Isaiah / Chapter 65

Isaiah 65

25 verses • Westminster Leningrad Codex 2 traditions available

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Isaiah 65 is God's answer to the anguished prayer of chapters 63-64. The chapter begins with a stunning reversal: God was found by those who did not seek Him and rejected by those who should have known Him. Verses 1-7 indict the rebellious — those who provoke God with pagan rituals, eat forbidden food, and claim a hollow holiness. Verses 8-16 divide Israel into two groups: the faithful servants who will inherit the land, and the apostates who will be cut off. Then, in verses 17-25, the vision explodes into the new heavens and new earth — a creation so radically renewed that the former things will not even be remembered. Infant death vanishes, labor produces lasting fruit, the wolf and lamb feed together, and God answers before His people call.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The new heavens and new earth (vv.17-25) is one of the most far-reaching eschatological visions in Scripture, taken up directly in Revelation 21:1-4. Verse 24 — 'Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear' — describes an intimacy between God and His people so complete that prayer and answer become simultaneous. The wolf-and-lamb imagery (v.25) echoes Isaiah 11:6-9, forming an inclusio across the entire book.

Translation Friction

We render 'new heavens and a new earth' (v.17) preserving the Hebrew construction (shamayim chadashim va'arets chadashah) rather than importing the Revelation 21 phrasing backward into the text. The 'servants' language in verses 8-16 raises questions about whether the division is ethnic or spiritual; we let the text speak without resolving the tension. The 'youth dying at a hundred' (v.20) is rendered to preserve its paradoxical character — longevity so extreme that dying at a hundred is considered premature.

Connections

Verse 1 is quoted by Paul in Romans 10:20 to describe God's outreach to the Gentiles. The new heavens and new earth (v.17) reappears in 2 Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1. The wolf-and-lamb vision (v.25) echoes Isaiah 11:6-9 and anticipates Romans 8:19-22 (creation's liberation from bondage). 'Before they call I will answer' (v.24) is the eschatological fulfillment of the prayer access promised in Isaiah 58:9. **Tradition comparisons:** The Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaiah-a) preserve this chapter with notable variants: Verse 1 is quoted in Romans 10:20 and the scroll confirms the MT reading. Verse 17 — 'new heavens and a new earth' — is stable between both texts. Verse 20 has a moderate variant in the description of lifespans in the new creation. Verse 25 echoes Isaiah 11:6-9 with the wolf and lamb imagery, pre.... See the [DSS Isaiah comparison](/dss-isaiah/65). Targum Jonathan provides interpretive renderings: 'Create' (bore) becomes 'renew' (mehadid), suggesting renovation rather than creation ex nihilo. The eschatological hope is cosmic renewal, not replacement — the present creation is transformed, not d... See [Targum Jonathan on Isaiah](/targum/isaiah).

Isaiah 65:1

נִדְרַשְׁתִּי לְלוֹא שָׁאָלוּ נִמְצֵאתִי לְלֹא בִקְשֻׁנִי אָמַרְתִּי הִנֵּנִי הִנֵּנִי אֶל־גּוֹי לֹא־קֹרָא בִשְׁמִי׃

"I let Myself be sought by those who did not ask; I let Myself be found by those who did not seek Me. I said, 'Here I am! Here I am!' to a nation that did not call on My name."

KJV I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. God breaks His silence from chapter 64 with a startling declaration: He was available to those who never asked. Paul quotes this verse in Romans 10:20 as evidence that God's grace extends to the Gentiles. The doubled 'Here I am!' (hinneni, hinneni) is God using the very language of prophetic availability — the word Isaiah himself used at his commissioning (6:8) — now directed toward those outside the covenant.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)theological

"I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek Me"

The scroll spells lo with waw-aleph (לוא) in both occurrences, per Qumran convention. The substantive reading is identical. Paul quotes this verse in Romans 10:20, applying it to Gentile inclusion: 'I was found by those who did not seek Me; I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for Me.' The scroll confirms that the Hebrew text Paul was drawing on (via the LXX) had the same reading as MT.

