“I have raised up one from the north, and he has come, from the rising of the sun, one who calls on my name, and he shall come on rulers as on mortar, and as the potter treads clay.
Parallel Translations
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“I have raised up one from the north, and he has come, from the rising of the sun, one who calls on my name, and he shall come on rulers as on mortar, and as the potter treads clay.
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I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.
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I have roused up one from the north, and he is come, from the rising of the sun one that calleth upon My name; and he shall come upon rulers as upon mortar, and as the potter treadeth clay.
Cross-references (12)
Passages linked to Isaiah 41:25 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Isaiah 41:2 Who has raised up one from the east? Who called him to his foot in righteousness? He hands over nations to him and makes him rule over kings. He gives them like the dust to his sword, like the driven stubble to his bow.
- 2 Samuel 22:43 Then I beat them as small as the dust of the earth. I crushed them as the mire of the streets, and spread them abroad.
- Isaiah 10:6 I will send him against a profane nation, and against the people who anger me I will give him a command to take the plunder and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
- Isaiah 44:28–45:6 Who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure,’ even saying of Jerusalem, ‘She will be built;’ and of the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid.’ ” Yahweh says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held, to subdue nations before him, and strip kings of their armor; to open the doors before him, and the gates shall not be shut: “I will go before you and make the rough places smooth. I will break the doors of bronze in pieces and cut apart the bars of iron. I will give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places, that you may know that it is I, Yahweh, who call you by your name, even the God of Israel. For Jacob my servant’s sake, and Israel my chosen, I have called you by your name. I have given you a title, though you have not known me. I am Yahweh, and there is no one else. Besides me, there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not known me, that they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is no one besides me. I am Yahweh, and there is no one else.
- Isaiah 46:10-11 I declare the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done. I say: My counsel will stand, and I will do all that I please. I call a ravenous bird from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. Yes, I have spoken. I will also bring it to pass. I have planned. I will also do it.
- Micah 7:10 Then my enemy will see it, and shame will cover her who said to me, where is Yahweh your God? Then my enemy will see me and will cover her shame. Now she will be trodden down like the mire of the streets.
- Zechariah 10:5 They shall be as mighty men, treading down muddy streets in the battle; and they shall fight, because Yahweh is with them; and the riders on horses will be confounded.
- Ezra 1:2-3 “Cyrus king of Persia says, ‘Yahweh, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he has commanded me to build him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of Yahweh, the God of Israel (he is God), which is in Jerusalem.
- Isaiah 21:2 A grievous vision is declared to me. The treacherous man deals treacherously, and the destroyer destroys. Go up, Elam; attack! I have stopped all of Media’s sighing.
- Isaiah 45:13 I have raised him up in righteousness, and I will make all his ways straight. He shall build my city, and he shall let my exiles go free, not for price nor reward,” says Yahweh of Armies.
- Jeremiah 50:3 For a nation comes up out of the north against her, which will make her land desolate, and no one will dwell in it. They have fled. They are gone, both man and animal.
- Jeremiah 51:27-29 “Set up a standard in the land! Blow the trumpet among the nations! Prepare the nations against her! Call together against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz! Appoint a marshal against her! Cause the horses to come up as the rough canker worm! Prepare against her the nations, the kings of the Medes, its governors, and all its deputies, and all the land of their dominion! The land trembles and is in pain; for the purposes of Yahweh against Babylon stand, to make the land of Babylon a desolation, without inhabitant.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (16 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Both of the Chaldeans and others.
Both of the Chaldeans and others.
Meaning, the Chaldeans.
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That is, Cyrus, who shall do all things in my name and by my direction: whereby he meaneth that both their captivity and deliverance shall be ordered by God’s providence and appointment.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Isa 41:25 I have raised up [one] from the…
Isa 41:25 I have raised up [one] from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as [upon] morter, and as the potter treadeth clay.
Ver. 25. I have raised up one from the north.] Here God beginneth to prove that he can do both those things, whereof the heathen vanities could do neither. This one in the text is Cyrus, say some; Christ, say others, by whom God here foretelleth that he will punish his enemies, but do good to his Church and chosen.
