Isaiah / Chapter 66

Isaiah 66

24 verses • Westminster Leningrad Codex 2 traditions available

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Isaiah 66 is the final chapter of the book and brings its grand themes to their ultimate resolution. God declares that heaven is His throne and earth His footstool — no temple can contain Him, yet He looks with favor on the humble and contrite spirit. The chapter denounces those who trust in empty ritual while practicing abomination, then pivots to one of the most remarkable images in all prophecy: Zion gives birth to a nation in a single day. God comforts His people as a mother comforts her child. The nations stream to Jerusalem to see God's glory, and priests are taken from among the Gentiles. The book closes with a vision of universal worship — all flesh coming before the LORD — alongside a final, unflinching image of judgment: the worm that does not die and the fire that is not quenched.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

Verse 1 ('Heaven is My throne, earth is My footstool') is quoted by Stephen in his defense before the Sanhedrin (Acts 7:49) to argue that God cannot be confined to a building. Verse 13 ('As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you') is one of the rare instances where God is explicitly compared to a mother. The final verse (v.24) provides the imagery Jesus uses for Gehenna in Mark 9:48 ('where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched'), making it one of the most consequential verses in eschatological theology.

Translation Friction

The juxtaposition of universal worship (v.23) and unending judgment (v.24) in consecutive verses creates deliberate theological friction. We have not softened either pole. The maternal imagery for God (v.13) is preserved without qualification — Isaiah uses the verb nacham ('comfort') with an explicitly feminine comparison (ke'ish asher immo tenachamenu). The identity of the 'brethren' brought as an offering from the nations (v.20) is left open, as the Hebrew permits both Israelite returnees and Gentile converts.

Connections

Verse 1 is quoted in Acts 7:49 (Stephen's speech). Verse 7 ('before she was in labor she gave birth') anticipates the sudden, miraculous birth of the church at Pentecost. Verse 13's maternal comfort echoes Isaiah 49:15 ('Can a mother forget her nursing child?'). The final verse (v.24) provides the source text for Jesus' Gehenna teaching in Mark 9:43-48. The gathering of all nations (v.18) anticipates the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19) and the multitude from every nation in Revelation 7:9. **Tradition comparisons:** The Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaiah-a) preserve this chapter with notable variants: Verse 1 — 'Heaven is My throne' (quoted in Acts 7:49) — is stable. Verse 7 has a moderate variant in the birth-before-labor imagery. Verse 17 has a notable reading in the description of pagan purification rites. Verse 20 contains a moderate variant regarding the offerings brought from all nations.... See the [DSS Isaiah comparison](/dss-isaiah/66). Targum Jonathan provides interpretive renderings: The throne is 'of my glory' (diyeqari), and the footstool is 'of my Shekinah.' Both heaven and earth are described in terms of glory and Shekinah, creating a comprehensive two-world Shekinah cosmology... See [Targum Jonathan on Isaiah](/targum/isaiah).

Isaiah 66:1

כֹּה אָמַר יְהוָה הַשָּׁמַיִם כִּסְאִי וְהָאָרֶץ הֲדֹם רַגְלָי אֵי־זֶה בַיִת אֲשֶׁר תִּבְנוּ־לִי וְאֵי־זֶה מָקוֹם מְנוּחָתִי׃

This is what the LORD says: "Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. What kind of house would you build for Me? And what would be the place of My rest?"

KJV Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The final chapter opens with cosmic scale: God cannot be housed. The rhetorical questions ('What kind of house? What place of rest?') do not reject temple worship outright (Solomon asked the same question in 1 Kings 8:27) but expose the presumption that human construction can contain the divine. Stephen quotes this verse in Acts 7:49 to argue that God's presence transcends any building.
2 traditions available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool"

No substantive variant. Stephen quotes this verse in his speech before martyrdom (Acts 7:49): 'Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. What kind of house will you build for Me?' The scroll confirms the MT reading. The implicit critique of Temple-centrism — if heaven is God's throne, what house can contain Him? — is identical in both texts.

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

"Heaven is the throne of my glory, and the earth is beautiful like the stool of my Shekinah."

