New International Version
Isaiah 63:16
16But you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us or Israel acknowledge us; you, Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name.
Isaiah 63:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.
- English Standard Version (ESV)For you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us, and Israel does not acknowledge us; you, O Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Doubtless You are our Father, Though Abraham was ignorant of us, And Israel does not acknowledge us. You, O Lord, are our Father; Our Redeemer from Everlasting is Your name.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Surely you are still our Father! Even if Abraham and Jacob would disown us, Lord, you would still be our Father. You are our Redeemer from ages past.
Context of Isaiah 63:16
14like cattle that go down to the plain, they were given rest by the Spirit of the Lord. This is how you guided your people to make for yourself a glorious name. 15Look down from heaven and see, from your lofty throne, holy and glorious. Where are your zeal and your might? Your tenderness and compassion are withheld from us. But you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us or Israel acknowledge us; you, Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name. 17Why, Lord, do you make us wander from your ways and harden our hearts so we do not revere you? Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes that are your inheritance. 18For a little while your people possessed your holy place, but now our enemies have trampled down your sanctuary.
Read all of Isaiah 63Isaiah 63:16 word by word
כִּֽי־אַתָּ֣ה אָבִ֔ינוּ כִּ֤י אַבְרָהָם֙ לֹ֣א יְדָעָ֔נוּ וְיִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לֹ֣א יַכִּירָ֑נוּ אַתָּ֤ה יְהוָה֙ אָבִ֔ינוּ גֹּאֲלֵ֥נוּ מֵֽעוֹלָ֖ם שְׁמֶֽךָ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Doubtlessכִּיkîy · forH3588
- our fatherאָב'âb · fatherH1
- though Abrahamאַבְרָהָם'abrâhâm · AbrahamH85
- be ignorantיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
- be ignorantלֹאlô' lô' lôh · notH3808
- of us, and Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- acknowledgeנָכַרnâkar · to recognizeH5234
- us not: thou, O Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- our redeemerגָּאַלgâ'al · to redeem: redeemH1350
- thy nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
- from everlastingעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: antiquityH5769
Cross-references for Isaiah 63:16
- Isaiah 64:8Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.
- Exodus 4:22Then say to Pharaoh, ‘This is what the Lord says: Israel is my firstborn son,
- Deuteronomy 32:6Is this the way you repay the Lord, you foolish and unwise people? Is he not your Father, your Creator, who made you and formed you?
- 1 Chronicles 29:10David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, Lord, the God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.
- Jeremiah 3:19“I myself said, “ ‘How gladly would I treat you like my children and give you a pleasant land, the most beautiful inheritance of any nation.’ I thought you would call me ‘Father’ and not turn away from following me.
- Jeremiah 31:9They will come with weeping; they will pray as I bring them back. I will lead them beside streams of water on a level path where they will not stumble, because I am Israel’s father, and Ephraim is my firstborn son.
- Malachi 1:6“A son honors his father, and a slave his master. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me?” says the Lord Almighty. “It is you priests who show contempt for my name. “But you ask, ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?’
- Malachi 2:10Do we not all have one Father? Did not one God create us? Why do we profane the covenant of our ancestors by being unfaithful to one another?
- Matthew 6:9“This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
- Job 14:21If their children are honored, they do not know it; if their offspring are brought low, they do not see it.
- Ecclesiastes 9:5For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even their name is forgotten.
- Isaiah 63:12who sent his glorious arm of power to be at Moses’ right hand, who divided the waters before them, to gain for himself everlasting renown,
- Isaiah 41:14Do not be afraid, you worm Jacob, little Israel, do not fear, for I myself will help you,” declares the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
- Isaiah 43:14This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians, in the ships in which they took pride.
- Isaiah 44:6“This is what the Lord says— Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.
- Isaiah 54:5For your Maker is your husband— the Lord Almighty is his name— the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth.
Commentaries on Isaiah 63:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Our Redeemer; thy name is from everlasting "O deliver us for the sake of thy name" - The present text reads, as our translation has rendered it, "Our Redeemer, thy name is from everlasting." But instead of מעולם meolam, from everlasting, an ancient MS. has למען lemaan, for the sake of, which gives a much better sense. To show the impropriety of the present reading, it is sufficient to observe, that the Septuagint and Syriac translators thought it…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16Doubtless - Hebrew, כי kı̂y - For;‘ verily; surely. It implies the utmost confidence that he still retained the feelings of a tender father. Thou art our father - Notwithstanding appearances to the contrary, and though we should be disowned by all others, we will still believe that thou dost sustain the relation of a father. Though they saw no human aid, yet their confidence was unwavering that he had still tender compassion toward them. Though Abraham be…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-19Verses 15-19 They beseech him to look down on the abject condition of their once-favoured nation. Would it not be glorious to his name to remove the veil from their hearts, to return to the tribes of his inheritance? The Babylonish captivity, and the after-deliverance of the Jews, were shadows of the events here foretold. The Lord looks down upon us in tenderness and mercy. Spiritual judgments are more to be dreaded than any other calamities; and we…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16our Father: God is described as a Father to his people. His care and faithfulness to his children are stronger and more secure than their family or national ancestry. Their true identity does not depend only on being descendants of Abraham. It depends on belonging to God as his children (see Isaiah 9:6; 64:8; Deuteronomy 32:6; Psalm 68:5; Malachi 2:10; Matthew 6:9–15; Romans 8:15–17).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. thou ... father--of Israel, by right not merely of creation, but also of electing adoption (Is 64:8; De 32:6; 1Ch 29:10). though Abraham ... Israel--It had been the besetting temptation of the Jews to rest on the mere privilege of their descent from faithful Abraham and Jacob (Mt 3:9; Joh 8:39; 4:12); now at last they renounce this, to trust in God alone as their Father, notwithstanding all appearances to the contrary. Even though Abraham, our earthly…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 63:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 63
- 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
New International Version — © NIV® 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 Biblica
Commentaries