Isaiah 30:20 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Isaiah 30:20
And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers:
the Lord (used as a proper name of God only) · proper noun, a title
give
וְנָתַ֨ןve.na.Tan
H5414
to give · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
bread
לֶ֥חֶםLe.chem
H3899
food (for man or beast) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
adversity
צָ֖רtzar
H6862
narrow · adjective, masculine singular absolute
water
וּמַ֣יִםu.Ma.yim
H4325
water · conjunction + noun, common masculine plural absolute
affliction
לָ֑חַץLa.chatz
H3906
distress · noun, common masculine singular absolute
teachers
יָרָהyârâh
H3384
properly
corner
יִכָּנֵ֥ףyi.ka.Nef
H3670
properly · verb, niphal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
eyes
עֵינֶ֖יךָ'ei.Nei.kha
H5869
an eye (literally or figuratively) · noun, common feminine dual construct + pronominal suffix, 2nd person masculine singular
see
רֹא֥וֹתro.'ot
H7200
to see · verb, qal active participle, feminine plural absolute
teachers
יָרָהyârâh
H3384
properly
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
1 Kings 22:27 And say, Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I com…
Psalms 80:5 Thou feedest them with the bread of tears; and givest them tears to drink in great measure.
Amos 8:11-12 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hear…
Psalms 127:2 It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep.
Acts 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the…
Psalms 74:9 We see not our signs: there is no more any prophet: neither is there among us any that knoweth how long.
Deuteronomy 16:3 Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction; for thou cames…
Psalms 30:5 For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Isaiah 30:18-26
The closing words of the foregoing paragraph (You shall be left as a beacon upon a mountain) some understand as a promise that a remnant of them should be reserved as monuments of mercy; and here the prophet tells them what good times should succeed these calamities. Or the first words in this paragraph may be read by way of antithesis, Notwithstanding this, yet will the Lord wait that he may be gracious. The prophet, having shown that those who made Egypt their confidence would be ashamed of it, here shows that those who sat still and made God alone their confidence would have the comfort of it. It is matter of comfort to the people of God, when the times are very bad, that all will be well…
Rather, "The Lord will give"; the "though" is not in the original.
bread of adversity--He will not deny you food enough to save you in your adversity (Kg1 22:27; Psa 127:2).
be removed--rather, "hide themselves"; they shall no more be forced to hide themselves from persecution, but shall be openly received with reverence [MAURER]. Contrast with this Psa 74:9; Amo 8:11.
John Gill on Isaiah 30:20
And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction,.... Either at this present time, when the city was besieged by Sennacherib; or when it should be besieged by the Chaldeans, when adversity was their bread, and affliction their water; or when they had only bread and water in their adversity and affliction; or a famine of bread and water, as is common in times of a siege. It may refer to the poor, and mean, and afflicted state of the people of God, in the first times of the Gospel especially:
yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more; or, "thy rain" (b), as some interpret it; one and the same word signifies both rain and a teacher, because do…
(Verse 20.) Crying, you will not weep in vain, showing compassion, he will have compassion on you: at the sound of your cry, as soon as he hears, he will answer you. When you return to Zion and dwell in Jerusalem, you will not weep as you wept before, but your mourning will turn into joy: For blessed are those who weep, for they themselves will laugh (Luke VI, 21). And after you have called out and said to the Lord. I cried out with all my heart, hear me, O Lord (Psalm CXVIII, 145). And again: I cried out, have mercy on me, and I will keep your commandments (Psalm 85). And elsewhere: I waited for the morning and cried out (Psalm 118, 147), and your voice was so clear that it penetrated the heavens: immediately the Lord will answer you, and you will be like Moses, of whom it is written: Moses spoke, and the Lord answered him (Exodus 19, 20).
