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Isaiah 61:6

in Isaiah 61

But you will be called the priests of the LORD; they will speak of you as ministers of our God; you will feed on the wealth of nations, and you will boast in their riches.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

But ye shall be named the priests of Jehovah; men shall call you the ministers of our God: ye shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

KJV

But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

This verse in Isaiah 61

Commentary

10 notes on this verse

A commentator

Jerome

Commentary on Isaiah · Written before 420.

(Vers. 6, 7.) But you will be called priests of the Lord, ministers of our God. It will be said to you: You will devour the strength of the nations, and in their glory you will boast. Instead of your shame, you will have a double portion, and instead of disgrace, they will rejoice in their inheritance; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy will be theirs. For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing. LXX: But you will be called priests of the Lord, ministers of our God.

This site's exposition

They will rebuild the ancient ruins

on Isaiah 61:4-6

“They will rebuild the ancient ruins”, the returned people repairing cities ruined. Verses 5 and 6 draw a line: “Strangers will stand and feed your flocks”, while “you will be called the priests of the LORD”. The whole nation takes the title of Exodus 19:6, a kingdom of priests.

This site's exposition

you will boast in their riches

Barnes reads the verse as freedom from farm labour, the people left free for the service of God. Henry notes the verb feed, riches used and shared, and joins the priestly title to the royal priesthood of 1 Peter 2:9. Jamieson, Fausset & Brown render boast as taking their place.

The record, by era

The Medieval Church1 voice

A commentator

Thomas Aquinas

Commentary on Isaiah · Written before 1274.

proposed

1081. But you shall be called the priests. Here he foretells the matter of joy as to the glory of men. And concerning this, he does three things. First, he shows the perfection of their glory, because they are glorious in spiritual things: priests, as …

The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

But his service is perfect freedom, nay, it is the greatest honour. When God brought Israel out of Egypt he took them to be to him a kingdom of priests, Exod. xix. And the gospel church is a royal priesthood, 1 Pet. ii.

A commentator

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)

proposed

The priests - The whole body of them shall now be as near to God as the priests were formerly, and shall be a royal priesthood. This is most certainly true of all the faithful under the gospel.
But ye shall be named the priests of the Lord,....

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

It is not said, "You shall hoard the riches of the Gentiles, and treasure them," but, "You shall eat them; " for there is nothing better in riches than to use them and to do good with them. They shall boast themselves in their glory.
2 more voices on this verse

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

Ministers-- (Eze 44:11). eat . . . riches of . . . Gentiles-- (Isa 60:5-11). in their glory . . . boast yourselves--rather, "in their splendor ye shall be substituted in their stead"; ye shall substitute yourselves [MAURER].
But ye shall be named - The idea here literally is, ‘There will be no need of your engaging in the business of agriculture. All that will be done by others; and you, as ministers of God, may engage wholly in the duties of religion.

The words behind it

13 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • וְאַתֶּ֗םand you

    veatemH859 →1094 times

  • כֹּהֲנֵ֤יpriests of

    kohaneiH3548 →750 times

  • יְהוָה֙Yahweh

    yahwehH3068 →6520 times

  • תִּקָּרֵ֔אוּyou will be called

    tikareuH7121 →733 times

  • מְשָׁרְתֵ֣י[the] servants of

    meshareteiH8334 →97 times

  • אֱלֹהֵ֔ינוּGod our

    ʾeloheinuH430 →2601 times

  • יֵאָמֵ֖רit will be said

    yeamerH559 →5305 times

  • לָכֶ֑םof you

    lakhem

  • חֵ֤יל[the] wealth of

    cheilH2428 →246 times

  • גּוֹיִם֙nations

    goyimH1471 →561 times

  • תֹּאכֵ֔לוּyou will consume

    tokheluH398 →810 times

  • וּבִכְבוֹדָ֖םand in abundance their

    uvikhvodamH3519 →200 times

  • תִּתְיַמָּֽרוּ׃you will boast

    tityamaruH3235 →

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    1 Peter 2:9

    But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

    it leads to

    • Deuteronomy 7:6

      For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His prized possession out of all peoples on the face of…

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Revelation 5:10

      You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign upon the earth.”

      Reached by 3 separate paths from here.

    • Revelation 1:6

      who has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and power forever and ever! Amen.

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Exodus 19:5–6

      Now if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, you will be My treasured possession out of all the nations—for the whole earth is Mine.

    • 2 Timothy 1:9

      He has saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but by His own purpose and by the grace He granted us in Christ Jesus before time began.

  • Through

    1 Peter 2:5

    you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

    it leads to

    • 1 Peter 2:9

      But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Ephesians 2:20–22

      built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.

    • 1 Corinthians 3:9

      For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.

Where this verse is studied

About Isaiah

The Prophet Isaiah, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
The Prophet Isaiah, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.

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); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; 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.