The throne is 'of my glory' (diyeqari), and the footstool is 'of my Shekinah.' Both heaven and earth are described in terms of glory and Shekinah, creating a comprehensive two-world Shekinah cosmology. Isaiah's final chapter opens with the same theology that governed chapter 6.

Isaiah 66:2

וְאֶת־כָּל־אֵלֶּה יָדִי עָשָׂתָה וַיִּהְיוּ כָל־אֵלֶּה נְאֻם־יְהוָה וְאֶל־זֶה אַבִּיט אֶל־עָנִי וּנְכֵה־רוּחַ וְחָרֵד עַל־דְּבָרִי׃

"All these things My hand has made, and so all these things came to be," declares the LORD. "But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and who trembles at My word."

KJV For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The contrast is staggering: the God whose throne is heaven and footstool is earth looks with special attention to the humble. 'Contrite in spirit' (nekheh ruach) is the broken spirit of Psalm 51:17. 'Trembles at My word' (chared al devari) describes not fear of punishment but reverential awe before revelation. This verse defines the true 'temple' God inhabits: the humble human heart.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"but this is the one to whom I will look: the humble and contrite in spirit"

The scroll omits maqqefs. The contrast between cosmic grandeur (v. 1) and God's attention to the humble individual (v. 2) is preserved identically. The phrase 'trembles at My word' describes the posture that pleases God more than any sacrifice.

Isaiah 66:3

שׁוֹחֵט הַשּׁוֹר מַכֵּה־אִישׁ זוֹבֵחַ הַשֶּׂה עֹרֵף כֶּלֶב מַעֲלֵה מִנְחָה דַּם־חֲזִיר מַזְכִּיר לְבֹנָה מְבָרֵךְ אָוֶן גַּם־הֵמָּה בָּחֲרוּ בְּדַרְכֵיהֶם וּבְשִׁקּוּצֵיהֶם נַפְשָׁם חָפֵצָה׃

"He who slaughters an ox is like one who kills a man; he who sacrifices a lamb is like one who breaks a dog's neck; he who presents a grain offering — it is like swine's blood; he who offers incense is like one who blesses an idol. They have chosen their own ways, and their soul delights in their abominations."

KJV He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Each legitimate sacrifice is paired with an abomination: ox/murder, lamb/dog-breaking, grain offering/swine's blood, incense/idol-blessing. The point is not that sacrifice is inherently wrong but that when performed by those who simultaneously practice idolatry, proper worship becomes as offensive as the worst sin. The double life — worshiping God and embracing abomination — is the consistent target of Third Isaiah (see 65:3-5).
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)moderate

"he who slaughters an ox is like one who kills a man"

The scroll omits the maqqef. The shocking equation of legitimate sacrifice with murder (when performed by the wicked) is identical in both texts. This verse represents the most radical critique of sacrifice in the Hebrew Bible — not that sacrifice is wrong, but that sacrifice offered by those who practice abomination is itself an abomination.

Isaiah 66:4

גַּם־אֲנִי אֶבְחַר בְּתַעֲלוּלֵיהֶם וּמְגוּרֹתָם אָבִיא לָהֶם יַעַן קָרָאתִי וְאֵין עוֹנֶה דִּבַּרְתִּי וְלֹא שָׁמֵעוּ וַיַּעֲשׂוּ הָרַע בְּעֵינַי וּבַאֲשֶׁר לֹא־חָפַצְתִּי בָּחָרוּ׃

"So I also will choose their punishments and bring upon them what they dread, because I called and no one answered, I spoke and no one listened. They did what is evil in My eyes and chose what I did not delight in."

KJV I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The reciprocity is exact: 'they chose their own ways' (v.3), so 'I also will choose their punishments' (v.4). The refrain 'I called and no one answered' (also in 65:12) establishes a pattern: God's unanswered call becomes the legal basis for judgment. This is the same charge that runs from Isaiah 1:2 through to the end of the book.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"so I also will choose their afflictions"

The scroll uses plene spelling for ta'aluleyhem ('their afflictions/caprices'). The ironic divine response — 'since they chose what I did not delight in, I also will choose their punishments' — is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 66:5

שִׁמְעוּ דְבַר־יְהוָה הַחֲרֵדִים אֶל־דְּבָרוֹ אָמְרוּ אֲחֵיכֶם שֹׂנְאֵיכֶם מְנַדֵּיכֶם לְמַעַן שְׁמִי יִכְבַּד יְהוָה וְנִרְאֶה בְשִׂמְחַתְכֶם וְהֵם יֵבֹשׁוּ׃

Hear the word of the LORD, you who tremble at His word! Your brothers who hate you and cast you out for My name's sake have said, "Let the LORD be glorified, that we may see your joy!" But it is they who shall be put to shame.

