Isaiah 40:11 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Isaiah 40:11
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
to tend a flock · preposition + verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
flock
עֶדְר֣וֹed.Ro
H5739
an arrangement · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
shepherd
יִרְעֶ֔הyir.'Eh
H7462
to tend a flock · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
gather
יְקַבֵּ֣ץye.ka.Betz
H6908
to grasp · verb, piel imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
lambs
טְלָאִ֔יםte.la.'Im
H2922
a lamb · noun, common masculine plural absolute
arm
בִּזְרֹעוֹ֙biz.ro.'O
H2220
the arm (as stretched out) · preposition + noun, common feminine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
carry
יִשָּׂ֑אyi.Sa'
H5375
to lift · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
bosom
וּבְחֵיק֖וֹu.ve.chei.Ko
H2436
the bosom (literally or figuratively) · conjunction + preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
lead
יְנַהֵֽלye.na.Hel
H5095
properly · verb, piel imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
young
עָל֖וֹתa.Lot
H5763
to suckle · verb, qal active participle, feminine plural absolute
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
Revelation 7:17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe aw…
Psalms 23:1-6 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Micah 5:4 And he shall stand and feed in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God; and they shall abide: for now shall…
Ezekiel 34:23 And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd.
John 10:11-16 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
Isaiah 49:9-10 That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastu…
Ezekiel 34:12-14 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver…
1 Peter 2:25 For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Isaiah 40:9-11
It was promised (Isa 40:5) that the glory of the Lord shall be revealed; that is it with the hopes of which God's people must be comforted. Now here we are told,
I. How it shall be revealed, Isa 40:9. 1. It shall be revealed to Zion and Jerusalem; notice shall be given of it to the remnant that are left in Zion and Jerusalem, the poor of the land, who were vine-dressers and husbandmen; it shall be told them that their brethren shall return to them. This shall be told also to the captives who belonged to Zion and Jerusalem, and retained their affection for them. Zion is said to dwell with the daughter of Babylon (Zac 2:7); and there she receives notice of Cyrus's gracious proclamation; and so…
feed--including all a shepherd's care--"tend" (Eze 34:23; Psa 23:1; Heb 13:20; Pe1 2:25).
carry--applicable to Messiah's restoration of Israel, as sheep scattered in all lands, and unable to move of themselves to their own land (Psa 80:1; Jer 23:3). As Israel was "carried from the womb" (that is, in its earliest days) (Isa 63:9, Isa 63:11-12; Psa 77:20), so it shall be in "old age" (that is, its latter days) (Isa 46:3-4).
gently lead--as a thoughtful shepherd does the ewes "giving suck" (Margin) (Gen 33:13-14).
John Gill on Isaiah 40:11
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd,.... Christ has a flock, a flock of men, a distinct and peculiar people, and it is but one, and that a little one, and yet a beautiful one, though often a flock of slaughter; which is his by his Father's gift, and his own purchase, and appears manifest in the effectual calling, when he calls them by name; to these he stands in the relation of a shepherd, being so by his Father's designation and appointment, and his own consent; and a good shepherd he is, as is manifest by his laying down his life for the sheep; and a great one, being Jehovah's fellow, and the chief shepherd, under whom all others are; yea, he is the one, and only one; and a very carefu…
I say that these [lambs] are the souls of those who are truly made heavenly philosophers, rejecting the world with its delights and false show and who prefer to dwell in the desert rather than in royal palaces.
And that He also calls us lambs, the Spirit by the mouth of Isaiah is an unimpeachable witness: "He will feed His flock like a shepherd, He will gather the lambs with His arm,"—using the figurative appellation of lambs, which are still more tender than sheep, to express simplicity.