"Let waters from your own fountain flow in abundance for you, but let your waters pass through into your streets." And according to the prophet Isaiah, "You shall be like a watered garden and like a fountain of water whose waters shall not fail. And the places that have been desolate for ages shall be built in you; you shall raise up the foundations of generation and generation; and you shall be called the repairer of the fences, turning the paths into rest." And that blessedness shall come upon you which the same prophet promises: "And the Lord will not cause your teacher to flee away from you any more, and your eyes shall see your teacher. And your ears shall hear the word of one admonishing you behind your back. This is the way, walk in it, and go not aside either to the right hand or to the left." And so it will come to pass that not only every purpose and thought of our heart but also all the wanderings and rovings of your imagination will become to you a holy and unceasing pondering of the divine law.
He has seen us sinning and has borne with it. He who forbade us to sin before we did it does not stop waiting to pardon us even after we have sinned. The one we have rejected is calling us. We have turned away from him, but he has not turned away. Hence Isaiah said, "Your eyes shall see your teacher, and your ears shall hear the voice of a counselor behind you." A person is counseled to his face, so to speak, when he is created for righteousness and receives the precepts of rectitude. When he despises these precepts, it is as if he is turning his back to his Creator's face. But he still follows behind us and counsels us that we have despised him, but he still does not cease to call us. We turn our backs on his face, so to speak, when we reject his words, when we trample his commandments under foot; but he who sees that we reject him still calls out to us by his commandments and waits for us by his patience, stands behind us, and calls us back when we have turned away.
Dictionary and topics
Hezekiah — Whom Jehovah has strengthened. (1.) Son of Ahaz (2 Kings 18:1; 2 Chr. 29:1), whom he succeeded on the throne of the kingdom of Judah. He reigned twenty-nine years (B.C. 726-697). The history of this…
Afflictions · Tempered with mercy — Tempered with mercy
Afflictions And Adversities · .Tempered with mercy — .Tempered with mercy
Bread · Illustrative: (Of adversity,) of heavy affliction — Illustrative: (Of adversity,) of heavy affliction
Feasts, The Anniversary · Were seasons of: Joy and gladness — Were seasons of: Joy and gladness
Prayer, Answers To · Received by those who: Call upon God under affliction — Received by those who: Call upon God under affliction
Titles And Names Of Ministers · Teachers — Teachers
Water · .Water of affliction — .Water of affliction
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
When the Lord shall have given you. He continues the same subject, and strengthens believers, that they may not faint; for patience springs from the hope of a more prosperous issue. Accordingly, he prepares them for enduring future chastisement, for the wrath of God will press hard on them for a time; but he immediately promises that a joyful issue awaits them, when they shall have endured those calamities and distresses; for God will restrain his severity. Thus, I consider v (vau) to mean "When" or "After;" as if he had said, "When you shall have endured those troubles, then will the Lord bless you; for he will change your condition for the better."
Thy rain shall no longer be restrained.…
None but such are heirs of the grace that follows the judgment - a people, newly pardoned in response to its cry for help, conducted by faithful teachers in the right way, and renouncing idolatry with disgust. "For a people continues dwelling in Zion, in Jerusalem; thou shalt not weep for ever: He will prove Himself gracious to thee at the sound of thy cry for help; as soon as He hears, He answers thee. And the Lord giveth you bread in penury, and water for your need; and thy teachers will not hide themselves any more, and thine eyes come to see thy teachers. And thine ears will hear words behind thee, saying, 'This is the way, walk ye in it!' whether ye turn to the right hand or to the left…
adversity for food and suffering for drink: A city under enemy siege for a long time would eventually be overcome by starvation and disease. God did not intend that this disaster should destroy the people of Jerusalem, rather that it would be a tool to teach them.
Rashi on Isaiah 30:20
scant bread and water of oppression You shall not run after pleasures as you do now, as it is said (Amos 6:6): “Who drink from basins of wine.” (Above 22:13) “And behold joy and happiness.”
shall no longer be concealed (לֹא יִכָּנֵף) shall not be covered from you with the skirt of His garments, i.e., He shall not hide His countenance from you.
your Teacher The Holy One, blessed be He, who teaches you for your profit.