KJV Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name's sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. God now addresses the faithful remnant — those who tremble at His word (the same quality praised in v.2). Their own 'brothers' (fellow Israelites) have mocked them, sarcastically invoking God's glory. But the reversal is coming: the mockers will be shamed, and the faithful will know joy. This internal division within Israel anticipates the servant-versus-apostate distinction of chapter 65.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"you who tremble at His word"

No meaningful variant. The address to the faithful — those who tremble at God's word but are hated and cast out by their brothers — is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 66:6

קוֹל שָׁאוֹן מֵעִיר קוֹל מֵהֵיכָל קוֹל יְהוָה מְשַׁלֵּם גְּמוּל לְאֹיְבָיו׃

A sound of uproar from the city! A voice from the temple! The voice of the LORD, rendering recompense to His enemies!

KJV A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the LORD that rendereth recompence to his enemies.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Three sounds build in intensity: uproar from the city, a voice from the temple, and then — identified — the voice of the LORD Himself. The progression moves from ambient noise to divine speech. God is not distant; He is in the temple, actively judging.
Isaiah 66:7

בְּטֶרֶם תָּחִיל יָלָדָה בְּטֶרֶם יָבוֹא חֵבֶל לָהּ וְהִמְלִיטָה זָכָר׃

"Before she was in labor she gave birth; before her pain came upon her she delivered a son."

KJV Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The miraculous birth of Zion's child precedes labor — the opposite of natural order. This signals divine intervention so sudden and complete that the normal process of suffering-then-deliverance is bypassed entirely. The early church saw this as anticipating the sudden birth of the messianic community at Pentecost.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)moderate

"before she was in labor she gave birth"

The scroll reads yaledah (ילדה) without the mater lectionis aleph that appears in MT's yaladah. Both forms are valid third-feminine-singular perfect. The miraculous birth-before-labor imagery describes Zion's sudden, painless delivery — a reversal of the Genesis 3:16 curse. The suddenness of eschatological restoration is the point: before the labor pains begin, the child is already born.

Isaiah 66:8

מִי־שָׁמַע כָּזֹאת מִי רָאָה כָּאֵלֶּה הֲיוּחַל אֶרֶץ בְּיוֹם אֶחָד אִם־יִוָּלֵד גּוֹי פַּעַם אֶחָת כִּי־חָלָה גַם־יָלְדָה צִיּוֹן אֶת־בָּנֶיהָ׃

"Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Can a land be born in one day? Can a nation be brought forth all at once? Yet as soon as Zion was in labor she brought forth her children!"

KJV Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The rhetorical questions demand the answer: no, this is impossible — and yet it happens. A nation born in a single day is unprecedented in human experience. The immediate reference is to Israel's sudden restoration, but the early church applied it to the explosive growth of the church at Pentecost (three thousand in one day, Acts 2:41).
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"can a land be born in one day?"

No meaningful variant. The rhetorical questions — 'Who has heard such a thing? Can a land be born in one day? Can a nation be brought forth at once?' — express astonishment at the speed of Zion's restoration. Both texts agree.

Isaiah 66:9

הַאֲנִי אַשְׁבִּיר וְלֹא אוֹלִיד יֹאמַר יְהוָה אִם־אֲנִי הַמּוֹלִיד וְעָצַרְתִּי אָמַר אֱלֹהָיִךְ׃

"Shall I bring to the point of birth and not deliver?" says the LORD. "Shall I who cause to bring forth shut the womb?" says your God.