Isaiah 65:2

פֵּרַשְׂתִּי יָדַי כָּל־הַיּוֹם אֶל־עַם סוֹרֵר הַהֹלְכִים הַדֶּרֶךְ לֹא־טוֹב אַחַר מַחְשְׁבֹתֵיהֶם׃

"I spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices —"

KJV I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts;

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The outstretched hands (perasti yadai) are the gesture of invitation and pleading — God has been reaching toward Israel all along. Paul also quotes this verse in Romans 10:21. The indictment is not that God was absent (as the prayer of ch.63-64 suggested) but that Israel was rebellious. 'Following their own devices' (achar machshevoteihem) is the root diagnosis.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"I spread out My hands all the day"

The scroll spells kol ('all') with waw as kol (כול). Paul quotes this verse in Romans 10:21. God's gesture of outstretched hands toward a rebellious people is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 65:3

הָעָם הַמַּכְעִיסִים אוֹתִי עַל־פָּנַי תָּמִיד זֹבְחִים בַּגַּנּוֹת וּמְקַטְּרִים עַל־הַלְּבֵנִים׃

"a people who provoke Me to My face continually, who sacrifice in gardens and burn incense on bricks —"

KJV A people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face; that sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick;

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The catalog of provocation begins. 'To My face' (al panai) means openly, brazenly — not secret sin but public idolatry. Garden sacrifices and brick altars indicate Canaanite or Mesopotamian syncretistic worship, performed in direct violation of the Torah's centralized worship requirements.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"a people who provoke Me"

The scroll uses a fuller spelling for the participle hamakh'isim ('who provoke'). The catalogue of idolatrous practices — sacrificing in gardens and burning incense on bricks — is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 65:4

הַיֹּשְׁבִים בַּקְּבָרִים וּבַנְּצוּרִים יָלִינוּ הָאֹכְלִים בְּשַׂר הַחֲזִיר וּפְרַק פִּגֻּלִים כְּלֵיהֶם׃

"who sit among the graves and spend the night in secret places, who eat the flesh of swine, with broth of abominable things in their vessels —"

KJV Which remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine's flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Sitting among graves suggests necromancy — consulting the dead, forbidden in Deuteronomy 18:11. Eating swine's flesh violates the dietary laws of Leviticus 11:7. The 'broth of abominable things' (peraq piggulim) compounds the offense: not merely eating unclean meat but cooking with it, saturating the vessels themselves with impurity.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)moderate

"who sit in tombs"

The scroll uses plene spelling for yoshvim ('those sitting'). The description of necromantic practices — sitting in tombs, spending nights in secret places, eating swine's flesh — is identical in both texts. These practices would have been particularly offensive to the Qumran community.

Isaiah 65:5

הָאֹמְרִים קְרַב אֵלֶיךָ אַל־תִּגַּשׁ־בִּי כִּי קְדַשְׁתִּיךָ אֵלֶּה עָשָׁן בְּאַפִּי אֵשׁ יֹקֶדֶת כָּל־הַיּוֹם׃

"who say, 'Keep to yourself — do not come near me, for I am too holy for you!' These are smoke in My nostrils, a fire that burns all day long."

KJV Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The supreme irony: those practicing pagan abominations (vv.3-4) claim a false holiness that makes them unapproachable. 'I am too holy for you' (qedashtiykha) is a perversion of genuine consecration — holiness inverted into arrogance. God's response is visceral: 'smoke in My nostrils' (ashan be'appi) — they are an irritant that provokes constant, smoldering anger.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Keep to yourself, do not come near me, for I am too holy for you"

The scroll uses fuller suffix forms -kha and spells ki as kia. The ironic self-righteousness of the idolaters who say 'I am too holy for you' provokes God's declaration: 'These are a smoke in My nostrils, a fire that burns all the day.' Both texts agree.

