Bible/Isaiah/41

Isaiah 41:10

41:9 Thou whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called thee from the chief men thereof, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away.
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

KJV

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Don’t you be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. Yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

Fear you not; for I am with you: be not dismayed; for I am your God: I will strengthen you; yes, I will help you; yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.

41:11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish. they that strive: Heb. the men of thy strife

What does Isaiah 41:10 mean?

God steadies his fearful people with a fourfold assurance — his presence, his covenant relationship, and his promise to strengthen, help, and uphold them.

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."

Context

Isaiah 40-41 comforts a people facing exile and the seeming triumph of the nations and their idols. Against that fear, God speaks to "Israel my servant" (Isaiah 41:8-9), grounding courage not in their strength but in his.

Key words

Two commands — "fear not," "be not dismayed" — are answered by two declarations of relationship — "I am with thee," "I am thy God" — and then three promises: "strengthen," "help," "uphold." The "right hand of my righteousness" pictures God's powerful, faithful hand holding his people up.

How it has been read

Generations have found here a steadying word for anxiety: the antidote to fear is not the absence of danger but the presence of God. The basis is covenantal — "I am thy God" — which Christians hear fulfilled in the Immanuel, "God with us" (Matthew 1:23), who promises, "I am with you alway" (Matthew 28:20).

Hebrew interlinear

Full chapter interlinear →
Fearיָרֵאyârêʼ/yaw-ray'/H3372to fear; morally, to revere; caus. to frighten
thou
not;
for
I
am
with
thee:
be
not
dismayed;שָׁעָהshâʻâh/shaw-aw'/H8159to gaze at or about (properly, for help); by implication, to inspect, consider, compassionate, be nonplussed (as looking around in amazement) or bewildered
for
I
am
thy
God:אֱלֹהִיםʼĕlôhîym/el-o-heem'/H430gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative
I
will
strengthenאָמַץʼâmats/aw-mats'/H553to be alert, physically (on foot) or mentally (in courage)
thee;
yea,
I
will
helpעָזַרʻâzar/aw-zar'/H5826to surround, i.e. protect or aid
thee;
yea,
I
will
upholdתָּמַךְtâmak/taw-mak'/H8551to sustain; by implication, to obtain, keep fast; figuratively, to help, follow close
thee
with
the
right
handיָמִיןyâmîyn/yaw-meen'/H3225the right hand or side (leg, eye) of a person or other object (as the stronger and more dexterous); locally, the south
of
my
righteousness.צֶדֶקtsedeq/tseh'-dek/H6664the right (natural, moral or legal); also (abstractly) equity or (figuratively) prosperity

Commentary on Isaiah 41:10

HENRY_FULL · Isaiah 41:10–11
ward man soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends. There are those that are not only vicious themselves, but spiteful and mischievous to others, and they are the worst of men; two sorts of such are here described:—1. Such as envy a man the honour of his good name, and do all they can to blast that by calumnies and misrepresentations: They dig up evil; they take a great deal of pains to find out something or other on which to ground a slander, or which may give some colour to it. If none appear above ground, rather than want it they will dig for it, by diving into what is secret, or looking a great way back, or by evil suspicions and surmises, and forced innuendos. In the lips of a slanderer and backbiter there is as a fire, not only to brand his neighbour's reputation, to smoke and sully it, but as a burning fire to consume it. And how great a matter does a little of this fire kindle, and how hardly is it extinguished! James iii. 5, 6 . 2. Such as envy a man the comfort of his friendship, and do all they can to break that, by suggesting that on both sides which will set those at variance that are most nearly related and have been long intimate, or at least cool and alienate their affections one from another: A froward man, that cannot find in his heart to love any body but himself, is vexed to see others live in love, and therefore makes it is his business to sow strife, by giving men base characters one of another, telling lies, and carrying ill-natured stories between chief friends, so as to separate them one from another, and make them angry at or at least suspicious of one another. Those are bad men, and bad women too, that do such ill offices; they are doing the devil's work, and his will their wages be. 29 A violent man enticeth his neighbour, and leadeth him into the way that is not good. 30

Cross-references

Related passages from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

1 Samuel 19:11

Saul also sent messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal David's wife told him, saying, If thou save not thy life to night, to morrow thou shalt be slain.

1 Samuel 19:17

And Saul said unto Michal, Why hast thou deceived me so, and sent away mine enemy, that he is escaped? And Michal answered Saul, He said unto me, Let me go; why should I kill thee?

1 Samuel 22:7

Then Saul said unto his servants that stood about him, Hear now, ye Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, and make you all captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds;

1 Samuel 23:19

Then came up the Ziphites to Saul to Gibeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself with us in strong holds in the wood, in the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of Jeshimon? on: Heb. on the right hand Jeshimon: or, the wilderness

Nehemiah 6:13

Therefore was he hired, that I should be afraid, and do so, and sin, and that they might have matter for an evil report, that they might reproach me.

Isaiah 1:10

Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah.

Isaiah 2:12

For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:

2 Peter 3:17

Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.

Topics

Afflictions and AdversitiesGodPower of God, theProtectionRighteousness of God, theWarfare of Saints

Verses like this

Other verses that share key original-language words with Isaiah 41:10.

Genesis 48:17

And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head. displeased: was evil in his eyes

Joshua 1:7

Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. prosper: or, do wisely

Frequently asked questions

What does Isaiah 41:10 say?

Isaiah 41:10 (King James Version) reads: "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."

Is Isaiah 41:10 in the Old or New Testament?

Isaiah 41:10 is in the Old Testament of the Bible, in the book of Isaiah.

Reflect

As you read Isaiah 41:10, what is one truth here you can carry into today?

Plan a sermon or study on Isaiah 41:10
41:9Read all of Isaiah 4141:11