KJV Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. God answers His own rhetorical questions: He does not begin what He will not complete. The birth metaphor carries a promise: the labor pains of exile and judgment will produce new life. God is both midwife and guarantor — He who started the process will see it through.
Isaiah 66:10

שִׂמְחוּ אֶת־יְרוּשָׁלִַם וְגִילוּ בָהּ כָּל־אֹהֲבֶיהָ שִׂישׂוּ אִתָּהּ מָשׂוֹשׂ כָּל־הַמִּתְאַבְּלִים עָלֶיהָ׃

"Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her! Rejoice greatly with her, all you who mourn over her —"

KJV Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The call to rejoice is addressed not only to Jerusalem's citizens but to 'all who love her' — an invitation that extends to all who share in Zion's hope, including the nations. Those who mourned her destruction are now summoned to celebrate her rebirth.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Rejoice with Jerusalem!"

No meaningful variant. The call to rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad with her is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 66:11

לְמַעַן תִּינְקוּ וּשְׂבַעְתֶּם מִשֹּׁד תַּנְחֻמֶיהָ לְמַעַן תָּמֹצּוּ וְהִתְעַנַּגְתֶּם מִזִּיז כְּבוֹדָהּ׃

"that you may nurse and be satisfied from her consoling breast, that you may drink deeply and delight in the abundance of her glory."

KJV That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The nursing imagery is bold and sustained — Jerusalem is a mother whose breast (shod) provides both comfort (tanchumim) and glory (kavod). The verbs 'nurse,' 'be satisfied,' 'drink deeply,' and 'delight' form a progression from sustenance to abundance to pleasure. The city's restoration is not mere survival but overflowing provision.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"the breast of her consolations"

The scroll uses a slightly different spelling for tanchumeha ('her consolations'). The nursing imagery — sucking and being satisfied at the breast of Jerusalem's consolations — is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 66:12

כִּי־כֹה אָמַר יְהוָה הִנְנִי נֹטֶה־אֵלֶיהָ כְּנָהָר שָׁלוֹם וּכְנַחַל שׁוֹטֵף כְּבוֹד גּוֹיִם וִינַקְתֶּם עַל־צַד תִּנָּשֵׂאוּ וְעַל־בִּרְכַּיִם תְּשָׁעֳשָׁעוּ׃

For this is what the LORD says: "Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream. You shall nurse; you shall be carried on her hip and bounced upon her knees."

KJV For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

שָׁלוֹם shalom
"peace" — peace, wholeness, well-being, prosperity, completeness

Shalom here carries its fullest semantic weight — not merely cessation of war but cosmic flourishing. God 'extends' (noteh, literally 'bends, inclines') this peace toward Jerusalem like a river: directional, abundant, and unstoppable.

Translator Notes

  1. The mother-child imagery continues: Jerusalem's children are carried on her hip and bounced on her knees. The peace flows 'like a river' — not a trickle or a well but a nahar, a great watercourse. The 'glory of the nations' flowing into Jerusalem anticipates the wealth-of-nations motif from Isaiah 60:5-11.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"behold, I will extend peace to her like a river"

The scroll uses plene spelling for noteh ('extending'). The image of peace flowing like a river and the glory of nations like an overflowing stream is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 66:13

כְּאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר אִמּוֹ תְּנַחֲמֶנּוּ כֵּן אָנֹכִי אֲנַחֶמְכֶם וּבִירוּשָׁלִַם תְּנֻחָמוּ׃

"As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you; and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem."

KJV As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. One of the most tender verses in all of Scripture. God compares His own comforting to a mother's comfort — not as metaphor but as direct analogy (ke'ish asher immo tenachamenu). The verb nacham ('comfort') is the root of the name Nehemiah ('God comforts') and echoes the great 'Comfort, comfort My people' of Isaiah 40:1. The comfort is localized 'in Jerusalem' — not abstract consolation but experienced in a specific, restored place.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"as a mother comforts her child"

No meaningful variant. God's self-comparison to a comforting mother is one of the Hebrew Bible's most tender images of the divine. Both texts preserve it identically.

Isaiah 66:14

וּרְאִיתֶם וְשָׂשׂ לִבְּכֶם וְעַצְמוֹתֵיכֶם כַּדֶּשֶׁא תִפְרַחְנָה וְנוֹדְעָה יַד־יְהוָה אֶת־עֲבָדָיו וְזָעַם אֶת־אֹיְבָיו׃

"You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice; your bones shall flourish like grass. The hand of the LORD shall be known to His servants, and His indignation to His enemies."