Of this prophecy also let us observe the fulfillment in the exact way and in truth in the holy Gospels. In the first place, the Lord has said, "I am the good shepherd, and I know my sheep and am known by my own … and [I] lay down my life for the sheep." Moreover, he has likewise gathered the lambs with his arms, [that is to say] by the power of his teachings. For soon he said to the fishermen, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men [people]." Presently he called the publicans and ate with them. Again, another time, he allowed even a woman who had led an evil life to shed tears at his feet. He has likewise comforted pregnant women with the thought that they would give birth for salvation. As they learned of the destruction of death and the hope of the resurrection, they possesed sufficient solace for their pains in the expectation of the benefits that had been announced. Finally, while the holy Virgin still carried him in her womb, he filled Elizabeth, who was with child, with joy.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Bosom — In the East objects are carried in the bosom which Europeans carry in the pocket. To have in one’s bosom indicates kindness, secrecy, or intimacy (Gen. 16:5; 2 Sam. 12:8). Christ is said to have been…
Isaiah, The Book of — Consists of prophecies delivered (Isa. 1) in the reign of Uzziah (1-5), (2) of Jotham (6), (3) Ahaz (7-14:28), (4) the first half of Hezekiah’s reign (14:28-35), (5) the second half of Hezekiah’s…
Sheep — Are of different varieties. Probably the flocks of Abraham and Isaac were of the wild species found still in the mountain regions of Persia and Kurdistan. After the Exodus, and as a result of…
Shepherd — A word naturally of frequent occurence in Scripture. Sometimes the word “pastor” is used instead (Jer. 2:8; 3:15; 10:21; 12:10; 17:16). This word is used figuratively to represent the relation of…
Arm · FIGURATIVE USE OF — FIGURATIVE USE OF
Christ Is God · As Jehovah, the Shepherd — As Jehovah, the Shepherd
Christ, Character Of · Compassionate — Compassionate
Christ, The Shepherd · Foretold — Foretold
Compassion And Sympathy Of Christ, The · Manifested for the: Weak in faith — Manifested for the: Weak in faith
Excellency And Glory Of Christ, The · As Shepherd — As Shepherd
Gentiles · PROPHECIES OF THE CONVERSION OF — PROPHECIES OF THE CONVERSION OF
Gentleness
John Calvin on Isaiah 40:11
As a shepherd. In this verse he declares what is the nature of that work of the Lord; for since he works in various and, indeed, in innumerable ways, the hearer might have been kept in suspense as to the work which God intended to accomplish; and thus the general doctrine would have been less efficacious in exciting hope. Though he does not describe every part, yet he states in a few words that God has determined to protect and guard his Church. On this account he compares him to "a shepherd;" and under this designation he expresses his infinite love towards us, when he does not refuse to stoop so low as to perform towards us the office of "a shepherd." In other passages, and even a little b…
The prophet dwells upon this, the redeeming side not the judicial, as he proceeds to place the image of the good shepherd by the side of that of the Lord Jehovah. "He will feed His flock like a shepherd, take the lambs in His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those that are giving suck." The flock is His people, now dispersed in a foreign land. The love with which He tends this flock is shown, by way of example, in His conduct towards the טלאים (= טליים from טלי = טלה), the young lambs that have not long been born, and the עלות, those giving suck, lactantes (Vulg. fetae), not those that are sucking, sugentes (from עוּל med. Vav, to nourish). Such as cannot keep pace with the…
Isaiah used the familiar biblical metaphor of a shepherd to speak of God’s care for his people (see also 49:10; Ps 23:1; Jer 3:15; 23:4; Ezek 34:11-17; Matt 2:6; John 10:1-18).
Rashi on Isaiah 40:11
Like a shepherd [who] tends his flock Like a shepherd who tends his flock; with his arm he gathers lambs, and he carries them in his bosom.
the nursing ones he leads [Jonathan renders:] The nursing ones he leads gently, the nursing sheep.
he leads Heb. יְנַהֵל, lit. he shall lead, like מְנַהֵל, he leads.
Lamb, The · The shepherd’s care for — The shepherd’s care for
Preciousness Of Christ · On account of his: Care and tenderness — On account of his: Care and tenderness
Privileges Of Saints · Having: Christ for their Shepherd — Having: Christ for their Shepherd
Prophecies Respecting Christ · His tenderness and compassion — His tenderness and compassion
Reward · 8:33; — 8:33;
Righteous · .Lambs — .Lambs
Saints, Compared To · Lambs — Lambs
Shepherd · .A name given to Jesus — .A name given to Jesus
Shepherds · Illustrative: (Their care and tenderness,) of tenderness of Christ — Illustrative: (Their care and tenderness,) of tenderness of Christ
Titles And Names Of Saints · Lambs — Lambs
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).
