Isaiah 56:5
in Isaiah 56I will give them, in My house and within My walls, a memorial and a name better than that of sons and daughters. I will give them an everlasting name that will not be cut off.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Unto them will I give in my house and within my walls a memorial and a name better than of sons and of daughters; I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.
KJV
Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.
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This verse in Isaiah 56
Commentary
12 notes on this verseA commentator
Ambrose of MilanOn the Instruction of the Virgin and the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, 6.45 · Written before 397.
And what could be greater than the reward the Lord bestowed upon His mother, whom He honored above all others? For He deemed no gift more abundant than virginity, as Scripture teaches us. For thus the Lord spoke through Isaiah: Let not the eunuch say, I am but a dry tree.
This site's exposition
Let no foreigner who has joined himself to the LORD say
on Isaiah 56:3-5
The foreigner and the eunuch are named together. The eunuch is given “in My house and within My walls, a memorial and a name better than that of sons and daughters”. “I am but a dry tree” gives way to “an everlasting name that will not be cut off”.
This site's exposition
a memorial and a name
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown read a place within the walls as entry past the outer court into the holiest (Heb 10:19-20). The old versions read them, Clarke notes, where Hebrew has him. Aphrahat gives the name better than sons and daughters to those who stay unmarried for Christ.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
All the pure virgins who are betrothed to Christ shall light their lamps, and with the Bridegroom they shall go into the marriage chamber. All those who are betrothed to Christ are far removed from the curse of the law and are redeemed from the condemnation of the daughters of Eve. For they are not wedded to men so as to receive the curses and come into the pains of childbirth. They take no thought of death, because they do not deliver children who will die. And in place of a mortal husband, they are betrothed to Christ. And, "because they do not bear children, there is given to them the name that is better than sons and daughters." And instead of the groans of the daughters of Eve, they utter the songs of the Bridgroom. The wedding feast of the daughters of Eve continues for only seven days. But for these virgins, the Bridegroom never leaves. The adornment of the daughters of Eve is wool that wears out and perishes, but the garments of these does not wear out. Old age withers the beauty of the daughters of Eve, but the beauty of these shall be renewed at the time of the resurrection.
(Vers. 4, 5.) Because the Lord says these things to the eunuchs: If they keep my Sabbaths, and choose what I desire, and hold fast to my covenant, I will give them a place in my house and within my walls, and a better name than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that will not be cut off.
The house and wall that are strength and security seem to describe the church that is above somewhere in the heavens, that is, over the earth. People dwell there who have grown in holiness and virtue and who shine forth and receive the honor of self-control along with a greater inheritance. They receive from God an eternal glory. There is nothing lacking of grace in them. For the rewards of self-control are great. And not only to the guileless eunuchs does he announce the provision of illustrious dignity, but he also announces it to those who keep the [new] sabbath that Christ established. For the others kept his sabbath by the law. For what was formerly in type is now illuminated in the beauty of truth.
The Medieval Church1 voice
Within my walls, a place, that is, a dwelling within the walls of my city; and a name better, because they will be called my servants and holy ones, and sons, that is, as if they had begotten many sons: the eunuch, that has not …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Even to them will I give in mine house and within my walls,....
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
There they shall have a name. A name for the good things with God and good people is a name better than that of sons and daughters. Our relation to God, our interest in Christ, our title to the blessings of the covenant, and our hopes of eternal life, are things that give us in God's house a blessed place and a blessed name.
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Will I give in mine house - That is, they shalt be admitted to all the privileges of entering my house of prayer, and of being regarded as my true worshippers, and this shall be to them a more invaluable privilege than would be any earthly advantages. The word ‘house’ here refers undoubtedly to the temple, regarded as emblematic of the place of public worship in all ages. And within my walls - The walls of the city where God dwelt, referring primarily to the walls of Jerusalem.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
They shall no longer be confined as proselytes were, to the outer court, but shall be admitted "into the holiest" (Heb 10:19, 20). a place--literally, "a hand." than of sons--Though the eunuch is barren of children (Isa 56:3), I will give him a more lasting name than that of being father of sons and daughters (regarded as a high honor among the Hebrews) (Joh 1:12;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
I will give them an everlasting name - For לו lo, him, in the singular, it is evident that we ought to read למו lamo, them, in the plural: so read the Septuagint, Syriac, Chaldee, and Vulgate.
The words behind it
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְנָתַתִּ֨י | venatati | and I will give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| לָהֶ֜ם | lahem | to them | ||
| בְּבֵיתִ֤י | beveiti | in house my | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| וּבְחֽוֹמֹתַי֙ | uvechomotai | and in walls my | H2346 → | 133 times |
| יָ֣ד | yad | a monument | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| וָשֵׁ֔ם | vashem | and a name | H8034 → | 864 times |
| ט֖וֹב | tov | good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| מִבָּנִ֣ים | mibanim | more than sons | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| וּמִבָּנ֑וֹת | umibanot | and more than daughters | H1323 → | 588 times |
| שֵׁ֤ם | shem | a name of | H8034 → | 864 times |
| עוֹלָם֙ | olam | perpetuity | H5769 → | 438 times |
| אֶתֶּן־ | ʾeten- | I will give | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| ל֔וֹ | lo | to him | ||
| אֲשֶׁ֖ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| לֹ֥א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יִכָּרֵֽת׃ ס | yikaret | it will be cut off | H3772 → | 288 times |
וְנָתַתִּ֨יand I will give
venatatiH5414 →2011 times
לָהֶ֜םto them
lahem
בְּבֵיתִ֤יin house my
beveitiH1004 →2046 times
וּבְחֽוֹמֹתַי֙and in walls my
uvechomotaiH2346 →133 times
יָ֣דa monument
yadH3027 →1618 times
וָשֵׁ֔םand a name
vashemH8034 →864 times
ט֖וֹבgood
tovH2896 →538 times
מִבָּנִ֣יםmore than sons
mibanimH1121 →4930 times
וּמִבָּנ֑וֹתand more than daughters
umibanotH1323 →588 times
שֵׁ֤םa name of
shemH8034 →864 times
עוֹלָם֙perpetuity
olamH5769 →438 times
אֶתֶּן־I will give
ʾeten-H5414 →2011 times
ל֔וֹto him
lo
אֲשֶׁ֖רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
לֹ֥אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
יִכָּרֵֽת׃ סit will be cut off
yikaretH3772 →288 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
John 1:12But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God—
it leads to
- Galatians 3:26
You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Romans 8:14
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
- 1 John 3:1
Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is…
- 2 Corinthians 6:17–18
“Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”
- Galatians 4:6
And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”
- Galatians 3:26
Through
1 John 3:1Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is…
it leads to
- John 1:12
But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God—
- 2 Corinthians 6:18
And: “I will be a Father to you, and you will be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”
- Galatians 4:5–6
to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons.
- John 1:12
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Isaiah
This page draws on 12 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ambrose of Milan, On the Instruction of the Virgin and the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, 6.45; Aphrahat the Persian Sage, DEMONSTRATIONS 6:6; Cyril of Alexandria, COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH 5:3.56:3-5; 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 and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.