Isaiah 65:6

הִנֵּה כְתוּבָה לְפָנָי לֹא אֶחֱשֶׁה כִּי אִם־שִׁלַּמְתִּי וְשִׁלַּמְתִּי עַל־חֵיקָם׃

"Behold, it is written before Me: I will not keep silent; I will repay — I will repay into their lap —"

KJV Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom,

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'Written before Me' (ketuvah lephanai) suggests a divine ledger of offenses. The doubled 'I will repay' (shillamti veshillamti) emphasizes certainty. The image of repayment 'into their lap' (al cheiqam) is concrete — judgment is placed directly in their hands, inescapable.
Isaiah 65:7

עֲוֹנֹתֵיכֶם וַעֲוֹנֹת אֲבוֹתֵיכֶם יַחְדָּו אָמַר יְהוָה אֲשֶׁר קִטְּרוּ עַל־הֶהָרִים וְעַל־הַגְּבָעוֹת חֵרְפוּנִי וּמַדֹּתִי פְעֻלָּתָם רִאשֹׁנָה אֶל־חֵיקָם׃

"your iniquities and the iniquities of your fathers together," says the LORD. "Because they burned incense on the mountains and mocked Me on the hills, I will measure into their lap the full payment for their former deeds."

KJV Your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together, saith the LORD, which have burned incense upon the mountains, and blasphemed me upon the hills: therefore will I measure their former work into their bosom.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The indictment extends across generations — 'your iniquities and your fathers' together.' Mountain and hill worship is the classic prophetic shorthand for high-place idolatry. The 'full payment' (pe'ullatam) is measured (madoti) — God's judgment is not arbitrary but precisely proportioned to the offense.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"your iniquities and your fathers' iniquities"

The scroll uses plene spelling for awonot ('iniquities'). The punishment encompassing both their own and their fathers' sins is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 65:8

כֹּה אָמַר יְהוָה כַּאֲשֶׁר יִמָּצֵא הַתִּירוֹשׁ בָּאֶשְׁכּוֹל וְאָמַר אַל־תַּשְׁחִיתֵהוּ כִּי בְרָכָה בּוֹ כֵּן אֶעֱשֶׂה לְמַעַן עֲבָדַי לְבִלְתִּי הַשְׁחִית הַכֹּל׃

This is what the LORD says: "As the new wine is found in the cluster, and someone says, 'Do not destroy it, for there is a blessing in it' — so I will do for the sake of My servants; I will not destroy them all."

KJV Thus saith the LORD, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants' sakes, that I may not destroy them all.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The tone shifts from judgment to preservation. The grape-cluster parable is homely and tender: when a vintner finds one good cluster among damaged vines, he spares it for the juice still in it. God will do the same — for the sake of the faithful remnant ('My servants'), He will not destroy the whole. This is the same remnant theology that runs from Isaiah 1:9 through Romans 11:5.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"as when new wine is found in the cluster"

No meaningful variant. The grape cluster metaphor — do not destroy it, for there is a blessing in it — introduces the remnant theology. God will not destroy the whole for the sake of the faithful.

Isaiah 65:9

וְהוֹצֵאתִי מִיַּעֲקֹב זֶרַע וּמִיהוּדָה יוֹרֵשׁ הָרָי וִירֵשׁוּהָ בְחִירַי וַעֲבָדַי יִשְׁכְּנוּ־שָׁמָּה׃

"I will bring forth offspring from Jacob, and from Judah an heir of My mountains. My chosen ones shall possess it, and My servants shall dwell there."

KJV And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains: and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The promise narrows from 'not destroying all' to positive inheritance. 'My mountains' (harai) — the hill country of Judah — will be possessed by the elect (bechirai) and servants (avadai). These are the faithful within Israel, distinguished from the apostates of verses 1-7.
Isaiah 65:10

וְהָיָה הַשָּׁרוֹן לִנְוֵה צֹאן וְעֵמֶק עָכוֹר לְרֵבֶץ בָּקָר לְעַמִּי אֲשֶׁר דְּרָשׁוּנִי׃

"Sharon shall become a pasture for flocks, and the Valley of Achor a resting place for herds, for My people who have sought Me."

