Isaiah 54:4
in Isaiah 54Do not be afraid, for you will not be put to shame; do not be intimidated, for you will not be humiliated. For you will forget the shame of your youth and will remember no more the reproach of your widowhood.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth; and the reproach of thy widowhood shalt thou remember no more.
KJV
Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.
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This verse in Isaiah 54
Commentary
9 notes on this verse(Verse 4, 5.) Do not be afraid, for you will not be put to shame; do not be ashamed, for you will not be disgraced. You will forget the shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood. For your Maker is your husband— the LORD Almighty is his name— the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth. LXX: Do not be afraid, for you have been put to shame; do not be disgraced, for you have been reproached.
This site's exposition
forget the shame
on Isaiah 54:4-6
Verse 4 promises that Zion “will forget the shame of your youth and will remember no more the reproach of your widowhood”. Verse 5 gives the ground in three titles joined to one bond: “your husband is your Maker”, “the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer”.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
We have been justified in Christ, and not from works of righteousness that we have done but according to his mercy. But this is also what the supremely wise Paul has written. For we have been set free from the darkness, deceit and wickedness, which have been inherited from our ancestors.… [Therefore,] do not fear that you will be put to shame. For just as a parent looks after children, the Lord will look after those who fear him. Your sins will be as far removed from you as the east is from the west. How necessary is it, then, that you not stumble again but reject those same sins in fear. Remember the grace of our justifying God, and do not bear malice or demand justice from those who sin against you.
He makes clear how he makes the shame of widowhood disappear, saying that it is "the Lord who makes you, the Lord of hosts is his name." He is making you rather than creating you, transferring us into another type of citizenship and beautiful life. For we are being transformed in Christ into the newness of the holy and evangelical life, ascending to his own beautiful form through the Spirit so that others see us as different from the rest [of humanity].
The Medieval Church1 voice
980. Fear not. Here he promises the restoration of their former honor as a remedy against the confusion which they had sustained earlier; second, he sets out the firmness of the promise: this thing is to me as in the days of Noah (Isa 54:9). …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Fear not,....
That though sometimes God might seem to withdraw from her, and suspend the tokens of his favour, he would return in mercy and would not return to contend with them any more,
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
For thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth - That is, “The bondage of Egypt: widowhood, the captivity of Babylon.” - Secker.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Fear not ... - (See Isa 41:10, note, Isa 41:14, note). Neither shalt thou be confounded - All these words mean substantially the same thing; and the design of the prophet is to affirm, in the strongest possible manner, that the church of God should be abundantly prospered and enlarged. The image of the female that was barren is kept up, and the idea is, that there should be no occasion of the shame which she felt who had no children. For thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth - In the abundant increase and glory of future times, the circumstances of shame which attended their early history shall be forgotten. The ‘youth’ of the Jewish people refers doubtless to the bondage of Egypt, and the trials and calamities which came upon them there. So great should be their future prosperity and glory, that all this should be forgotten. The reproach of thy widowhood - The captivity at Babylon, when they were like a woman bereft of her husband and children (see the notes at Isa 49:21).
The words behind it
19 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אַל־ | ʾal- | may not | H408 → | 724 times |
| תִּֽירְאִי֙ | tirei | you be afraid | H3372 → | 315 times |
| כִּי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| לֹ֣א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תֵב֔וֹשִׁי | tevooshi | you will be put to shame | H954 → | 127 times |
| וְאַל־ | veal- | and may not | H408 → | 724 times |
| תִּכָּלְמִ֖י | tikalmi | you be ashamed | H3637 → | 38 times |
| כִּ֣י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| לֹ֣א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תַחְפִּ֑ירִי | tachpiri | you will display shame | H2659 → | 17 times |
| כִּ֣י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| בֹ֤שֶׁת | voshet | [the] shame of | H1322 → | 30 times |
| עֲלוּמַ֙יִךְ֙ | ʾalumayikh | youth<s> your | H5934 → | |
| תִּשְׁכָּ֔חִי | tishkachi | you will forget | H7911 → | 102 times |
| וְחֶרְפַּ֥ת | vecherpat | and [the] reproach of | H2781 → | 73 times |
| אַלְמְנוּתַ֖יִךְ | ʾalmenutayikh | widowhood your | H491 → | |
| לֹ֥א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תִזְכְּרִי־ | tizkeri- | you will remember | H2142 → | 230 times |
| עֽוֹד׃ | od | again | H5750 → | 490 times |
אַל־may not
ʾal-H408 →724 times
תִּֽירְאִי֙you be afraid
tireiH3372 →315 times
כִּי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
לֹ֣אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
תֵב֔וֹשִׁיyou will be put to shame
tevooshiH954 →127 times
וְאַל־and may not
veal-H408 →724 times
תִּכָּלְמִ֖יyou be ashamed
tikalmiH3637 →38 times
כִּ֣יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
לֹ֣אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
תַחְפִּ֑ירִיyou will display shame
tachpiriH2659 →17 times
כִּ֣יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
בֹ֤שֶׁת[the] shame of
voshetH1322 →30 times
עֲלוּמַ֙יִךְ֙youth<s> your
ʾalumayikhH5934 →
תִּשְׁכָּ֔חִיyou will forget
tishkachiH7911 →102 times
וְחֶרְפַּ֥תand [the] reproach of
vecherpatH2781 →73 times
אַלְמְנוּתַ֖יִךְwidowhood your
ʾalmenutayikhH491 →
לֹ֥אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
תִזְכְּרִי־you will remember
tizkeri-H2142 →230 times
עֽוֹד׃again
odH5750 →490 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
Isaiah 41:10Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My right hand…
it leads to
- Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
- Isaiah 43:1–2
Now this is what the LORD says— He who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your…
- Romans 8:31
What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
- Deuteronomy 31:6–8
Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid or terrified of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.”
- Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.
- Joshua 1:9
Through
1 Peter 2:6For it stands in Scripture: “See, I lay in Zion a stone, a chosen and precious cornerstone; and the one who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”
it leads to
- Isaiah 28:16
So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.
- Isaiah 28:16
Through
Isaiah 61:7Instead of shame, My people will have a double portion, and instead of humiliation, they will rejoice in their share; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy…
it leads to
- Job 42:10
After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD restored his prosperity and doubled his former possessions.
- Zechariah 9:12
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; even today I declare that I will restore to you double.
- Job 42:10
Where this verse is studied
About Isaiah
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Isaiah; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Cyril of Alexandria, COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH 5:2.54:4-5; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.