God’s Word Translation
Isaiah 66:7
7Before a woman goes into labor, she gives birth. Before she has labor pains, she delivers a child.
Isaiah 66:7 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.
- New International Version (NIV)“Before she goes into labor, she gives birth; before the pains come upon her, she delivers a son.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Before she was in labor she gave birth; before her pain came upon her she delivered a son.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Before she was in labor, she gave birth; Before her pain came, She delivered a male child.
Context of Isaiah 66:7
5Listen to the Lord’s word, all who tremble at his word. Your relatives, who hate you and exclude you for my name’s sake, say, “Let the Lord show his glory; then we will see your joy.” But they will be put to shame. 6Listen to the uproar from the city. Listen to the sound from the temple. It is the sound of the Lord paying back his enemies as they deserve. Before a woman goes into labor, she gives birth. Before she has labor pains, she delivers a child. 8Who has heard of such a thing? Who has seen such things? Can a country be born in one day? Can a nation be born in a moment? When Zion went into labor, she also gave birth to her children. 9“Do I bring a mother to the moment of birth and not let her deliver?” asks the Lord. “Do I cause a mother to deliver and then make her unable to have children?” asks your God.
Read all of Isaiah 66Isaiah 66:7 word by word
בְּטֶ֥רֶם תָּחִ֖יל יָלָ֑דָה בְּטֶ֨רֶם יָב֥וֹא חֵ֛בֶל לָ֖הּ וְהִמְלִ֥יטָה זָכָֽר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 66:7
- Isaiah 54:1Sing with joy, you childless women who never gave birth to children. Break into shouts of joy, you women who never had birth pains. “There will be more children of women who have been deserted than there are children of married women,” says the Lord.
- Galatians 4:26But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother.
- Revelation 12:1A spectacular sign appeared in the sky: There was a woman who was dressed in the sun, who had the moon under her feet and a crown of 12 stars on her head.
Commentaries on Isaiah 66:7
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7Before she travailed, she brought forth - That is, Zion. The idea here is, that there would be a great and sudden increase of her numbers. Zion is here represented, as it often is, as a female (see Isaiah 1:8), and as the mother of spiritual children (compare Isaiah 54:1; Isaiah 49:20-21). The particular idea here is, that the increase would be sudden - as if a child were born without the usual delay and pain of parturition. If the interpretation given of…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-14Verses 5-14 The prophet turns to those that trembled at God's word, to comfort and encourage them. The Lord will appear, to the joy of the humble believer, and to the confusion of hypocrites and persecutors. When the Spirit was poured out, and the gospel went forth from Zion, multitudes were converted in a little time. The word of God, especially his promises, and ordinances, are the consolations of the church. The true happiness of all Christians is…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7in labor … delivered a boy: See Isaiah 9:6–7; 54:1–3.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. she--Zion. Before ... travailed ... brought forth--The accession of numbers, and of prosperity to her, shall be sudden beyond all expectation and unattended with painful effort (Is 54:1, 4, 5). Contrast with this case of the future Jewish Church the travail-pains of the Christian Church in bringing forth "a man child" (Re 12:2, 5). A man child's birth is in the East a matter of special joy, while that of a female is not so; therefore, it here means the…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 66:7
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 66
- 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
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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