KJV And Sharon shall be a fold of flocks, and the valley of Achor a place for the herds to lie down in, for my people that have sought me.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Sharon (the fertile coastal plain) and the Valley of Achor (where judgment fell in Joshua 7) are both transformed. Achor means 'trouble' — the valley of trouble becomes a place of rest. Hosea 2:15 makes the same promise. The beneficiaries are 'My people who have sought Me' — the faithful remnant contrasted with those who did not seek (v.1).
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Sharon shall be a pasture for flocks"

The scroll uses plene spelling for tso'n ('flocks'). The pastoral vision of Sharon and the Valley of Achor as places of rest for flocks is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 65:11

וְאַתֶּם עֹזְבֵי יְהוָה הַשְּׁכֵחִים אֶת־הַר קָדְשִׁי הַעֹרְכִים לַגַּד שֻׁלְחָן וְהַמְמַלְאִים לַמְנִי מִמְסָךְ׃

"But you who forsake the LORD, who forget My holy mountain, who set a table for Fortune and fill cups of mixed wine for Destiny —"

KJV But ye are they that forsake the LORD, that forget my holy mountain, that prepare a table for that troop, and that furnish the drink offering unto that number.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Gad ('Fortune') and Meni ('Destiny') are pagan deities — likely Aramean or Canaanite gods of luck and fate. Setting a table and filling cups are acts of ritual hospitality offered to these gods rather than to the LORD. The wordplay with Meni ('Destiny') and maniti ('I destine') in verse 12 is deliberate.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)moderate

"who forget My holy mountain, who set a table for Gad"

The scroll uses plene spellings for shokchim ('those forgetting') and qodshi ('My holiness'). The reference to 'Gad' (Fortune) and 'Meni' (Destiny) — pagan deities worshipped through ritual meals — is identical in both texts. These deities of fate/fortune are otherwise barely attested in the Hebrew Bible.

Isaiah 65:12

וּמָנִיתִי אֶתְכֶם לַחֶרֶב וְכֻלְּכֶם לַטֶּבַח תִּכְרָעוּ יַעַן קָרָאתִי וְלֹא עֲנִיתֶם דִּבַּרְתִּי וְלֹא שְׁמַעְתֶּם וַתַּעֲשׂוּ הָרַע בְּעֵינַי וּבַאֲשֶׁר לֹא־חָפַצְתִּי בְּחַרְתֶּם׃

"I will destine you for the sword, and all of you shall bow down to the slaughter, because I called and you did not answer, I spoke and you did not listen. You did what is evil in My eyes and chose what I did not delight in."

KJV Therefore will I number you to the sword, and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: because when I called, ye did not answer; when I spake, ye did not hear; but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The wordplay is devastating: those who worship Meni ('Destiny') will be maniti ('destined') — by God — for the sword. The charge 'I called and you did not answer' reverses the prayer of chapter 64, where Israel accused God of silence. God now reveals that it was Israel who refused to answer His call.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"I will destine you to the sword"

No meaningful variant. The wordplay between Meni (the pagan deity of Destiny) and manithi ('I will destine') is preserved in both texts — God puns on the idol's name to declare judgment.

Isaiah 65:13

לָכֵן כֹּה־אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה הִנֵּה עֲבָדַי יֹאכֵלוּ וְאַתֶּם תִּרְעָבוּ הִנֵּה עֲבָדַי יִשְׁתּוּ וְאַתֶּם תִּצְמָאוּ הִנֵּה עֲבָדַי יִשְׂמָחוּ וְאַתֶּם תֵּבֹשׁוּ׃

Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: "Behold, My servants shall eat, but you shall be hungry; My servants shall drink, but you shall be thirsty; My servants shall rejoice, but you shall be put to shame."

KJV Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The threefold contrast (eat/hunger, drink/thirst, rejoice/shame) draws the sharpest possible line between the faithful servants and the apostates. The repetition of 'My servants' (avadai) emphasizes that the distinction is relational: those who serve God receive provision; those who serve Fortune and Destiny receive nothing.
Isaiah 65:14

הִנֵּה עֲבָדַי יָרֹנּוּ מִטּוּב לֵב וְאַתֶּם תִּצְעֲקוּ מִכְּאֵב לֵב וּמִשֶּׁבֶר רוּחַ תְּיֵלִילוּ׃

"Behold, My servants shall sing out of a glad heart, but you shall cry out from an anguished heart and wail from a broken spirit."

