, his anointed one: I have held him by his right hand so he could conquer the nations ahead of him, strip kings of their power, and open doors ahead of him so that the gates would not be shut.
- Job 8:20“Certainly, God does not reject a person of integrity or give a helping hand to wicked people.
- Jeremiah 31:32It will not be like the promise that I made to their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of Egypt. They rejected that promise, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord.
- Mark 8:23Jesus took the blind man’s hand and led him out of the village. He spit into the man’s eyes and placed his hands on him. Jesus asked him, “Can you see anything?”
- Acts 9:8Saul was helped up from the ground. When he opened his eyes, he was blind. So his companions led him into Damascus.
- Acts 13:11The Lord is against you now. For a while you will be blind, unable to see the light of day.” Suddenly, Elymas couldn’t see a thing. He tried to find people to lead him.
- Hebrews 8:9It will not be like the promise that I made to their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of Egypt. They rejected that promise, so I ignored them, says the Lord.
Commentaries on Isaiah 51:18
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18There is none to guide her - The image here is taken from the condition of one who is under the influence of an intoxicating draught, and who needs some one to sustain and guide him. The idea is, than among all the inhabitants of Jerusalem in the time of the calamity, there was none who could restore to order the agitated and distracted affairs of the nation. All its wisdom was destroyed; its counsels perplexed; its power overcome. All the sons whom she…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 17-23Verses 17-23 God calls upon his people to mind the things that belong to their everlasting peace. Jerusalem had provoked God, and was made to taste the bitter fruits. Those who should have been her comforters, were their own tormentors. They have no patience by which to keep possesion of their own souls, nor any confidence in God's promise, by which to keep possession of its comfort. Thou art drunken, not as formerly, with the intoxicating cup of…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17-23The prophet called the people of Israel to be done with their past and to anticipate God’s future for them.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1818. Following up the image in Is 51:17, intoxicated and confused by the cup of God's anger, she has none to guide her in her helpless state; she has not yet awakened out of the sleep caused by that draught. This cannot apply to the Babylonish captivity; for in it they had Ezekiel and Daniel, Ezra and Nehemiah, as "guides," and soon awoke out of that sleep; but it applies to the Jews now, and will be still more applicable in their coming oppression by…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 51:18
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 51
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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