“And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.”
My Notes
What Does Isaiah 49:23 Mean?
God promises Israel a stunning reversal: kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers. The most powerful people on earth will serve God's people — nurturing them, protecting them, caring for them.
"They shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet" — the reversal is total. Those who once oppressed will now bow. The powerful will serve the formerly powerless.
"And thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me" — the vindication produces knowledge. When the reversal happens, you will know — experientially, undeniably — that God is the LORD. And those who waited will not be put to shame.
The promise is for those who wait. The vindication belongs to the patient. The reversal rewards the enduring.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What does the image of kings and queens as 'nursing fathers and mothers' reveal about God's plans for reversal?
- 2.How does 'they shall not be ashamed that wait for me' encourage patience?
- 3.Where are you waiting for God to reverse a situation that currently seems hopeless?
- 4.What does this promise mean for the relationship between patience and vindication?
Devotional
Kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers. The most powerful people in the world — kings and queens — will care for God's people like parents nurture children. The oppressors become the caretakers.
They shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth. The reversal is complete. The ones who were above are now below. The ones who were trampled are now honored. God inverts the power structure.
They shall not be ashamed that wait for me. The waiting is honored. The patience is vindicated. Those who endured — who kept hoping when nothing changed, who kept trusting when the evidence was against them — they will not be put to shame.
The promise is specifically for waiters. Not for the quick-fix seekers or the impatient. For those who wait for God — through the long middle, through the apparent absence, through the season when kings are enemies rather than nursemaids.
Are you waiting? The reversal is coming. The kings who oppose you will serve you. The power structures that crush you will bow. And the waiting — the long, unglamorous, sometimes agonizing waiting — will not end in shame.
They shall not be ashamed that wait for me. Hold on. The vindication is as certain as the one who promised it.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers,.... Who shall show favour and respect to…
And kings shall be thy nursing fathers - Margin, ‘Nourishers.’ That is, they would patronize the church of God; they…
Two things are here promised, which were to be in part accomplished in the reviving of the Jewish church after its…
thy nursing fathers thy guardians; i.e. of course, the guardians of her children (in spite of ch. Isa 60:16); see Num…
Cross References
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