KJV Behold, my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and shall howl for vexation of spirit.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The contrast continues with a fourth pair: singing versus wailing. 'Broken spirit' (shever ruach) is the inversion of the 'contrite spirit' God cherishes in 66:2 — the same brokenness that leads to repentance in the faithful leads only to despair in the apostate.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"from gladness of heart"

No meaningful variant. The contrast continues: God's servants sing from gladness of heart, but the rebels cry out from pain of heart and wail from brokenness of spirit.

Isaiah 65:15

וְהִנַּחְתֶּם שִׁמְכֶם לִשְׁבוּעָה לִבְחִירָי וֶהֱמִיתְךָ אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה וְלַעֲבָדָיו יִקְרָא שֵׁם אַחֵר׃

"You shall leave your name as a curse-word for My chosen ones; the Lord GOD will put you to death. But His servants He will call by another name,"

KJV And ye shall leave your name for a curse unto my chosen: for the Lord GOD shall slay thee, and call his servants by another name:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The apostates' name becomes a byword — a formula of cursing. Meanwhile, God's servants receive 'another name' (shem acher), signifying a new identity. This anticipates the 'new name' promised in Revelation 2:17 and 3:12. The death of the old identity and the granting of a new one is a pattern of covenant renewal.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"you shall leave your name as a curse to My chosen ones"

No meaningful variant. The rebels' name becomes a curse formula, while God's servants receive a new name. The concept of divine renaming connects to 62:2.

Isaiah 65:16

אֲשֶׁר הַמִּתְבָּרֵךְ בָּאָרֶץ יִתְבָּרֵךְ בֵּאלֹהֵי אָמֵן וְהַנִּשְׁבָּע בָּאָרֶץ יִשָּׁבַע בֵּאלֹהֵי אָמֵן כִּי נִשְׁכְּחוּ הַצָּרוֹת הָרִאשֹׁנוֹת וְכִי נִסְתְּרוּ מֵעֵינָי׃

"so that whoever invokes a blessing in the land shall bless by the God of Amen, and whoever takes an oath in the land shall swear by the God of Amen. For the former troubles will be forgotten and will be hidden from My eyes."

KJV That he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; and he that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hid from mine eyes.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

אָמֵן amen
"Amen" — truth, faithfulness, certainty, so be it

Amen as a divine title (Elohei Amen) goes beyond the liturgical response 'so be it' to declare God's essential nature as the faithful, truth-keeping God. We preserve the Hebrew word rather than translating it ('the God of truth') to maintain its resonance with liturgical usage.

Translator Notes

  1. The 'God of Amen' is a unique divine title in the Hebrew Bible. We preserve 'Amen' rather than translating it as 'truth' (as KJV does) because the word carries liturgical weight that 'truth' does not fully convey. The forgetting of former troubles prepares for the new creation announcement in verse 17.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"the God of Amen (the God of truth)"

The scroll uses plene spelling for elohei. The remarkable title 'God of Amen' (or 'God of truth/faithfulness') is identical in both texts. This is the only place in the Hebrew Bible where God is called by this title. The 'former troubles are forgotten and hidden from My eyes' prepares for the new creation vision that follows.

Isaiah 65:17

כִּי־הִנְנִי בוֹרֵא שָׁמַיִם חֲדָשִׁים וָאָרֶץ חֲדָשָׁה וְלֹא תִזָּכַרְנָה הָרִאשֹׁנוֹת וְלֹא תַעֲלֶינָה עַל־לֵב׃

"For behold, I am creating new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind."

