Isaiah 49:16 BSB — MannaFest

Isaiah 49:16

Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are ever before Me.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

KJV

Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

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Commentary

3 voices

Ambrose of Milan

DEATH AS A GOOD 5:17 (397)

Let us flee these evils and elevate our soul to the image and likeness of God. The flight from evils is the likeness of God, and the image of God is gained through the virtues. And so, like a painter, he has painted us with the colors of the virtues. "See, I have painted your walls, Jerusalem." Let us not wipe away with the brush of neglect the props of the painted walls of our soul.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Two things are here promised, which were to be in part accomplished in the reviving of the Jewish church after its return out of captivity, but more fully in the planting of the Christian church by the preaching of the gospel of Christ; and we may take the comfort of these promises.

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible (1832)

Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands “Behold, on the palms of my hands have I delineated thee” - This is certainly an allusion to some practice, common among the Jews at that time, of making marks on their hands or arms by punctures on the skin, with some sort of sign or representation of the city or temple, to show their affection and zeal for it. They had a method of making such punctures indelible by fire, or by staining. See note on Isa 44:6 (note).

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

7 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
הֵ֥ן	hen	here!	H2005 →
עַל־	'al-	on	H5921 →
כַּפַּ֖יִם	ka.Pa.yim	palms of hands	H3709 →
חַקֹּתִ֑יךְ	cha.ko.Tikh	I have inscribed you	H2710 →
חוֹמֹתַ֥יִךְ	cho.mo.Ta.yikh	walls your	H2346 →
נֶגְדִּ֖י	neg.Di	[are] before me	H5048 →
תָּמִֽיד׃	ta.Mid	continually	H8548 →

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 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.
leads to
- Isaiah 26:1
  In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong city; salvation is established as its walls and ramparts.
- Isaiah 11:9
  They will neither harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the sea is full of water.
- Zechariah 9:8
  But 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…
Through
Isaiah 62:6
On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD shall take no rest for yourselves,
leads to
- Isaiah 52:8
  Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices, together they shout for joy. For every eye will see when the LORD returns to Zion.
- Ezekiel 3:17–21
  “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me.
Through
Song of Solomon 8:6
Set me as a seal over your heart, as a seal upon your arm. For love is as strong as death, its jealousy as unrelenting as Sheol. Its sparks are fiery flames, the fiercest…
leads to
- Jeremiah 22:24
  “As surely as I live,” declares the LORD, “even if you, Coniah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, were a signet ring on My right hand, I would pull you off.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Revelation 12:11
  They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. And they did not love their lives so as to shy away from death.
Through
Haggai 2:23
On that day, declares the LORD of Hosts, I will take you, My servant, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, declares the LORD, and I will make you like My signet ring, for I have chosen…
leads to
- Isaiah 43:10
  “You are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may consider and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me no god was formed,…

Featured studies on this passage

Walks through Isaiah 49

The Armor of God

Roman legionary equipment surveyed by Paul as Christian discipline (Eph 6:10–18). Six pieces of armor and a seventh element — prayer — that is posture, not armor. Every piece carries an OT echo.

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St John the Evangelist at Patmos — Diego Velázquez

Walks through Isaiah 49

John on Patmos, Revelation 1 | MannaFest

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The Prophet Isaiah, Sistine Chapel ceiling — Michelangelo

Walks through Isaiah 49

Messianic Prophecy

The full catalog as a receipt ledger — the Old Testament text, the New Testament usage, and the witness, side by side, with every count rendered live from the data and every contested reading shown with both columns.

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Walks through Isaiah 49

The Suffering Servant

Isaiah 52:13–53:12 — the single most extensive and specific messianic prophecy in the Old Testament, preserved in a scroll that predates Christ by more than a century.

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About Isaiah

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

Isaiah: the study guide →Read chapter 49 →The featured study →

Continue: Isaiah 49 →

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