Isaiah 56
Berean Standard Bible · Compare translations · 700 BC – 500 BC · Exile in Babylon · Tap a verse to copy, share or highlight ·
12 verses · 339 words · ~2 min read · ~2 min listen
Salvation for Foreigners
1This is what the Lord says:
“Maintain justice and do what is right,
for My salvation is coming soon,
and My righteousness will be revealed.
2Blessed is the man who does this,
and the son of man who holds it fast,
who keeps the Sabbath without profaning it
and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
3Let no foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say,
“The Lord will utterly exclude me from His people.”
And let the eunuch not say,
“I am but a dry tree.”
4For this is what the Lord says:
“To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases Me
and hold fast to My covenant—
5I 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.
6And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord
to minister to Him,
to love the name of the Lord,
and to be His servants—
all who keep the Sabbath without profaning it
and who hold fast to My covenant—
7I will bring them to My holy mountain
and make them joyful in My house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices
will be accepted on My altar,
for My house will be called a house of prayer
for all the nations.”
8Thus declares the Lord God,
who gathers the dispersed of Israel:
“I will gather to them still others
besides those already gathered.”
Israelʼs Sinful Leaders
9Come, all you beasts of the field;
eat greedily, all you beasts of the forest.
10Israelʼs watchmen are blind,
they are all oblivious;
they are all mute dogs,
they cannot bark;
they are dreamers lying around,
loving to slumber.
11Like ravenous dogs,
they are never satisfied.
They are shepherds with no discernment;
they all turn to their own way,
each one seeking his own gain:
12“Come, let me get the wine,
let us imbibe the strong drink,
and tomorrow will be like today,
only far better!”
Footnotes (1)
- a v7 Cited in Matthew 21:13,Mark 11:17,and Luke 19:46
Study notes on this chapter · 1
QuotationLinked by the New Testament
A house of prayer for all nations
When Jesus drives traders from the temple courts he combines two prophetic texts: Isaiah's promise that the temple would be a house of prayer for all nations, and Jeremiah's charge that it had become a den of robbers.
When: Isaiah, c. 700–540 BC; Jeremiah's temple sermon, c. 609 BC; temple cleansing in Jesus' last week, c. AD 30–33.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.