“The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls : because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen.”
My Notes
What Does Isaiah 43:20 Mean?
Isaiah describes creation itself honoring God because of his provision: the beasts of the field, the jackals, and the ostriches all honor him because he gives water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. God is praised by creatures who can't articulate theology — they honor him through their thriving in a landscape he transformed.
The phrase "my people, my chosen" receives the benefit of the water — but the creatures get it too. God's provision for his people overflows to bless the surrounding ecosystem. The rivers in the desert aren't just for Israel; they sustain every living thing in the area. Divine provision has ecological scope.
The irony is pointed: wild animals honor God more readily than his own people often do. The jackals and ostriches recognize their provider; Israel sometimes forgets. Creation's worship is instinctive — it responds to provision with honor, no theological training required.
Reflection Questions
- 1.How does your thriving honor God — even without words?
- 2.What provision has God given you that's overflowing to bless others around you?
- 3.Why is it significant that animals honor God more instinctively than humans sometimes do?
- 4.Where has God placed 'water in the wilderness' for you that you haven't fully acknowledged?
Devotional
The jackals and ostriches honor God. Not through hymns or prayers — through thriving. They drink the water God placed in the desert, and their survival is itself an act of honor. Creation worships by living.
Isaiah's point has an edge: the animals get it. They receive provision and respond with honor. They don't debate whether God really provided the water. They don't attribute the desert springs to natural processes. They drink, they live, and their living is praise.
God gives water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert for his people. But the provision doesn't stop at the human recipients — it flows into the entire ecosystem. The jackals benefit. The ostriches benefit. Everything living in the area benefits from what God provided for his chosen people. This is how divine generosity works: targeted at the beloved, overflowing to everything nearby.
The implication for you is twofold. First, when God provides for you, the provision has ripple effects. The water he gives you flows to others — your family, your community, the people in your ecosystem. Second, if wild animals can honor God through simple receipt of provision, so can you. You don't need elaborate worship. You need to drink the water he's given and let your thriving be praise.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
This people have I formed for myself,.... The Gentiles, compared to a desert and wilderness, wild and uncultivated,…
The beast of the field shall honor me - The sense of this passage is plain, and the image is highly poetical and…
To so low an ebb were the faith and hope of God's people in Babylon brought that there needed line upon line to assure…
Even the wild beasts shall honour Jehovah, unconsciously, through their joy at the abundant supply of water.
the dragons…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture