Isaiah 55:10
in Isaiah 55For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return without watering the earth, making it bud and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For as the rain cometh down and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, and giveth seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
KJV
For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
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This verse in Isaiah 55
Commentary
12 notes on this verseObserve here, (1.) The efficacy of God's word in the kingdom of nature. He saith to the snow, Be thou on the earth; he appoints when it shall come, to what degree, and how long it shall lie there; he saith so to the small rain and the great rain of his strength, Job xxxvii.
This site's exposition
For just as rain and snow fall from heaven
on Isaiah 55:10-11
Rain and snow “do not return without watering the earth”. In verse 11 they become the figure for the word of God. The certainty of the harvest is set beside the certainty of a spoken promise, which covers the promises of the whole book.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
For the rain and the snow do not return to heaven but accomplish in the earth the will of him that sends them. So the word that he shall send through his Christ, who is himself the Word and the Message, shall return to him with great power. For when he shall come and bring it, he shall come down like rain and snow, and through him all that is sown shall spring up and bear righteous fruit, and the word shall return to his sender; but not in vain shall his going have been, but thus shall he say in the presence of his sender, "Behold, I and the children that the Lord has given me." And this is the voice through which the dead shall live. And this is the voice of God that shall sound from on high and raise up all the dead.
(Verse 10, 11) And how does rain and snow descend from the sky, and it will not return there until it has soaked the earth and makes it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread for eating. So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I desire, and it will succeed in the purpose for which I sent it.
The Medieval Church2 voices
A commentator
BonaventureCollations on the Hexaemeron, Collation 11 · Written in the 13th century.
proposed
By means of diffusion, as of brightness out of light, of heat out of fire, of a river out of its headspring, of rain out of a full or humid cloud. In the first diffusion, equality is lacking, for brightness is not the same as …
And as the rain and the snow. Here he shows the firmness of the promise: And first, he sets out the efficacy of the divine word: it shall not return to me void, that is, without fruit: an obscure speech shall not go for naught …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
We are all invited to come and take the benefit of that provision which the grace of God has made for poor souls in the new covenant, of that which is the heritage of the servants of the Lord ( ch. liv.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
5 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither,....
The Nineteenth Century4 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
The hearts of men, once barren of spirituality, shall be made, by the outpouring of the Spirit under Messiah, to bear fruits of righteousness (Isa 5:6;
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A commentator
Charles Spurgeon1834–1892
The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2410: “Springtime in Nature and Grace” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) · Written before 1892.
proposed
THIS is a text for the springtime! If you read it through tomorrow morning, before the smoke has clouded the heavens, while yet the earliest birds are calling up their mates to sing, you will understand its meaning better than I can make you comprehend it by any words of mine. The whole four verses seem to describe a scene in nature which is only to be witnessed about this time of the year, yet I am not going to look into the poetical meaning of the text so much as to use it as a description of personal experience.
A commentator
Charles Spurgeon1834–1892
The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2410: “Springtime in Nature and Grace” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) · Written before 1892.
proposed
THIS is a text for the springtime! If you read it through tomorrow morning, before the smoke has clouded the heavens, while yet the earliest birds are calling up their mates to sing, you will understand its meaning better than I can make you comprehend it by any words of mine. The whole four verses seem to describe a scene in nature which is only to be witnessed about this time of the year, yet I am not going to look into the poetical meaning of the text so much as to use it as a description of personal experience. I think, no—I am sure that there are many of us who have passed through our spiritual winter. We have also had our spring—we are even coming to our summer—and there are some whose ripe and mellow experience has the peacefulness of autumn about it. Our lives are, in miniature, like the years that so quickly follow one another and every year does but repeat the changes in our lives! I want, at this time, to speak about springtime in our spiritual experience—touching, however, upon a more advanced period, as it will be necessary to do—but my first word is to be concerning our springtime experience. Brothers and Sisters, by nature we lie in the cold and death of winter—everything is frost-bound, withered, dead. We are nothing. We yield nothing. We can do nothing. The Word of God comes to us as the beams of the sun pour down their warmth from the heavens and, by a mighty and mysterious influence, that Word begins to work upon us and we soon feel that we have entered upon quite another season of life. We are no longer in the cold winter—we have come to a blessed springtime! That is the theme upon which I am going to now speak. I. First, notice in the text the descent of the Word, THE DOWNCOMING—"As the rain comes down, and the snow from Heaven." Our spring begins with April showers alternating with rough winds.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
For as the rain cometh down - The meaning of this verse and the following is plain. This refers evidently, as the whole passage does, to the times which should succeed the coming of the Messiah. The hearts of people by nature are what the earth would be without the rains of heaven - barren and sterile. But God says that his truth shall certainly accomplish an effect similar to that produced by descending showers. The rain never descends in vain. It makes the earth fertile, beautiful, and lovely. So would it be with his truth in the moral world.
How the passage was read
On Isaiah 55:1-13On Isaiah 55:1-13
How the synagogue has read this chapter
This chapter is not a shelf text in Jewish practice. A haftarah is a short reading from the Prophets that follows the Torah reading in the synagogue service, chosen long ago to match the day; and the passage beginning “Seek the LORD while He may be found” (Isaiah 55:6–56:8) is the haftarah appointed for the afternoon of public fast days in the Ashkenazi rite. A public fast day is a day the whole community goes without food to turn back to God together, the way Nineveh fasted in Jonah. So for centuries, these are the words a congregation hears at precisely the moment it is repenting.