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He shall call upon my name.] Or, Proclaim my name.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain I have raised up; you neither foreknow nor can…
I have raised up; you neither foreknow nor can do any thing; but I do now foretell, and will certainly effect, great revolution and change in the world, which you shall not be able to hinder. One; which word, though not expressed in the Hebrew, must necessarily be understood, as being oft designed in the following words by the pronoun he. He understands one people; or rather one person, prince, or general, together with his people or forces, as appears from the latter part of the verse. Some conceive that the prophet in this place speaks of two several persons; in the first clause of Nebuchadnezzar, who in Scripture is commonly said to come
from the north, as Jer 1:13,15; 4:6; and the next clause of Cyrus, who came from the east, Isa 46:11. And then the words may be thus rendered, one
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from the north, and he shall come; and one
from the rising of the sun, he shall call, &c. But it seems more natural and easy to understand the whole context of one and the same person, even of Cyrus, of whom he spake before, Isa 41:2, &c., who might well be said to come, both from the north and from the east: from the north rather, because he was a Mede by his mother, as he was a Persian by his father; or because a great part of his army was gathered out of Media, which was, and in Scripture is said to be, northward in reference to Judea, Jer 50:9,41; 51:48; and because Darius the Mede was joined with him in this expedition: and from the east, because Persia was directly eastward from Judea. And peradventure this work of
calling upon or proclaiming God’s name is here ascribed to him as he came from the east, rather than as he came from the north, because that work was not done by Darius the Mede, but by Cyrus the Persian.
Shall he call upon my name; or rather, as others render it, who shall call upon; or rather, proclaim my name, which Cyrus did in express and emphatical terms, Ezr 1:1-2.
He shall come upon princes as upon mortar; treading them down as easily as a man treadeth down mortar.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain I have raised up one from the north,.... Either…
I have raised up one from the north,.... Either one people, or one person; a mighty king, as the Targum; meaning either Cyrus, who might be said to come from the north, and from the rising of the sun, or the east, as in the next clause; since he was by birth a Medo-Persian, hence called a mule; by his mother a Mede, and the country of Media lay rather to the north of Babylon; and by his father a Persian, and Persia lay to the east of it; and the forces he brought with him against it were partly Medes, and partly Persians; though some, as Jarchi observes, think two persons are meant in this and the next clause; in this Nebuchadnezzar, who came from Babylon, which lay north of Judea, to invade it; and in the other Cyrus, who came from the east, and proclaimed the name of the Lord, and liberty to the captive Jews. Kimchi and his father both interpret it of the King Messiah, as do also more ancient Jewish writers (c), of whom Cyrus was a type; but to me it seems best of all, as most agreeable to the scope and tenure of the prophecy, to understand it of Constantine, who, as reported, was born in Britain, in the northern part of the world; but, when called to the empire, was in the eastern parts of it; and so with great propriety it is expressed here, and in the following clause:
and from the rising of the sun he shall call upon my name; which those that apply the prophecy to Cyrus explain by Ezr 1:1, but is much more applicable to Constantine, who was a worshipper of the true God, which invocation of his name is expressive of; and who openly professed the name of Christ, and encouraged those that did, and spread his name and fame, his Gospel and his glory, throughout the empire, east and west:
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and he shall come upon princes as upon morter, and as the potter treadeth clay; that is, he shall come upon them with his army, and conquer them, and tread them down, and trample upon them, as morter is trodden upon, or mire in the streets; or as the clay is trodden by the potter, who does with it as he pleases; which those who interpret it of Cyrus understand of Astyages, Croesus, Belshazzar, and others; see Isa 14:1, and is as true of Constantine, who subdued the emperors of Rome, trod them under his feet, as Maximius, Maxentius, Licinius, &c.; moreover, the word "saganin", here used, is a word used by Jewish writers for priests, for such who were the deputies of the high priest; and it may design here the Pagan priests, and the destruction of them, and of Paganism in the Roman empire by Constantine.
(c) Vajikra Rabba, sect. 9. fol. 153. 1. Bemidbar Rabba, sect. 13. fol. 208. 1. Shirhashirim Rabba, fol. 19. 2.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Raised - Cyrus, might be said to come from…
Raised - Cyrus, might be said to come from the north, because he was a Mede by his mother, as he was a Persian by his father; or because a great part of his army was gathered out of Media, which was northward, in reference to Judea, and because Darius the Mede was joined with him in this expedition. Proclaim - This Cyrus did in express, emphatical terms, Ezra i, 1, 2. As on mortar - Treading them down, as easily as a man treads down mortar.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 25. I have raised up one from the…
Verse 25. I have raised up one from the north] "That is," says Kimchi, "the Messiah. The king of Assyria placed the ten tribes in Chalach and Chabar by the river Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes, 2Kg 17:6, which lands lie northerly and easterly."
