Isaiah 26:18 BSB — MannaFest

Isaiah 26:18

We were with child; we writhed in pain; but we gave birth to wind. We have given no salvation to the earth, nor brought any life into the world.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.

KJV

We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.

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Commentary

4 voices

Ambrose of Milan

On the Death of Satyrus 2.67 (397)

Isaiah also, proclaiming the resurrection to the people, says that he is the announcer of the Lord's message, for we read thus: "For the mouth of the Lord has spoken, and they shall speak in that day." And what the mouth of the Lord declared that the people should say is set forth later on, where it is written: "Because of your fear, O Lord, we have been with child and have brought forth the Spirit of your salvation, which you have poured forth upon the earth.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Their prayers were quickened by the acuteness of their pains, and became as strong and vehement as the cries of a woman in sore travail. So have we been in thy sight, O Lord! It was a comfort and satisfaction to them, in their distress, that God had his eye upon them, that all their miseries were in his sight; he was no stranger to their pangs or their prayers.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible (1832)

We have - brought forth wind - The learned Professor Michaelis explains this image in the following manner: “Rariorem morbum describi, empneumatosin, aut ventosam molam, dictum; quo quae laborant diu et sibi et peritis medicis gravidae videntur,tandemque post omnes verae graviditatis molestias et labored ventum ex utero emittunt: quem morbum passim describunt medici. “Syntagma Comment., vol. ii., p. 165. The empneumatosis, or windy inflation of the womb, is a disorder to which females are liable.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

13 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
הָרִ֣ינוּ	ha.Ri.nu	we were pregnant	H2029 →
חַ֔לְנוּ	Chal.nu	we were in labor	H2342 →
כְּמ֖וֹ	ke.Mo	like	H3644 →
יָלַ֣דְנוּ	ya.Lad.nu	we gave birth to	H3205 →
ר֑וּחַ	Ru.ach	wind	H7307 →
יְשׁוּעֹת֙	ye.shu.'Ot	deliverance<s>	H3444 →
בַּל־	bal-	not	H1077 →
נַ֣עֲשֶׂה	Na.'a.seh	we accomplish	H6213 →
אֶ֔רֶץ	'E.retz	[the] earth	H776 →
וּבַֽל־	u.val-	and not	H1077 →
יִפְּל֖וּ	yi.pe.Lu	they fall	H5307 →
יֹשְׁבֵ֥י	yo.she.Vei	[the] inhabitants of	H3427 →
תֵבֵֽל׃	te.Vel	[the] world	H8398 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
Isaiah 37:3
to tell him, “This is what Hezekiah says: Today is a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace; for children have come to the point of birth, but there is no strength to deliver them.
leads to
- Isaiah 66:9
  Shall I bring a baby to the point of birth and not deliver it?” says the LORD. “Or will I who deliver close the womb?” says your God.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Isaiah 26:17–18
  As a woman with child about to give birth writhes and cries out in pain, so were we in Your presence, O LORD.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- 2 Kings 19:3
  to tell him, “This is what Hezekiah says: Today is a day of distress, rebuke, and disgrace; for children have come to the point of birth, but there is no strength to deliver them.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Hosea 13:13
  Labor pains come upon him, but he is an unwise son. When the time arrives, he fails to present himself at the opening of the womb.
- Psalms 50:15
  Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor Me.”
Through
Isaiah 59:4
No one calls for justice; no one pleads his case honestly. They rely on empty pleas; they tell lies; they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity.
leads to
- Job 15:35
  They conceive trouble and give birth to evil; their womb is pregnant with deceit.”
- Micah 7:2–5
  The godly man has perished from the earth; there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; they hunt one another with a net.
Through
Psalms 17:14
from such men, O LORD, by Your hand— from men of the world whose portion is in this life. May You fill the bellies of Your treasured ones and satisfy their sons, so they…
leads to
- Job 22:18
  But it was He who filled their houses with good things; so I stay far from the counsel of the wicked.

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About Isaiah

The Prophet Isaiah — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

Isaiah: the study guide →Read chapter 26 →The featured study →

Continue: Isaiah 26 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Isaiah

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Isaiah