Section 141 of 17454:1–10Isaiah

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King James VersionIsaiah 54:1–10

Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.

Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.

Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.

For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.

For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.

In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.

For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.

For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee.

Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.

Scripture text: King James Version, Standardized 1769 text. Public domain in the United States.About this Bible text

Isaiah 54:1–10

Bereaved Zion Sings as Covenant Compassion Returns

Enlarge the tent, woman who thought the story ended

A barren city is told to sing. Children of the desolate will outnumber the married. Stretch the curtains; do not hold back. Shame of youth and widowhood will be remembered no more, because the Maker is husband, the Holy One is Redeemer. Brief abandonment is compared to a flash of anger; compassion returns like Noah's oath: mountains may go, but my steadfast love will not depart.

The marriage and fertility metaphors are for a community that felt unchosen and childless as a people. They do not shame childless people, command marriage, minimize the trauma of having been left, or turn divine husband-language into permission for a partner to control. Noah's covenant is the guard: this is about God's refusal to unmake the relationship.

Brief versus everlasting is the pastoral math. The abandonment felt total; God names it brief without calling the pain imaginary. A warranted life is to sing before the census justifies it, to make room for lives we did not think would return, and to hold compassion as more durable than the earthquake we lived through.

How this should shape us

Sing before the census justifies it, and make room for lives you did not think would return. Hold compassion as more durable than the quake, without shaming the childless or controlling partners.

Teach it back

Explain Isaiah 54:1–10 in your own words. Name its place in Isaiah, one source-controlled observation, one uncertainty, one enduring truth, and one harmful use the passage does not authorize.

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The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.

Where careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties

Where do responsible readings differ?

Best judgment: The marriage and fertility metaphors do not shame childlessness, command marriage, minimize abandonment trauma, or turn divine imagery into permission for partner control.

How certain? strong

Research trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.

Isaiah 54:1–10, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Isaiah

Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology at the exact unit, without treating morphology as apparatus, lexicon, composition history, or interpretation.

Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Isa.xml, OSIS 54:1–10 with Hebrew/KJV versification difference checked

NET Bible Notes: Isaiah

Supports: Verse-level controls for Hebrew, syntax, poetry, older KJV language, chronology, names, textual issues, and material translation alternatives.

Official NET Isaiah PDF, translator, study, and textual notes attached to Isaiah 54:1–10 in the complete 205-page book PDF

Second Isaiah study-guide course

Supports: Babylonian-exile and Persian horizons, new exodus, Cyrus, servant figures, Daughter Zion, nations, suffering, and transition to plural servants.

Yale Bible Study, Second Isaiah course, Arm of God guide on Isaiah 52:13-55:13; applied to Isaiah 54:1–10

Isaiah course: summary, outline, background, introductory issues, themes, and reception

Supports: Whole-book historical, literary, theological, ethical, and reception synthesis across Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, and postexilic horizons.

Enter the Bible Isaiah course, Outline Book 2C, Themes, and Bible in the World; applied to Isaiah 54:1–10

Anti-Judaism in Christian Teaching and Preaching

Supports: Controls against caricaturing Judaism, Torah-as-legalism claims, blanket condemnation, Gentile boasting, and supersessionist misuse.

Skinner, 'Anti-Judaism in Christian Teaching and Preaching,' Working Preacher (2008), complete essay categories and guidance; applied to the reception risks in Isaiah 54:1–10

Sources for This Section

These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.

Biblical text

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society

USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.

Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.

Exact location: Isaiah 54:1–10, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus

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hebrew text and morphology

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Isaiah

Open Scriptures

Open Scriptures, release 2.2

Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology at the exact unit, without treating morphology as apparatus, lexicon, composition history, or interpretation.

Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Isa.xml, OSIS 54:1–10 with Hebrew/KJV versification difference checked

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translation and translator notes

NET Bible Notes: Isaiah

Biblical Studies Press

Biblical Studies Press, 2016; current official PDF

Supports: Verse-level controls for Hebrew, syntax, poetry, older KJV language, chronology, names, textual issues, and material translation alternatives.

Exact location: Official NET Isaiah PDF, translator, study, and textual notes attached to Isaiah 54:1–10 in the complete 205-page book PDF

Open the official NET Isaiah PDF ↗

open university study guide series

Second Isaiah study-guide course

Robert R. Wilson and Stephen L. Cook

Yale Bible Study, 2019; current public course

Supports: Babylonian-exile and Persian horizons, new exodus, Cyrus, servant figures, Daughter Zion, nations, suffering, and transition to plural servants.

Exact location: Yale Bible Study, Second Isaiah course, Arm of God guide on Isaiah 52:13-55:13; applied to Isaiah 54:1–10

Open the Yale Second Isaiah course ↗

modern scholarly book course

Isaiah course: summary, outline, background, introductory issues, themes, and reception

Fred Gaiser; revised by Michael Chan

Enter the Bible, Luther Seminary, revised August 2024

Supports: Whole-book historical, literary, theological, ethical, and reception synthesis across Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, and postexilic horizons.

Exact location: Enter the Bible Isaiah course, Outline Book 2C, Themes, and Bible in the World; applied to Isaiah 54:1–10

Open the Enter the Bible Isaiah course ↗

scholarly ethical reception guidance

Anti-Judaism in Christian Teaching and Preaching

Matt Skinner

Working Preacher, Luther Seminary, 2008

Supports: Controls against caricaturing Judaism, Torah-as-legalism claims, blanket condemnation, Gentile boasting, and supersessionist misuse.

Exact location: Skinner, 'Anti-Judaism in Christian Teaching and Preaching,' Working Preacher (2008), complete essay categories and guidance; applied to the reception risks in Isaiah 54:1–10

Open Skinner's anti-Judaism guidance ↗