KJV And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. 'Your bones shall flourish like grass' — the skeletal, dead-feeling body of exile will spring to life like irrigated grass. The dual revelation — 'His hand known to servants, His indignation to enemies' — maintains Isaiah's consistent theme: the same divine action is salvation for one and judgment for the other.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"and your bones shall flourish like grass"

No meaningful variant. The promise that 'your heart shall rejoice, your bones shall flourish like grass' and the contrast that 'the hand of the LORD shall be known to His servants, and He shall be indignant against His enemies' is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 66:15

כִּי־הִנֵּה יְהוָה בָּאֵשׁ יָבוֹא וְכַסּוּפָה מַרְכְּבֹתָיו לְהָשִׁיב בְּחֵמָה אַפּוֹ וְגַעֲרָתוֹ בְּלַהֲבֵי אֵשׁ׃

"For behold, the LORD will come in fire, and His chariots like the whirlwind, to render His anger with fury and His rebuke with flames of fire."

KJV For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The theophany of judgment echoes the opening of the chapter (v.6) and the winepress vision of 63:1-6. Fire and whirlwind are the classic elements of divine appearance (see 2 Kings 2:11, Nahum 1:3). The chariots (markevotav) suggest military intervention — God comes as warrior.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"for behold, the LORD will come in fire"

The scroll spells ki as kia. The theophanic imagery of God coming in fire with chariots like the whirlwind to render anger in fury and rebuke with flames of fire is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 66:16

כִּי בָאֵשׁ יְהוָה נִשְׁפָּט וּבְחַרְבּוֹ אֶת־כָּל־בָּשָׂר וְרַבּוּ חַלְלֵי יְהוָה׃

"For by fire and by His sword the LORD will execute judgment on all flesh, and the slain of the LORD shall be many."

KJV For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The scope expands to 'all flesh' (kol basar) — the judgment is universal, not merely local. 'The slain of the LORD' (challei YHWH) is a startling phrase: these are not casualties of war but of divine judgment. The verse is a bridge to the eschatological separation that will conclude the chapter.
Isaiah 66:17

הַמִּתְקַדְּשִׁים וְהַמִּטַּהֲרִים אֶל־הַגַּנּוֹת אַחַר אַחַד בַּתָּוֶךְ אֹכְלֵי בְּשַׂר הַחֲזִיר וְהַשֶּׁקֶץ וְהָעַכְבָּר יַחְדָּו יָסֻפוּ נְאֻם־יְהוָה׃

"Those who consecrate and purify themselves to go into the gardens, following one in the center, eating the flesh of swine, the abomination, and the mouse — they shall come to an end together," declares the LORD.

KJV They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the LORD.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The same offenses cataloged in 65:3-4 reappear: garden rituals and forbidden food. 'Following one in the center' is obscure — possibly a pagan priest or cult leader. The triple abomination (swine, the detestable thing, the mouse) represents a full spectrum of dietary violation. The judgment is total: 'they shall come to an end together' (yachdav yasufu).
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)major

"those who sanctify and purify themselves to go into the gardens, following one in the midst"

The scroll reads achad (אחד, 'one' masculine) where MT reads achat (אחת, 'one' feminine). This is a notable variant: MT's feminine form could refer to a goddess or priestess leading the ritual procession into the sacred gardens, while the scroll's masculine form suggests a male ritual leader. The difference is significant for understanding the nature of the pagan rites being condemned — were they led by a priestess or a priest?

Isaiah 66:18

וְאָנֹכִי מַעֲשֵׂיהֶם וּמַחְשְׁבֹתֵיהֶם בָּאָה לְקַבֵּץ אֶת־כָּל־הַגּוֹיִם וְהַלְּשֹׁנוֹת וּבָאוּ וְרָאוּ אֶת־כְּבוֹדִי׃

"For I know their works and their thoughts. The time is coming to gather all nations and tongues, and they shall come and see My glory."

