Isaiah 41:1

Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.

KJV

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“Keep silent before me, islands, and let the peoples renew their strength. Let them come near, then let them speak. Let’s meet together for judgment.

Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.

41:2 Who raised up the righteous man from the east, called him to his foot, gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings? he gave them as the dust to his sword, and as driven stubble to his bow. the righteous: Heb. righteousness

What does Isaiah 41:1 mean?

Isaiah 41:1 is a verse in the book of Isaiah, in the Old Testament. In the original Hebrew, key words include חָרַשׁ (chârash), אִי (ʼîy), לְאֹם (lᵉʼôm). It connects to 21 cross-referenced passages elsewhere in Scripture.

Hebrew interlinear

Keep

silenceחָרַשׁchârash/khaw-rash'/H2790to scratch, i.e. (by implication) to engrave, plough; hence (from the use of tools) to fabricate (of any material); figuratively, to devise (in a bad sense); hence (from the idea of secrecy) to be silent, to let alone; hence (by implication) to be deaf (as an accompaniment of dumbness)

before

me,

islands;אִיʼîy/ee/H339properly, a habitable spot (as desirable); dry land, a coast, an island

and

let

the

peopleלְאֹםlᵉʼôm/leh-ome'/H3816a community

renewחָלַףchâlaph/khaw-laf'/H2498properly, to slide by, i.e. (by implication) to hasten away, pass on, spring up, pierce or change

their

strength:כֹּחַkôach/ko'-akh/H3581vigor, literally (force, in a good or a bad sense) or figuratively (capacity, means, produce); also (from its hardiness) a large lizard

let

them

come

near;נָגַשׁnâgash/naw-gash'/H5066to be or come (causatively, bring) near (for any purpose); euphemistically, to lie with a woman; as an enemy, to attack; religious to worship; causatively, to present; figuratively, to adduce an argument; by reversal, to stand back

then

let

them

speak:דָבַרdâbar/daw-bar'/H1696perhaps properly, to arrange; but used figuratively (of words), to speak; rarely (in a destructive sense) to subdue

let

come

nearקָרַבqârab/kaw-rab'/H7126to approach (causatively, bring near) for whatever purpose

togetherיַחַדyachad/yakh'-ad/H3162properly, a unit, i.e. (adverb) unitedly

judgment.מִשְׁפָּטmishpâṭ/mish-pawt'/H4941properly, a verdict (favorable or unfavorable) pronounced judicially, especially a sentence or formal decree (human or (participant's) divine law, individual or collective), including the act, the place, the suit, the crime, and the penalty; abstractly, justice, including a participant's right or privilege (statutory or customary), or even a style

Commentary on Isaiah 41:1

HENRY_FULL · Isaiah 41:1

Note, 1. Pride will have a fall. Those that are of a haughty spirit, that think of themselves above what is meet, and look with contempt upon others, that with their pride affront God and disquiet others, will be brought down, either by repentance or by ruin. It is the honour of God to humble the proud, Job xl. 11, 12 . It is the act of justice that those who have lifted up themselves should be laid low. Pharaoh, Sennacherib, Nebuchadnezzar, were instances of this. Men cannot punish pride, but either admire it or fear it, and therefore God will take the punishing of it into his own hands. Let him alone to deal with proud men. 2. Proud men are frequently most proud, and insolent, and haughty, just before their destruction, so that it is a certain presage that they are upon the brink of it. When proud men set God's judgments at defiance, and think themselves at the greatest distance from them, it is a sign that they are at the door; witness the case of Benhadad and Herod. While the word was in the king's mouth, Dan. iv. 31 . Therefore let us not fear the pride of others, but greatly fear pride in ourselves. 19 Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.

Cross-references

Related passages from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

Genesis 41:38

And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?

1 Chronicles 5:20

And they were helped against them, and the Hagarites were delivered into their hand, and all that were with them: for they cried to God in the battle, and he was intreated of them; because they put their trust in him.

Psalms 2:12

Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

Psalms 34:8

O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

Isaiah 13:15

Every one that is found shall be thrust through; and every one that is joined unto them shall fall by the sword.

Isaiah 17:2

The cities of Aroer are forsaken: they shall be for flocks, which shall lie down, and none shall make them afraid.

Isaiah 19:8

The fishers also shall mourn, and all they that cast angle into the brooks shall lament, and they that spread nets upon the waters shall languish.

Isaiah 22:19

And I will drive thee from thy station, and from thy state shall he pull thee down.

Isaiah 22:20

And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah:

Isaiah 24:3

The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the LORD hath spoken this word.

Isaiah 26:3

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. perfect: Heb. peace, peace mind: or, thought, or, imagination

Isaiah 26:4

Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength: everlasting: Heb. the rock of ages

Isaiah 30:18

And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

Jeremiah 17:7

Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.

Jeremiah 17:8

For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. drought: or, restraint

Daniel 1:19

And the king communed with them; and among them all was found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: therefore stood they before the king.

Daniel 3:28

Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.

Daniel 6:23

Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God.

Matthew 10:16

Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. harmless: or, simple

Ephesians 1:12 Ephesians 1:13

Verses like this

Other verses that share key original-language words with Isaiah 41:1.

Isaiah 49:1

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.

Leviticus 2:8

And thou shalt bring the meat offering that is made of these things unto the LORD: and when it is presented unto the priest, he shall bring it unto the altar.

Frequently asked questions

What does Isaiah 41:1 say?

Isaiah 41:1 (King James Version) reads: "Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment."

Is Isaiah 41:1 in the Old or New Testament?

Isaiah 41:1 is in the Old Testament of the Bible, in the book of Isaiah.

Reflect

As you read Isaiah 41:1, what is one truth here you can carry into today?

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