Isaiah 4:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: There will be a booth for shade by day from the heat, and for a refuge and a shelter from the storm and rain.

NIV: It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain.

NASB: And there will be a shelter to give shade from the heat by day, and refuge and protection from the storm and the rain.

CSB: and there will be a shelter for shade from heat by day and a refuge and shelter from storm and rain.

NLT: It will be a shelter from daytime heat and a hiding place from storms and rain.

KJV: And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.

NKJV: And there will be a tabernacle for shade in the daytime from the heat, for a place of refuge, and for a shelter from storm and rain.

Isaiah has been describing the glorious latter days (Isaiah 2:2) when the Messiah will reign over the survivors of Israel and the world from Mount Zion . He will create a cloud by day and a fire by night, just as He did when leading the Israelites through the wilderness (Isaiah 4:5). His glory will be with His people once more.

God's presence will keep them safe from any possible harm. Isaiah continues describing that the canopy will provide protection from the sun and storms. The time he is writing the people are about to go through significant harm sent by God through the warriors of the Babylonians. He is comforting those who will listen that these terrible attacks and the captivity to follow will not be the end of Israel's story. The Lord their God and will eventually bring their future generations home to Jerusalem to be with Him for good.

Isaiah 4:2–6 finds Isaiah returning to depict the end-times version of Israel he began to describe in Isaiah 2:1–5. The "branch of the Lord" will reign over the survivors of Israel and the world. Those Israelites left in Zion will be called a holy people with their names recorded for life. By then, the Lord will have purged their sin and the bloodstains of Jerusalem . A cloud by day and fire by night will serve to protect Israel from any harm the natural world can produce.

After concluding his words about the desperate situation following the Lord's judgment for the formerly wealthy women of Judah, Isaiah returns to picturing a time in Israel's distant future: when the branch of the Lord, the Messiah, will reside in the land as the pride of Israel's survivors. Unlike now, Israel will be a holy people cleansed of all sin and the bloodstains of Jerusalem. This will be done by a "spirit of judgment and burning", perhaps endured by the Messiah on the cross. Then a cloud by day and fire by night will rest over the glory of the Lord on Mount Zion.

Isaiah 4 begins with a phrase which is meant to end the previous chapter. Isaiah describes the desperate situation for the formerly arrogant and rich women of Judah. Isaiah then describes the time in Israel's far future when the fruit of the land, the Messiah, is among them. Then the people will have been made holy by the Lord, cleansed of their filth by a "spirit of judgment and burning". Cloud and fire will hang over the glory of the Lord at Mount Zion. Later chapters will give more details about this future time.

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).

Accessed 5/2/2024 11:24:09 AM