Isaiah 49:4

49:3 And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God. my work: or, my reward

KJV

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But I said, “I have labored in vain. I have spent my strength in vain for nothing; yet surely the justice due to me is with Yahweh, and my reward with my God.”

Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God.

Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God. ¶

49:5 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength. Though: or, That Israel may be gathered to him, and I may, etc

What does Isaiah 49:4 mean?

Isaiah 49:4 is a verse in the book of Isaiah, in the Old Testament. In the original Hebrew, key words include אָמַר (ʼâmar), יָגַע (yâgaʻ), רִיק (rîyq). It connects to 11 cross-referenced passages elsewhere in Scripture.

Hebrew interlinear

Then

said,אָמַרʼâmar/aw-mar'/H559to say (used with great latitude)

have

labouredיָגַעyâgaʻ/yaw-gah'/H3021properly, to gasp; hence, to be exhausted, to tire, to toil

vain,רִיקrîyq/reek/H7385emptiness; figuratively, a worthless thing; adverbially, in vain

have

spentכָּלָהkâlâh/kaw-law'/H3615to end, whether intransitive (to cease, be finished, perish) or transitived (to complete, prepare, consume)

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

for

nought,תֹּהוּtôhûw/to'-hoo/H8414a desolation (of surface), i.e. desert; figuratively, a worthless thing; adverbially, in vain

and

vain:הֶבֶלhebel/heh'bel/H1892emptiness or vanity; figuratively, something transitory and unsatisfactory; often used as an adverb

yet

surelyאָכֵןʼâkên/aw-kane'/H403firmly; figuratively, surely; also (advers.) but

judgmentמִשְׁפָּטmishpâṭ/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

with

the

LORD,יְהֹוָהYᵉhôvâh/yeh-ho-vaw'/H3068Jehovah, Jewish national name of God

and

workפְּעֻלָּהpᵉʻullâh/peh-ool-law'/H6468(abstractly) work

with

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

work:

or,

reward

Commentary on Isaiah 49:4

HENRY_FULL · Isaiah 49:4

er">1 A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches,

Cross-references

Related passages from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

1 Samuel 2:7

The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up.

Job 31:15

Did not he that made me in the womb make him? and did not one fashion us in the womb? did not one: or, did he not fashion us in one womb?

Job 34:19

How much less to him that accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor? for they all are the work of his hands.

Psalms 49:1

To the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. Hear this, all ye people; give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world: for: or, of

Psalms 49:2

Both low and high, rich and poor, together.

Isaiah 14:31

Howl, O gate; cry, O city; thou, whole Palestina, art dissolved: for there shall come from the north a smoke, and none shall be alone in his appointed times. none: or, he shall not be alone appointed: or, assemblies

Isaiah 29:13

Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

Luke 16:19

There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:

Luke 16:20

And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,

1 Corinthians 12:21

And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.

James 2:2

For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; assembly: Gr. synagogue

Verses like this

Other verses that share key original-language words with Isaiah 49:4.

Habakkuk 2:13

Behold, is it not of the LORD of hosts that the people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves for very vanity? for: or, in vain?

Isaiah 65:23

They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them.

Jeremiah 51:58

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly broken, and her high gates shall be burned with fire; and the people shall labour in vain, and the folk in the fire, and they shall be weary. The broad: or, The walls of broad Babylon broken: or, made naked

Psalms 31:10

For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing: my strength faileth because of mine iniquity, and my bones are consumed.

Psalms 69:3

I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.

Psalms 71:9

Cast me not off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength faileth.

Psalms 78:33

Therefore their days did he consume in vanity, and their years in trouble.

Frequently asked questions

What does Isaiah 49:4 say?

Isaiah 49:4 (King James Version) reads: "Then I said, I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God. my work: or, my reward"

Is Isaiah 49:4 in the Old or New Testament?

Isaiah 49:4 is in the Old Testament of the Bible, in the book of Isaiah.

Reflect

As you read Isaiah 49:4, what is one truth here you can carry into today?

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