He shall come upon princes - "He shall trample on princes"] For יבא yabo, Le Clerc reads יבס yebes, from the Chaldee, who seems to read both words. "Forte legend. ויבס vaiyebes vel וירמס vaiyirmos: sequitur ס." "This should perhaps be read ויבס vaiyebes, or וירמס vaiyirmos: a ס samech follows." - Secker. See Na 3:14.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Isa 41:25. I have raised up, &c. — You…
Isa 41:25. I have raised up, &c. — You neither foreknow, nor can do any thing. But I do now fore-tel, and will certainly effect, a great revolution and change in the world, which you shall not be able to hinder; one from the north — Cyrus might be said to come from the north, because he was a Mede by his mother, as he was a Persian by his father; or because a great part of his army was gathered out of Media, which was northward in reference to Judea, and because Darius the Mede was joined with him in this expedition. From the rising, &c., shall he call upon my name — Or proclaim my name, as the words may be rendered, which Cyrus did in express and emphatical terms, Ezr 1:1-2. He shall come upon princes as upon mortar — Treading them down as easily as a man treadeth down mortar.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain I have raised up one - In the previous…
I have raised up one - In the previous verses God had shown that the idols had no power of predicting future events. He stakes, so to speak, the question of his divinity on that point, and the whole controversy between him and them is to be decided by the inquiry whether they had the power of foretelling what would come to pass. He here urges his claims to divinity on this ground, that he had power to foretell future events. In illustration of this, he appeals to the fact that he had raised up, that is, in purpose, or would afterward raise up Cyrus, in accordance with his predictions, and in such a way that it would be distinctly seen that he had this power of foretelling future events. To see the force of this argument, it must be remembered that the Jews are contemplated as in Babylon, and near the close of their captivity; that God by the prophets, and especially by Isaiah, distinctly foretold the fact that he would raise up Cyrus to be their deliverer; that these predictions were uttered at least a hundred and fifty years before the time of their fulfillment; and that they would then have abundant evidence that they were accomplished. To these recorded predictions and to their fulfillment, God here appeals, and designs that in that future time when they should be in exile, his people should have evidence that He was worthy of their entire confidence, and that even the pagan should see that Yahweh was the true God, and that the idols were nothing. The personage referred to here is undoubtedly Cyrus (see the notes at Isa 41:2; compare Isa 45:1).
From the north - In Isa 41:2, he is said to have been raised up ‘from the east.’ Both were true. Cyrus was born in Persia, in the country called in the Scriptures ‘the east,’ but he early went to Media, and came from Media under the direction of his uncle, Cyaxares, when he attacked and subdued Babylon. Media was situated on the north and northeast of Babylon.
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From the rising of the sun - The east - the land of the birth of Cyrus.
Shall he call upon my name - This expression means, probably, that he should acknowledge Yahweh to be the true God, and recognize him as the source of all his success. This he did in his proclamation respecting the restoration of the Jews to their own land: ‘Thus saith Cyrus, king of Persia, Yahweh, God of heaven, hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth’ Ezr 1:2. There is no decided evidence that Cyrus regarded himself as a worshipper of Yahweh, or that he was a pious man, but he was brought to make a public recognition of him as the true God, and to feel that he owed the success of his arms to him.
And he shall come upon princes - Upon the kings of the nations against whom he shall make war (see Isa 41:2-3). The word rendered here ‘princes’ (from סגן seggen or סגן ro n sâgân), denotes properly a deputy, a prefect, a governor, or one under another, and is usually applied to the governors of provinces, or the Babyionian princes, or magistrates Jer 51:23, Jer 51:28, Jer 51:57; Eze 23:6, Eze 23:12, Eze 23:33; Dan 3:2, Dan 3:27; Dan 6:8. It is sometimes applied, however, to the chiefs and rulers in Jerusalem in the times of Ezra and Nehemiah Ezr 9:2; Neh 2:16; Neh 4:8, Neh 4:13; Neh 5:7. Here it is used as a general term; and the sense is, that he would tread down and subdue the kings and princes of the nations that he invaded.
