Isaiah 51:6 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Isaiah 51:6
Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished.
to lift · verb, qal imperative, 2nd person masculine plural
eyes
עֵֽינֵיכֶ֜ם'ei.nei.Khem
H5869
an eye (literally or figuratively) · noun, common feminine dual construct + pronominal suffix, 2nd person masculine plural
heavens
לַשָּׁמַ֨יִםla.sha.Ma.yim
H8064
the sky (as aloft · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
look
וְֽהַבִּ֧יטוּve.ha.Bi.tu
H5027
to scan · conjunction + verb, hiphil imperative, 2nd person masculine plural
earth
הָאָ֣רֶץha.'A.retz
H776
the earth (at large · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
heavens
שָׁמַ֜יִםsha.Ma.yim
H8064
the sky (as aloft · noun, common masculine 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
Matthew 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
Psalms 102:25-26 Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands.
Isaiah 34:4 And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as…
Hebrews 1:10-12 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
Revelation 6:12-14 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and th…
John 3:15-16 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
2 Peter 3:10-12 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements sha…
John 10:27-29 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Isaiah 51:4-8
Both these proclamations, as I may call them, end alike with an assurance of the perpetuity of God's righteousness and his salvation; and therefore we put them together, both being designed for the comfort of God's people. Observe,
I. Who they are to whom this comfort belongs: "My people, and my nation, that I have set apart for myself, that own me and are owned by me." Those are God's people and his nation who are subject to him as their King and their God, pay allegiance to him, and put themselves under his protection accordingly. They are a people who know righteousness, who not only have the means of knowledge, and to whom righteousness is made known, but who improve those means, and are…
(Isa 40:6, Isa 40:8; Psa 102:26; Heb 1:11-12).
vanish away--literally, "shall be torn asunder," as a garment [MAURER]; which accords with the context.
in like manner--But GESENIUS, "Like a gnat"; like the smallest and vilest insect. JEROME translates, as English Version, and infers that "in like manner" as man, the heavens (that is, the sky) and earth are not to be annihilated, but changed for the better (Isa 65:17).
righteousness--My faithfully fulfilled promise (see on Isa 51:5).
John Gill on Isaiah 51:6
Lift up your eyes to the heavens,.... And observe their beauty and order, the constant and regular motion of the heavenly bodies, the firmness and solidity of them:
and look upon the earth beneath; how stable and well founded it is:
for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke; though they are so firm, and have lasted so long, and have kept their constant situation and course, yet they shall melt away like salt, as the word (k) signifies, and disappear in an instant like smoke. Reference seems to be had to the general conflagration, when the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, 2 Peter 3:12,
and the earth shall wax old like a garment; an…
The Son is called "salvation" and "righteousness," as we often say, and thus his quality is declared that he has in himself, by which and in which he is Son by nature. Indeed, he is eternal and does not "wear out." Such is the difference between creator and creation, the made from the maker, which is clearly seen in this verse.
From the sky and the earth, from the things on high and those below, learn of my power. I produced these elements with great ease and, conversely, I can make them disappear. "But my salvation shall be for eternity, and my righteousness shall not fail." This is what the Lord has likewise said in the holy Gospels: "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words will by no means pass away."
But if our opponents say, How then is it, if the universe is not destroyed, that the Lord says that "heaven and earth shall pass away," and the prophet, that "the heaven shall perish as smoke" and "the earth shall grow old as a garment"; we answer, because it is usual for the Scriptures to call the change of the world from its present condition to a better and more glorious one destruction, as its earlier form is lost in the change of all things to a state of greater splendor, for there is neither contradiction nor absurdity in the Scriptures. For not "the world" but "the fashion of this world" passes away, it is said. So it is usual for the Scriptures to call the change from an earlier form to a better and more comely state "destruction"; just as when one calls by the name of "destruction" the change from a childish form into a perfect adult, as the stature of the child is turned into mature size and beauty.
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
Astronomy — The Hebrews were devout students of the wonders of the starry firmanent (Amos 5:8; Ps. 19). In the Book of Job, which is the oldest book of the Bible in all probability, the constellations are…
Earth · General references — General references
Justification · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Salvation · Described as: Eternal — Described as: Eternal
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).
away
נִמְלָ֙חוּ֙nim.La.chu
H4414
properly · verb, niphal perfect, 3rd person common plural
smoke
כֶּעָשָׁ֤ןke.'a.Shan
H6227
smoke · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
earth
וְהָאָ֙רֶץ֙ve.ha.'A.retz
H776
the earth (at large · conjunction + definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
old
תִּבְלֶ֔הtiv.Leh
H1086
to fail · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person feminine singular
garment
כַּבֶּ֣גֶדka.Be.ged
H899
a covering · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
dwell
וְיֹשְׁבֶ֖יהָve.yo.she.Vei.ha
H3427
properly · conjunction + verb, qal active participle, masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person feminine singular
die
יְמוּת֑וּןye.mu.Tun
H4191
to die (literally or figuratively) · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural + paragogic nun
properly · verb, niphal imperfect, 3rd person feminine singular
on Isaiah 51:6
Lift up your eyes toward heaven. When we see so great changes in the world, we are apt to think that the Church comes within the influence of the sanhe violent motion; and therefore we need to have our minds elevated above the ordinary course of nature; otherwise, the salvation of the Church will appear to hang on a thread, and to be carried hither and thither by the billows and tempests. Yet, we may see both in heaven and in earth how wisely God regulates all things, with what fatherly kindness he upholds and defends his workmanship and the frame of the world, and with what equity he provides for all his creatures. But in a remarkable manner he deigns to watch over his Church, as he has sep…
The people of God are now summoned to turn their eyes upwards and downwards: the old world above their heads and under their feet is destined to destruction. "Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens will pass away like smoke, and the earth fall to pieces like a garment, and its inhabitants die out like a nonentity; and my salvation will last for ever, and my righteousness does not go to ruin." The reason for the summons follows with kı̄. The heavens will be resolved into atoms, like smoke: nimlâchū from mâlach, related to mârach, root mal, from which comes mâlal (see at Job 14:2), to rub to pieces, to crumble to pieces, or mangle; Aquila, ἠλοη…
die like flies: The wicked will die in great multitudes on the day of God’s judgment.
Rashi on Isaiah 51:6
the heavens shall vanish like smoke The princes of the hosts of the heathens who are in heaven.
shall vanish Heb. נִמְלָחוּ, shall rot away. Comp. (Jer. 38:12) “Rags and decayed clothing (בְּלוֹאֵי הַסְּחָבוֹת),” a decayed garment. Another explanation of נִמְלָחוּ is: shall be stirred. This is an expression similar to “the sailors of (מַלָּחֵי) the sea,” who stir the water with the oars that guide the ship. Comp. also (Ex. 30:35) “Stirred (מְמֻלָּח), pure, and holy.”
and the earth the rulers of the earth.
and its inhabitants the rest of the people.
and My salvation for My people shall be forever. Another explanation is: [It refers] actually [to] the heavens and the earth, and this is its…