KJV For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The vision leaps from historical judgment to cosmic renewal. The verb bore' (create) is the exclusive divine prerogative — the same word as Genesis 1:1. 'The former things shall not be remembered' does not mean amnesia but that the new reality is so overwhelming that the old no longer occupies the heart. Revelation 21:1 quotes this verse directly. 2 Peter 3:13 invokes the same promise.
2 traditions available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)theological

"For behold, I am creating new heavens and a new earth"

The scroll spells ki as kia but the substantive reading is identical. This is one of the most consequential verses in the Hebrew Bible for eschatology. The phrase 'new heavens and a new earth' (shamayim chadashim va-arets chadashah) is echoed in 2 Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1. The scroll — predating both NT texts by over a century — confirms this reading without variant.

Targum Jonathan (Aramaic, 1st-5th c. CE)eschatological

"For behold, I am about to renew the heavens and the earth."

'Create' (bore) becomes 'renew' (mehadid), suggesting renovation rather than creation ex nihilo. The eschatological hope is cosmic renewal, not replacement — the present creation is transformed, not discarded.

Isaiah 65:18

כִּי־אִם־שִׂישׂוּ וְגִילוּ עֲדֵי־עַד אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי בוֹרֵא כִּי הִנְנִי בוֹרֵא אֶת־יְרוּשָׁלִַם גִּילָה וְעַמָּהּ מָשׂוֹשׂ׃

"But be glad and rejoice forever in what I am creating! For behold, I am creating Jerusalem as a delight and her people as a joy."

KJV But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The new creation is not abstract cosmology but centered on a city and a people: Jerusalem and her inhabitants. 'Delight' (gilah) and 'joy' (masos) — God creates the emotional capacity for eternal gladness. The city is not merely rebuilt but remade as the embodiment of joy.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"for behold, I am creating Jerusalem a rejoicing"

The scroll spells ki as kia. The parallel creation of Jerusalem as 'a rejoicing and her people a joy' is identical. The new creation is not merely cosmic but specifically Zion-centered.

Isaiah 65:19

וְגַלְתִּי בִירוּשָׁלִַם וְשַׂשְׂתִּי בְעַמִּי וְלֹא־יִשָּׁמַע בָּהּ עוֹד קוֹל בְּכִי וְקוֹל זְעָקָה׃

"I will rejoice over Jerusalem and be glad over My people. No more shall the sound of weeping be heard in her, nor the sound of crying."

KJV And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. God Himself rejoices — the joy is not only given to the people but experienced by their Creator. 'No more weeping, no more crying' is quoted in Revelation 21:4. The double elimination (weeping and crying) covers both grief and distress — every form of human anguish is ended.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"and I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people"

No meaningful variant. The declaration that weeping and crying shall no longer be heard is identical in both texts. This is directly echoed in Revelation 21:4: 'He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.'

Isaiah 65:20

לֹא־יִהְיֶה מִשָּׁם עוֹד עוּל יָמִים וְזָקֵן אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יְמַלֵּא אֶת־יָמָיו כִּי הַנַּעַר בֶּן־מֵאָה שָׁנָה יָמוּת וְהַחוֹטֶא בֶּן־מֵאָה שָׁנָה יְקֻלָּל׃

"No more shall there be an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his years. For the youth who dies at a hundred will be considered young, and the sinner who fails to reach a hundred will be considered cursed."

KJV There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. This verse uses hyperbolic language to describe the radical extension of life in the new creation. Dying at a hundred — which in the ancient world was extreme old age — will be considered a youthful death. The second half preserves a note of moral consequence: the 'sinner' (chote') who dies at a hundred is cursed, implying that even in the new creation, rebellion has consequences. This verse sits in tension with the later vision of total peace (v.25), creating the prophetic layering characteristic of Isaiah's eschatology.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)moderate

"for the young man shall die at a hundred years"

The scroll spells ki as kia and omits the maqqef. The vision of extended lifespans in the new creation — where dying at a hundred is considered dying young — is identical in both texts. The sinner who fails to reach a hundred is considered cursed. This suggests a transformed but not yet fully eschatological world, distinct from the 'no more death' of Revelation 21:4.

Isaiah 65:21

וּבָנוּ בָתִּים וְיָשָׁבוּ וְנָטְעוּ כְרָמִים וְאָכְלוּ פִּרְיָם׃

"They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit."