As upon mortar - (See the note at Isa 10:6).
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Sun. Cyrus had a Persian for his father, and…
Sun. Cyrus had a Persian for his father, and a Mede for his mother; thus uniting both nations, (Calmet) so that he was styled a mule by an ancient oracle. (Eusebius, præp. ix. 41.) --- These countries lay to the north-east of Judea. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain raised up--in purpose: not fulfilled till a hundred fifty…
raised up--in purpose: not fulfilled till a hundred fifty years afterwards.
north--In Isa 41:2, "from the East"; both are true: see the note there.
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call . . . my name--acknowledge Me as God, and attribute his success to Me; this he did in the proclamation (Ezr 1:2). This does not necessarily imply that Cyrus renounced idolatry, but hearing of Isaiah's prophecy given a hundred fifty years before, so fully realized in his own acts, he recognized God as the true God, but retained his idol (so Naaman, 2Ki. 5:1-27; compare Kg2 17:33, Kg2 17:41; Dan 3:28; Dan 4:1-3, Dan 4:34-37).
princes--the Babylonian satraps or governors of provinces.
mortar--"mire"; He shall tread them under foot as dirt (Isa 10:6).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 25. I have raised up one — Jehovah keeps…
25. I have raised up one — Jehovah keeps the field as the moulder of history and foreteller of the future. In purpose he has “raised up one” from the north. In Isa_41:2 it is “from the east.” Both are true. The joint powers of Media and Persia lay in both directions from Babylon. See notes to Isa_41:2. This makes true God’s prediction of Cyrus, who is to come one hundred and fifty years after.
From the rising of the sun — That is, from Persia, or even farther east, and may refer, not only to Cyrus, but concretely to the improved heathenism, but still heathen religion, which was to come to Babylon through Cyrus, namely, Zoroastrianism, a monotheistic religion, though crudely mixed, yet designed perhaps to play a part in palpably moulding the Hebrew religion in some additional items. (See RAWLINSON’S Five Great Monarchies, vol. iv, chap. 6.)
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 25. raised up] Strictly: stirred up (as in Isa_41:2)…
25. raised up] Strictly: stirred up (as in Isa_41:2) i.e. “impelled into activity” (Driver).
from the north … from the rising of the sun (cf. Isa_41:2)] Scarcely: “from Media (in the north)” and “from Elam (in the east).” The terms are poetic; the north is the region of mystery, and the east the region of light (ch. Isa_24:15). In point of fact Cyrus came from the north-east.
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shall he call upon my name] Render with R.V. one that calleth (or, shall call) on my name. The clause is a relative one, and forms the obj. to “stirred up.” The expression can hardly mean less than that Cyrus shall acknowledge Jehovah as God; the meaning “make known everywhere, by his deeds” (Dillmann) is not to be defended. It is true that in ch. Isa_45:4 f. it is said that Cyrus had not known Jehovah; but it is also said (Isa_41:3) that the effect of his remarkable successes will be “that thou mayest know that I am Jehovah that calleth thee by thy name, the God of Israel.” There is therefore no difficulty in the idea that Cyrus, who was at first the unconscious instrument of Jehovah’s purpose, shall at length recognise that Jehovah was the true author of his success. But the further explanation that Cyrus shall “become conscious of his original religious affinity to the Jews, and act upon that consciousness” (Cheyne) goes beyond the language of the prophet.
come upon princes] is a possible construction; but it is better, with many comm. since Clericus, to read “tread” (yâbûṣ for yâbô’). The word for “princes” (ṣâgân) is Assyrian (shaknu) and occurs first in Ezekiel.
25–29. The general argument is now brought to bear on the particular case of the raising up of Cyrus.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (25) I have raised up one from the north.—The…
(25) I have raised up one from the north.—The north points to Media, the east to Persia, both of them under the rule of the great Deliverer.
