Isaiah 54:14
in Isaiah 54In righteousness you will be established, far from oppression, for you will have no fear. Terror will be far removed, for it will not come near you.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression, for thou shalt not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near thee.
KJV
In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.
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This verse in Isaiah 54
Commentary
12 notes on this verse(Verse 14.) Stay away from slander, for you will not be afraid; and from fear, for it will not come near you. LXX: Depart from evil, and you will not be afraid, and trembling will not come near you. Most beautiful order. He had comforted the poor and humble, promising them spiritual favors. Now he teaches what he should do if he does not want to fear the attacks of his adversaries.
This site's exposition
Then all your sons will be taught by the LORD
on Isaiah 54:13-14
Jesus quotes this line at John 6:45 of those who come to Him: “all your sons will be taught by the LORD”. Verse 13 promises “great will be their prosperity”. The older writers set this inward teaching beside the new covenant of Jeremiah 31:34, where all will know the LORD.
This site's exposition
In righteousness you will be established
Barnes notes that the Hebrew can also be read as a command, keep far from the oppression of others. Wesley names two sources of oppression, native rulers and foreign powers. Gill reads the righteousness in which the city is established as the righteousness of Christ, the source of its peace.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
And then Isaiah adds, "and you will be built up in righteousness." For with the utmost rightness the architect and builder of the whole is the wisdom of God, fitting the living and smooth stones to the building. Some he uses for towers, others for …
I promised to you by grace beforehand—if you no longer struggle with these promises—that no fear of attack by war would touch you. Therefore rejoice in my commandments, for if you do so, these kinds of fears will not affect you—unless you do not guard the commandments and fall into the fear of human reproach. And so, I testify to you and say, "You will be far from oppression, and you will not fear. Terror shall not come near you." Rather, you will remain close to me and will act in a godly way according to the following words of Isaiah: "the proselytes will come to you." But they will not come apart from my will, for it says they also will come "through me."
The Medieval Church1 voice
And as to justice of works, and you shall be founded in justice, above: Zion shall be redeemed in judgment, and they shall bring her back in justice (Isa 1:27). 987. Second, as to freedom from evils, first, promising deliverance from dangers: depart, that is, …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
In righteousness shalt thou be established,.... In the righteousness of Christ, from whence flows the peace before spoken of, and which is the stability of the church of Christ, and the security of it and its members from condemnation.
The reformation of manners, the restoration of purity, the due administration of public justice, and the prevailing of honesty and fair dealing among men, are the strength and stability of any church or state. The kingdom of God, set up by the gospel of Christ, is not meat and drink, but this righteousness and peace, holiness and love.
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Established - Thine affairs shall be managed with righteousness, which is the glory of any society. Oppression - Either by thine own governors, or by foreign powers.
5 For thy Maker is thine husband; the L ORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called. If we apply this to the state of the Jews after their return out of captivity, it is a prophecy of the increase of their nation after they were settled in their own land.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
In righteousness shalt thou be established - This is language which is appropriately addressed to a city or commonwealth. The idea is, that it would not be built up by fraud, and rapine, and conquest, as many cities had been, but by the prevalence of justice. Thou shalt be far from oppressions - That is, thou shalt be far from being oppressed by others. So the connection demands. The Hebrew would bear an active signification, so that it might be read, ‘be thou far from oppression,’ that is, be far from oppressing others.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
righteousness--the characteristic of the reign of Messiah (Isa 11:4, 5; Re 19:11). far from oppression, &c.--far from suffering oppression; "for thou shall have nothing to fear."
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
go far away from oppression [Although grammatically this is the imperative, here it is the future,] like (supra:2) “Shake yourself from the dust.” You will be far away from those who oppress you.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| בִּצְדָקָ֖ה | bitzdakah | in righteousness | H6666 → | 157 times |
| תִּכּוֹנָ֑נִי | tikonani | you will be established | H3559 → | 217 times |
| רַחֲקִ֤י | rachaki | be distant | H7368 → | 57 times |
| מֵעֹ֙שֶׁק֙ | meoshek | from oppression | H6233 → | 15 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| לֹ֣א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תִירָ֔אִי | tirai | you will be afraid | H3372 → | 315 times |
| וּמִ֨מְּחִתָּ֔ה | umimechitah | and from terror | H4288 → | |
| כִּ֥י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תִקְרַ֖ב | tikrav | it will draw near | H7126 → | 280 times |
| אֵלָֽיִךְ׃ | ʾelayikh | to you | H413 → | 5510 times |
בִּצְדָקָ֖הin righteousness
bitzdakahH6666 →157 times
תִּכּוֹנָ֑נִיyou will be established
tikonaniH3559 →217 times
רַחֲקִ֤יbe distant
rachakiH7368 →57 times
מֵעֹ֙שֶׁק֙from oppression
meoshekH6233 →15 times
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
לֹ֣אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
תִירָ֔אִיyou will be afraid
tiraiH3372 →315 times
וּמִ֨מְּחִתָּ֔הand from terror
umimechitahH4288 →
כִּ֥יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
תִקְרַ֖בit will draw near
tikravH7126 →280 times
אֵלָֽיִךְ׃to you
ʾelayikhH413 →5510 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Jeremiah 30:10As for you, O Jacob My servant, do not be afraid, declares the LORD, and do not be dismayed, O Israel. For I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 46:27–28
But you, O Jacob My servant, do not be afraid, and do not be dismayed, O Israel. For I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants from the land of…
- Jeremiah 29:14
I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore you from captivity and gather you from all the nations and places to which I have banished you, declares the LORD.…
- Isaiah 43:5
Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east and gather you from the west.
- Isaiah 44:2
This is the word of the LORD, your Maker, who formed you from the womb and who will help you: “Do not be afraid, O Jacob My servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
- Jeremiah 46:27–28
Through
Zechariah 9:8But I will camp around My house because of an army, because of those who march to and fro, and never again will an oppressor overrun My people, for now I keep watch with…
it leads to
- Isaiah 52:1
Awake, awake, clothe yourself with strength, O Zion! Put on your garments of splendor, O Jerusalem, holy city! For the uncircumcised and unclean will no longer enter you.
- Isaiah 60:18
No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders. But you will name your walls Salvation and your gates Praise.
- Joel 3:16–17
The LORD will roar from Zion and raise His voice from Jerusalem; heaven and earth will tremble. But the LORD will be a refuge for His people, a stronghold for the people of Israel.
- Jeremiah 31:12
They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion; they will be radiant over the bounty of the LORD—the grain, new wine, and oil, and the young of the flocks and…
- Isaiah 52:1
Where this verse is studied
About Isaiah
This page draws on 11 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Eusebius of Caesarea, COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH 2:43; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Isaiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Procopius of Gaza, COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH 54:1-17 and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.