KJV And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The curse of Deuteronomy 28:30 ('you shall build a house and not live in it; you shall plant a vineyard and not enjoy its fruit') is reversed. In the new creation, labor produces lasting results. There is no dispossession, no futility, no enemy to confiscate the harvest.
Isaiah 65:22

לֹא יִבְנוּ וְאַחֵר יֵשֵׁב לֹא יִטְּעוּ וְאַחֵר יֹאכֵל כִּי־כִימֵי הָעֵץ יְמֵי עַמִּי וּמַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵיהֶם יְבַלּוּ בְחִירָי׃

"They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat. For as the days of a tree shall be the days of My people, and My chosen ones shall long enjoy the work of their hands."

KJV They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The 'days of a tree' implies centuries-long life — oaks and cedars live for hundreds of years. Human life will match the longevity of the most enduring things in nature. 'My chosen ones shall long enjoy' (yevallu bechirai) means they will wear out, outlast, fully use up the fruit of their labor — not death but satisfied completion.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"like the days of a tree shall be the days of My people"

No meaningful variant. The comparison of human lifespan to tree lifespan is identical. This reverses the metaphor of 64:6 where humans 'fade like a leaf.'

Isaiah 65:23

לֹא יִיגְעוּ לָרִיק וְלֹא יֵלְדוּ לַבֶּהָלָה כִּי זֶרַע בְּרוּכֵי יְהוָה הֵמָּה וְצֶאֱצָאֵיהֶם אִתָּם׃

"They shall not labor in vain or bear children for calamity, for they are the offspring of those blessed by the LORD, and their descendants with them."

KJV 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Two of the deepest human fears are answered: wasted labor and doomed children. 'Bear children for calamity' (yeldu labehalah) — the terror that one's children will inherit disaster — is eliminated. The blessing extends across generations: both the parents and their descendants share in it.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"they shall not labor in vain"

The scroll spells lo with waw-aleph. The promise that labor will not be in vain and children will not be born for calamity is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 65:24

וְהָיָה טֶרֶם־יִקְרָאוּ וַאֲנִי אֶעֱנֶה עוֹד הֵם מְדַבְּרִים וַאֲנִי אֶשְׁמָע׃

"Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear."

KJV And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. This is the definitive answer to the prayer of chapters 63-64, where Israel cried out and heard only silence. In the new creation, God's responsiveness will be so complete that He answers before the prayer is spoken and hears before the sentence is finished. The verse describes not omniscience as abstraction but intimacy as experience — the relationship between God and His people will be closer than thought and speech.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"before they call I will answer"

No meaningful variant. The intimate promise of divine responsiveness — 'before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear' — is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 65:25

זְאֵב וְטָלֶה יִרְעוּ כְאֶחָד וְאַרְיֵה כַּבָּקָר יֹאכַל־תֶּבֶן וְנָחָשׁ עָפָר לַחְמוֹ לֹא־יָרֵעוּ וְלֹא־יַשְׁחִיתוּ בְּכָל־הַר קָדְשִׁי אָמַר יְהוָה׃

"The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain," says the LORD.

KJV The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The chapter's final verse compresses Isaiah 11:6-9 into a single image: predator and prey at peace, the lion herbivorous, the serpent grounded. 'They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain' repeats 11:9 verbatim — the vision that opened the messianic age in chapter 11 now closes the eschatological age in chapter 65. The serpent eating dust alludes to the Genesis 3 curse, suggesting that even in the new creation the serpent remains under judgment, but its power to harm is ended.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)moderate

"the wolf and the lamb shall graze together"

No meaningful variant. This verse recapitulates the peaceable kingdom vision of Isaiah 11:6-9 but with notable differences: here the wolf and lamb 'graze together' (not 'dwell together'), and the lion eats straw 'like the ox.' The closing declaration — 'They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, says the LORD' — directly quotes 11:9 and is preserved identically in both MT and the scroll.

Chapter 64 Report an error Isaiah index Chapter 66