KJV For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The vision expands to its widest horizon: all nations and all languages gathered to witness God's glory (kevodi). This is the universal scope that runs from Isaiah 2:2 ('all nations shall stream to it') through to Revelation 7:9 ('a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, tribe, people, and language').
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)moderate

"For I know their works and their thoughts; the time is coming to gather all nations"

The scroll spells anokhi with plene waw and kol with waw. This verse is textually difficult in both traditions — the syntax is compressed. The universalist vision of gathering 'all nations and tongues' to see God's glory is identical in both texts and represents Third Isaiah's climactic statement of universal eschatology.

Isaiah 66:19

וְשַׂמְתִּי בָהֶם אוֹת וְשִׁלַּחְתִּי מֵהֶם פְּלֵיטִים אֶל־הַגּוֹיִם תַּרְשִׁישׁ פּוּל וְלוּד מֹשְׁכֵי קֶשֶׁת תּוּבַל וְיָוָן הָאִיִּים הָרְחֹקִים אֲשֶׁר לֹא־שָׁמְעוּ אֶת־שִׁמְעִי וְלֹא־רָאוּ אֶת־כְּבוֹדִי וְהִגִּידוּ אֶת־כְּבוֹדִי בַּגּוֹיִם׃

"I will set a sign among them, and from them I will send survivors to the nations — to Tarshish, Put, and Lud (who draw the bow), to Tubal and Javan, to the distant coastlands that have not heard My fame or seen My glory. And they shall declare My glory among the nations."

KJV And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The survivor-missionaries are sent to the farthest reaches of the known world: Tarshish (western Mediterranean, likely Spain), Put (North Africa), Lud (Lydia in Asia Minor), Tubal (eastern Asia Minor), Javan (Greece), and the distant coastlands. This is a proto-Great Commission — survivors of God's judgment become heralds of His glory to those who have never heard. The geographic catalog stretches across the entire ancient Near Eastern world.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"Tarshish, Put, and Lud"

The scroll reads the same list of far-flung nations who will hear of God's glory: Tarshish, Pul/Put, Lud, Tubal, Javan, and the distant coastlands. The vision of survivors being sent as missionaries to nations that have never heard of God's fame is identical in both texts. This is one of the most explicitly universalist-missionary texts in the Hebrew Bible.

Isaiah 66:20

וְהֵבִיאוּ אֶת־כָּל־אֲחֵיכֶם מִכָּל־הַגּוֹיִם מִנְחָה לַיהוָה בַּסּוּסִים וּבָרֶכֶב וּבַצַּבִּים וּבַפְּרָדִים וּבַכִּרְכָּרוֹת עַל הַר קָדְשִׁי יְרוּשָׁלִַם אָמַר יְהוָה כַּאֲשֶׁר יָבִיאוּ בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת־הַמִּנְחָה בִּכְלִי טָהוֹר בֵּית יְהוָה׃

"And they shall bring all your brothers from all the nations as an offering to the LORD — on horses and in chariots and in wagons, on mules and on camels — to My holy mountain Jerusalem," says the LORD, "just as the sons of Israel bring their grain offering in a clean vessel to the house of the LORD."

KJV And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the LORD out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The 'brothers' brought from the nations may be scattered Israelites returning from diaspora, or Gentile converts presented as a living offering — the Hebrew allows both readings. Paul may allude to this verse in Romans 15:16, where he describes his ministry as presenting 'the Gentiles as an offering.' The variety of transport (horses, chariots, wagons, mules, camels) emphasizes universality: every means of travel, from every direction.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)moderate

"and they shall bring all your brothers from all nations as an offering to the LORD"

The scroll spells kol with waw in both instances. The vision of Gentile nations bringing Israelites back 'on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules, and on dromedaries' to the holy mountain is identical. The stunning declaration that follows — God will take some of the returned exiles as 'priests and Levites' — pushes universalism further than almost any other OT text. Both traditions preserve this reading.

Isaiah 66:21

וְגַם־מֵהֶם אֶקַּח לַכֹּהֲנִים לַלְוִיִּם אָמַר יְהוָה׃

"And from them also I will take some for priests and for Levites," says the LORD.

