Isaiah 9:3

Isaiah 9:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
• New International Version (NIV)You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder.
• English Standard Version (ESV)You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
• New King James Version (NKJV)You have multiplied the nation And increased its joy; They rejoice before You According to the joy of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

Context of Isaiah 9:3

1Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. 2The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. You will enlarge the nation of Israel, and its people will rejoice. They will rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest and like warriors dividing the plunder. 4For you will break the yoke of their slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders. You will break the oppressor’s rod, just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian. 5The boots of the warrior and the uniforms bloodstained by war will all be burned. They will be fuel for the fire.

Isaiah 9:3 word by word

הִרְבִּ֣יתָ הַגּ֔וֹי ל֖וֹ הִגְדַּ֣לְתָּ הַשִּׂמְחָ֑ה שָׂמְח֤וּ לְפָנֶ֙יךָ֙ כְּשִׂמְחַ֣ת בַּקָּצִ֔יר כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר יָגִ֖ילוּ בְּחַלְּקָ֥ם שָׁלָֽל׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Thou hast multipliedרָבָהrâbâh · to multiplyH7235
• the nationגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
• not increasedגָּדַלgâdal · to magnifyH1431
• the joyשִׂמְחָהώimchâh · joyH8057
• they joyשָׂמַחώâmach · to rejoiceH8055
• beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• in harvestקָצִירqâtsîyr · harvestH7105
• rejoiceגִּילgîyl gûl · to rejoiceH1523
• when they divideחָלַקchâlaq · to divideH2505
• the spoilשָׁלָלshâlâl · spoilH7998

Cross-references for Isaiah 9:3

• Isaiah 26:15O Lord, you have made our nation great; yes, you have made us great. You have extended our borders, and we give you the glory!
• Isaiah 49:20The generations born in exile will return and say, ‘We need more room! It’s crowded here!’
• Nehemiah 9:23You made their descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and brought them into the land you had promised to their ancestors.
• Psalms 107:38How he blesses them! They raise large families there, and their herds of livestock increase.
• Hosea 4:7The more priests there are, the more they sin against me. They have exchanged the glory of God for the shame of idols.
• Zechariah 2:11Many nations will join themselves to the Lord on that day, and they, too, will be my people. I will live among you, and you will know that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies sent me to you.
• Zechariah 8:23“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: In those days ten men from different nations and languages of the world will clutch at the sleeve of one Jew. And they will say, ‘Please let us walk with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’”
• Zechariah 10:8When I whistle to them, they will come running, for I have redeemed them. From the few who are left, they will grow as numerous as they were before.
• Isaiah 12:1In that day you will sing: “I will praise you, O Lord! You were angry with me, but not anymore. Now you comfort me.
• Isaiah 25:9In that day the people will proclaim, “This is our God! We trusted in him, and he saved us! This is the Lord, in whom we trusted. Let us rejoice in the salvation he brings!”
• Isaiah 35:2Yes, there will be an abundance of flowers and singing and joy! The deserts will become as green as the mountains of Lebanon, as lovely as Mount Carmel or the plain of Sharon. There the Lord will display his glory, the splendor of our God.
• Isaiah 54:1“Sing, O childless woman, you who have never given birth! Break into loud and joyful song, O Jerusalem, you who have never been in labor. For the desolate woman now has more children than the woman who lives with her husband,” says the Lord.
• Isaiah 55:12You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills will burst into song, and the trees of the field will clap their hands!
• Isaiah 61:7Instead of shame and dishonor, you will enjoy a double share of honor. You will possess a double portion of prosperity in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.
• Isaiah 65:18Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation! And look! I will create Jerusalem as a place of happiness. Her people will be a source of joy.
• Isaiah 66:10“Rejoice with Jerusalem! Be glad with her, all you who love her and all you who mourn for her.

Commentaries on Isaiah 9:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3And not increased the joy "Thou hast increased their joy" - Eleven MSS. of Kennicott's and six of De Ross's, two ancient, read לו lo, it, according to the Masoretical correction, instead of לא lo, not. To the same purpose the Targum and Syriac. The joy in harvest - בקציר כשמחת kesimchath bakkatsir . For בקציר bakkatsir one MS. of Kennicott's and one of De Rossi's have קציר katsir, and another הקציר hakkatsir, "the harvest;" one of which seems to be the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Thou hast multiplied the nation - Thou hast rendered the nation strong, powerful, mighty. Several interpreters, as Calvin, Vitringa, and Le Clerc, suppose that the prophet here, and in the two following verses, speaks in the first instance of the prosperity near at hand, and of the rapid increase of the Israelites after the return from the Babylonian exile, in which the inhabitants of Galilee must have participated, as may be inferred from the accounts of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-7After judgment and destruction, there would still be hope. God promised that the Messiah (God’s chosen one) would come and rule. In the Messiah’s kingdom, darkness would end and great light would begin. This light would first appear in Galilee. Then it would spread to the whole nation of Israel and finally to the whole world. The Messiah would defend those who suffer and are treated unfairly. He would bring an end to cruelty and injustice. He would rule…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. multiplied ... nation--primarily, the rapid increase of Israelites after the return from Babylon; more fully and exhaustively the rapid spread of Christianity at first. not increased the joy--By a slight change in the Hebrew, its (joy) is substituted by some for not, because "not increased the joy" seems opposite to what immediately follows, "the joy," &c. Hengstenberg, retains not thus: "Whose joy thou hadst not increased," (that is, hadst…Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 9:3

• Church
• Gentiles
• Harvest
• Isaiah
• Joy

In the dictionaries

• Ahaz
• Harvest
• Increase
• Kindle
• Prince
• Snatch
• Criticism of the Bible
• Ezekiel
• Isaiah
• Jesus Christ

Commentaries on Isaiah 9

• 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