In the Babylonian Talmud (tractate Ta’anit, compiled by about the sixth century AD), the chapter’s water is Torah, God’s teaching. “Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters” (55:1) is expounded in Ta’anit 7a: as water leaves high ground and gathers low, the words of Torah endure only in the humble. The rain of verses 10–11, which “does not return empty,” stands in the same discussions (Ta’anit 6b–7a): rain that makes the earth bear becomes the sages’ picture of a word from heaven that accomplishes what it was sent to do.
What the individual commentators add on this verse, in their own words, follows below.
What the Jewish commentators add
For, just as the rain and the snow fall and do not return empty, but do good for you.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
so shall be My word that emanates from My mouth to inform you through the prophets, will not return empty, but will do good to you if you heed them.
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.
Sources: Ta’anit 7a (Babylonian Talmud) · Ta’anit 6b · Shulchan Arukh, Orach Chayim 566 (the fast-day rite, with Rema)
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 3 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
22 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כִּ֡י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| כַּאֲשֶׁ֣ר | kaasher | just as | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יֵרֵד֩ | yered | it comes down | H3381 → | 381 times |
| הַגֶּ֨שֶׁם | hageshem | the rain | H1653 → | |
| וְהַשֶּׁ֜לֶג | vehasheleg | and the snow | H7950 → | |
| מִן־ | min- | from | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| הַשָּׁמַ֗יִם | hashamayim | the heavens | H8064 → | 421 times |
| וְשָׁ֙מָּה֙ | veshamah | and there towards | H8033 → | 834 times |
| לֹ֣א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יָשׁ֔וּב | yashuv | it returns | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| כִּ֚י | ki | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אִם־ | ʾim- | except | H518 → | 1069 times |
| הִרְוָ֣ה | hirvah | it has given water to | H7301 → | 14 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הָאָ֔רֶץ | haaretz | the earth | H776 → | 2504 times |
| וְהוֹלִידָ֖הּ | veholidah | and it has caused to bring forth it | H3205 → | 496 times |
| וְהִצְמִיחָ֑הּ | vehitzmichah | and it has made sprout it | H6779 → | 33 times |
| וְנָ֤תַן | venatan | and it has given | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| זֶ֙רַע֙ | zera' | seed | H2233 → | 229 times |
| לַזֹּרֵ֔עַ | lazorea' | to the sower | H2232 → | 56 times |
| וְלֶ֖חֶם | velechem | and bread | H3899 → | 298 times |
| לָאֹכֵֽל׃ | laokhel | to the eater | H398 → | 810 times |
כִּ֡יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
כַּאֲשֶׁ֣רjust as
kaasherH834 →5497 times
יֵרֵד֩it comes down
yeredH3381 →381 times
הַגֶּ֨שֶׁםthe rain
hageshemH1653 →
וְהַשֶּׁ֜לֶגand the snow
vehashelegH7950 →
מִן־from
min-H4480 →1188 times
הַשָּׁמַ֗יִםthe heavens
hashamayimH8064 →421 times
וְשָׁ֙מָּה֙and there towards
veshamahH8033 →834 times
לֹ֣אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
יָשׁ֔וּבit returns
yashuvH7725 →1056 times
כִּ֚יthat
kiH3588 →4482 times
אִם־except
ʾim-H518 →1069 times
הִרְוָ֣הit has given water to
hirvahH7301 →14 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הָאָ֔רֶץthe earth
haaretzH776 →2504 times
וְהוֹלִידָ֖הּand it has caused to bring forth it
veholidahH3205 →496 times
וְהִצְמִיחָ֑הּand it has made sprout it
vehitzmichahH6779 →33 times
וְנָ֤תַןand it has given
venatanH5414 →2011 times
זֶ֙רַע֙seed
zera'H2233 →229 times
לַזֹּרֵ֔עַto the sower
lazorea'H2232 →56 times
וְלֶ֖חֶםand bread
velechemH3899 →298 times
לָאֹכֵֽל׃to the eater
laokhelH398 →810 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
Hosea 10:12Sow for yourselves righteousness and reap the fruit of loving devotion; break up your unplowed ground. For it is time to seek the LORD until He comes and sends righteousness upon you like rain.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 4:3–4
For this is what the LORD says to the men of Judah and Jerusalem: “Break up your unplowed ground, and do not sow among the thorns.
- James 3:18
Peacemakers who sow in peace reap the fruit of righteousness.
- Isaiah 45:8
Drip down, O heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness. Let the earth open up that salvation may sprout and righteousness spring up with it; I, the LORD, have created it.
- Proverbs 11:18
The wicked man earns an empty wage, but he who sows righteousness reaps a true reward.
- Isaiah 55:6
Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.
- Jeremiah 4:3–4
Through
Deuteronomy 32:2Let my teaching fall like rain and my speech settle like dew, like gentle rain on new grass, like showers on tender plants.
it leads to
- Isaiah 55:10–11
For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return without watering the earth, making it bud and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat,
- Psalms 72:6
May he be like rain that falls on freshly cut grass, like spring showers that water the earth.
- Isaiah 55:10–11
Through
Ezekiel 34:26I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing. I will send down showers in season—showers of blessing.
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 28:12
The LORD will open the heavens, His abundant storehouse, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations, but borrow…
- Deuteronomy 28:12
Where this verse is studied
About Isaiah
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Isaiah; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Aphrahat the Persian Sage, DEMONSTRATIONS 8:15; Bonaventure, Collations on the Hexaemeron, Collation 11; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2410: “Springtime in Nature and Grace” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.