KJV And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the LORD.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. This is among the most radical statements in the Hebrew Bible: God will take priests and Levites from among the nations (or from among the returnees gathered from the nations). If the 'them' refers to Gentiles, this overturns the Aaronic hereditary priesthood and anticipates the universal priesthood of 1 Peter 2:9. The brevity of the verse amplifies its shock — the revolution is stated in a single sentence.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)theological

"and from them also I will take some as priests and Levites"

The scroll uses plene spelling for kohanim ('priests'). The theological significance of this verse is immense: 'from them also' (megam mehem) appears to mean God will take priests and Levites from among the returned Gentile-borne exiles, or possibly even from the Gentiles themselves. This radical statement of eschatological priesthood is identical in both texts.

Isaiah 66:22

כִּי כַאֲשֶׁר הַשָּׁמַיִם הַחֲדָשִׁים וְהָאָרֶץ הַחֲדָשָׁה אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי עֹשֶׂה עֹמְדִים לְפָנַי נְאֻם־יְהוָה כֵּן יַעֲמֹד זַרְעֲכֶם וְשִׁמְכֶם׃

"For as the new heavens and the new earth that I am making shall endure before Me," declares the LORD, "so shall your offspring and your name endure."

KJV For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The new heavens and new earth from 65:17 reappear as the guarantee of Israel's permanence. The logic is simple: the new creation is eternal; your descendants and name are as durable as the new creation; therefore your legacy is eternal. This is the covenant promise in its most cosmic form.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"for as the new heavens and the new earth"

The scroll spells ki as kia. The second reference to 'new heavens and new earth' (cf. 65:17) is identical in both texts. Here the new creation serves as the guarantee of Israel's perpetual existence: 'as the new heavens and the new earth that I am making shall endure before Me, so shall your offspring and your name endure.' The scroll confirms this reading at the very end of the manuscript.

Isaiah 66:23

וְהָיָה מִדֵּי־חֹדֶשׁ בְּחָדְשׁוֹ וּמִדֵּי שַׁבָּת בְּשַׁבַּתּוֹ יָבוֹא כָל־בָּשָׂר לְהִשְׁתַּחֲוֹת לְפָנַי אָמַר יְהוָה׃

"From new moon to new moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before Me," says the LORD.

KJV And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The penultimate verse describes universal, perpetual worship: all flesh (kol basar), every new moon, every Sabbath, coming before the LORD. This is the fulfillment of 56:7 ('My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples'). The rhythm of worship — monthly and weekly — is not abolished but universalized. What was Israel's privilege becomes all humanity's vocation.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"from new moon to new moon and from Sabbath to Sabbath"

The scroll uses plene spelling for chodesh ('month/new moon'). The eschatological vision of universal worship — 'all flesh shall come to worship before Me' — is identical in both texts. Later synagogue practice reads this verse again after verse 24 as the haftarah ending, because verse 24 ends on a note of judgment. The scroll shows no awareness of this liturgical convention, which developed later.

Isaiah 66:24

וְיָצְאוּ וְרָאוּ בְּפִגְרֵי הָאֲנָשִׁים הַפֹּשְׁעִים בִּי כִּי תוֹלַעְתָּם לֹא תָמוּת וְאִשָּׁם לֹא תִכְבֶּה וְהָיוּ דֵרָאוֹן לְכָל־בָּשָׂר׃

"And they shall go out and look at the dead bodies of those who rebelled against Me. For their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh."

KJV And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The final verse of Isaiah is deliberately unsettling. The worshipers of verse 23 go out and see the unending judgment of the rebels. The worm (tola'at) that does not die and the fire (esh) that is not quenched become the defining images of divine judgment in later Jewish and Christian theology. Jesus quotes this verse three times in Mark 9:43-48 to describe Gehenna. The word dera'on ('abhorrence') appears only here and in Daniel 12:2, where it describes the fate of those who do not rise to everlasting life. Isaiah ends not with comfort but with the starkest possible contrast between worship and judgment — a contrast the reader must hold without resolution.
1 tradition available

Dead Sea Scrolls (1QIsaᵃ, 125 BCE)minor

"and they shall go out and look at the corpses of the men who rebelled against Me"

The scroll uses plene spelling for poshim ('those rebelling'). This is the final verse of Isaiah — and the final text on the Great Isaiah Scroll. The jarring image of the righteous gazing on the undying worms and unquenched fire consuming the rebellious is identical in both texts. Jesus quotes this verse in Mark 9:48 ('where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched').

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