And even to your old age I am he; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you: I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you.
What does Isaiah 46:4 mean?
The heathen insulted the Jews, as if their idols Bel and Nebo were too hard for Jehovah. But their worshippers cannot help them; both the idols and the idolaters are gone into captivity.
Key themes
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Keep this verse inside Isaiah 46:3-4 and alongside a few nearby related passages.
Commentary on Isaiah 46:4
And even to your old age, I am he - Or rather, I am the same. I remain, unchangeably, with the same tenderness, the same affection, the same care. In this the care of God for his people surpasses that of the most tender parent, and the most kind nourisher of the young. The care of the parent naturally dies away as the child reaches manhood, and he is usually removed by death before the son or daughter that excited so much solicitude in infancy and childhood, reaches old age. But not so with God. His people are always the objects of his tender solicitude.
Context in Isaiah 46
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Isaiah 46 belongs to the middle movement of the book, especially the section often described as comfort and the servant songs. Isaiah is one of Scripture’s grandest prophetic books, moving from holy judgment to consolation, servant imagery, and new-creation hope. Read this chapter with the wider themes of holiness, judgment, and remnant in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.
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Bible verses about justice and mercy
Key texts on public righteousness, neighbor-love, social ethics, compassion, and the prophetic refusal to separate worship from justice.