Shall he call upon my name.—The word admits equally of the idea of “invoking” or “proclaiming.” It may almost be said, indeed, that the one implies the other. The words find a fulfilment in the proclamations of Cyrus cited in 2Ch_36:22-23; Ezr_1:2-4
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He shall come upon princes.—The Hebrew noun Sagan is a transitional form of a Persian (Delitzch) or Assyrian (Cheyne) title for a viceroy or satrap.
As the potter treadeth clay.—Commonly the image describes the immediate action of Jehovah. (Jer_18:6; Jer_19:10). Here it is used for the supreme dominance of His instrument.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain It remains for Jehovah to plead his own cause,…
It remains for Jehovah to plead his own cause, to vindicate his own Divinity. He adduces, as proof of his power in action, the fact of his raising up Cyrus; as proof of his ability to predict, the fact that he has announced his coming. One from the north... from the rising of the sun. Both as a Persian, and as King of Elam, Cyrus might be considered to come from the east. In fact, however, when he attacked Babylon, he fell upon it mainly from the north. After his conquest of Astyages (Istivegu), he made Ecbatana his capital (Herod., 1:153); and it was from this comparatively northern city that he directed his attack upon Nabonidus. His march lay by way of Arbela ("Transactions of the Society of Bibl. Archaeol.," vol. 7. p. 159) and Sippara (ibid., p. 165), through the district called Akkad to the Chaldean capital. Herodotus agrees with the monuments in bringing him to Babylon from the north. Shall he call upon my Name; or, shall he. proclaim my Name. (For the actual proclamation of Jehovah"s Name by Cyros, see Ezr_1:3; and note especially the phrase, "He i.e. Jehovah is the God.") Recent discoveries have raised the suspicion that Cyrus was an eyncretist, who was willing to accept the chief god of any nation as identical with his own Ormuzd. But it is to be borne in "mind that the document which has produced this impression is one issued by the priestly authorities of Babylon in their own language, and may have been quite unknown to the Persian court. Cyrus may have been a better Zoroastrian than he is represented by the priests of Merodach. The Zoroastrian religion was, as Delitzsch observes, "nearest to the Jewish religion of all the systems of heathenism" (see. Ancient Monarchies," vol. 3. pp. 93-117; and comp. Pusey, "Lectures on Daniel," pp. 530-550). He shall come upon princes as upon mortar; i.e. he shall tread them underfoot, mortar being commonly mixed with the feet, as was also clay for bricks and pottery (Herod., 2:36). The chief" princes" whom Cyrus is known to have conquered were Astyages of Media, Croesus of Lydia, and Nabenidus of Babylon. He was studiously mild in his treatment of royal captives, but naturally deprived them of all power.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 General Information:
General Information:
Yahweh continues speaking.
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I have raised up one
Yahweh speaks of appointing a person as if he raised that person up. AT: "I have appointed one" (See: Metaphor)
from the sun's rising
This refers to the east, the direction from which the sun rises. AT: "from the east" (See: Idiom)
him who calls on my name
Possible meanings are 1) that this person invokes Yahweh for his success or 2) that this person worships Yahweh.
he will trample the rulers
Conquering the rulers of other nations is spoken of as if it were trampling them under foot. AT: "he will conquer the rulers" (See: Metaphor)
like a potter who is treading on the clay
Yahweh compares the way in which this person will trample the other rulers with the way that a potter tramples on clay to mix it with water. (See: Simile)
Who announced this from the beginning, that we might know? Before this time, that we may say, "He is right"?
Yahweh uses these rhetorical questions to mock the idols that the people worship. The implied answers are 1) that the idols have not done these things and 2) that Yahweh is the one who has done these things. AT: "None of the idols announced this from the beginning, that we might know. And none of them announced this before time, that we may say, 'He is right.'" (See: Rhetorical Question andEllipsis)
Indeed none of them decreed it, yes, none heard you say anything
"Indeed, none of the idols decreed it. Indeed, no one heard you idols say anything"
translationWords
raise
call
name
rule
decree
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 41:25 I have stirred up a leader: The God…
41:25 I have stirred up a leader: The God who had planned the Exile through Babylon had already planned for Israel’s restoration from exile through Cyrus (see 41:2; see also 13:17). • Although Persia is located to the east, rough terrain required those traveling to Israel and Judah to enter from the north. • I will give him victory . . . He will trample them: As Babylon was sent to trample Assyria, so Persia would trample Babylon.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.