New Living Translation
Isaiah 42:4
4He will not falter or lose heart until justice prevails throughout the earth. Even distant lands beyond the sea will wait for his instruction.”
Isaiah 42:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
- New International Version (NIV)he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law.
- New King James Version (NKJV)He will not fail nor be discouraged, Till He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands shall wait for His law.”
Context of Isaiah 42:4
2He will not shout or raise his voice in public. 3He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. He will bring justice to all who have been wronged. He will not falter or lose heart until justice prevails throughout the earth. Even distant lands beyond the sea will wait for his instruction.” 5God, the Lord, created the heavens and stretched them out. He created the earth and everything in it. He gives breath to everyone, life to everyone who walks the earth. And it is he who says, 6“I, the Lord, have called you to demonstrate my righteousness. I will take you by the hand and guard you, and I will give you to my people, Israel, as a symbol of my covenant with them. And you will be a light to guide the nations.
Read all of Isaiah 42Isaiah 42:4 word by word
לֹ֤א יִכְהֶה֙ וְלֹ֣א יָר֔וּץ עַד־יָשִׂ֥ים בָּאָ֖רֶץ מִשְׁפָּ֑ט וּלְתוֹרָת֖וֹ אִיִּ֥ים יְיַחֵֽילוּ׃ פRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- He shall not failכָּהָהkâhâh · to grow dimH3543
- nor be discouragedרָצַץrâtsats · to crushH7533
- till he have setשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: makeH7760
- judgmentמִשְׁפָּטmishpâţ · justiceH4941
- in the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- and the islesאִי'îy · coastlandH339
- shall waitיָחַלyâchal · to wait: hopeH3176
- for his lawתּוֹרָהtôrâh tôrâh · instructionH8451
Cross-references for Isaiah 42:4
- Isaiah 9:7His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!
- Isaiah 49:5And now the Lord speaks— the one who formed me in my mother’s womb to be his servant, who commissioned me to bring Israel back to him. The Lord has honored me, and my God has given me strength.
- Isaiah 52:13See, my servant will prosper; he will be highly exalted.
- Isaiah 53:2My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him.
- John 17:4I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.
- Hebrews 12:2We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.
- 1 Peter 2:22He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone.
- Isaiah 42:12Let the whole world glorify the Lord; let it sing his praise.
- Isaiah 2:2In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s house will be the highest of all— the most important place on earth. It will be raised above the other hills, and people from all over the world will stream there to worship.
- Isaiah 11:9Nothing will hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, for as the waters fill the sea, so the earth will be filled with people who know the Lord.
- Isaiah 24:15In eastern lands, give glory to the Lord. In the lands beyond the sea, praise the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.
- Isaiah 41:5The lands beyond the sea watch in fear. Remote lands tremble and mobilize for war.
- Isaiah 55:5You also will command nations you do not know, and peoples unknown to you will come running to obey, because I, the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, have made you glorious.”
- Isaiah 60:9They are ships from the ends of the earth, from lands that trust in me, led by the great ships of Tarshish. They are bringing the people of Israel home from far away, carrying their silver and gold. They will honor the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has filled you with splendor.
- Isaiah 66:19I will perform a sign among them. And I will send those who survive to be messengers to the nations—to Tarshish, to the Libyans and Lydians (who are famous as archers), to Tubal and Greece, and to all the lands beyond the sea that have not heard of my fame or seen my glory. There they will declare my glory to the nations.
- Genesis 49:10The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor.
Commentaries on Isaiah 42:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4He shall not fail nor be discouraged "His force shall not be abated nor broken" - Rabbi Meir ita citat locum istum, ut post ירוץ yaruts, addat כוחו cocho, robur ejus, quod hodie Ilon comparet in textu Hebraeo, sed addendum videtur, ut sensus fiat planior. "Rabbi Meir cites this passage so as to add after ירוץ yarats כוחו cocho, his force, which word is not found in the present Hebrew text, but seems necessary to be added to make the sense more distinct."…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4He shall not fail - He shall not be weak, feeble, or disheartened. However much there may be that shall tend to discourage, yet his purpose is fixed, and he will pursue it with steadiness and ardor until the great work shall be fully accomplished. There may be an allusion in the Hebrew word here (יכהה yı̂kheh ) to that which is applied to the flax (כהה kēhâh ); and the idea may be that he shall not become in his purposes like the smoking, flickering…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4the islands: The nations want justice and guidance on how to achieve it. The servant is like Moses, who received the law. However, the servant is greater because he brings justice to all nations, not just Israel.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. fail--faint; man in religion may become as the almost expiring flax-wick (Is 42:3), but not so He in His purposes of grace. discouraged--literally, "broken," that is, checked in zeal by discouragements (compare Is 49:4, 5). Rosenmuller not so well translates, "He shall not be too slow on the one hand, nor run too hastily on the other." judgment--His true religion, the canon of His judgments and righteous reign. isles ... wait, &c.--The distant lands…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 42:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 42
- 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
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