Isaiah 66:5

My Notes

What Does Isaiah 66:5 Mean?

Isaiah 66:5 addresses a specific group within Israel — the faithful remnant who are being persecuted by their own community — and delivers a promise of vindication that reverses everything. "Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word" — shim'u devar-YHWH hacharedim el-devaro. The charedim — those who tremble (charad — to shake, to be terrified, to respond with physical reverence) at God's word. These are the people who take God's word so seriously it produces a physical response. They don't just read it. They tremble before it.

"Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name's sake" — acheykhem sone'eykhem menaddeykem lema'an shemi. The persecutors aren't pagans. They're brothers — acheykhem, your own people, your own community. They hate (sone'eykhem) and they cast out (menaddeykem — excommunicate, exclude, banish). And the reason: for my name's sake. The faithful are persecuted by the religious establishment because of their devotion to God's name.

"Said, Let the LORD be glorified" — ameru yikhbad YHWH. The persecutors use God's name to justify the persecution. They say: this is for God's glory. The exclusion is framed as holiness. The hatred is dressed in theological language. "But he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed" — venireh besimchatkhem vehem yevoshu. The reversal: God will appear — and when He does, the tremblers will rejoice and the persecutors will be ashamed. The verdict is already decided. The only remaining question is timing.

Reflection Questions

• 1.Have you been cast out by your own community — excluded by 'brothers' using God's name as justification?
• 2.How do you maintain faith when persecution comes from inside the church rather than outside it?
• 3.What does it mean to 'tremble at His word' — and why does that posture attract hostility?
• 4.How does the promise of God's appearance — 'to your joy, their shame' — sustain you during unjust exclusion?

Devotional

Your own brothers hate you. They cast you out. And they do it using God's name.

Isaiah addresses the most painful category of persecution — not from enemies but from family. From the community you belong to. From the people who worship the same God you worship but have decided you're the problem. And the cruelest detail: they frame the exclusion as something God wants. "Let the LORD be glorified" — they invoke divine honor as the justification for your exile. They're casting you out for God's glory, they say. The persecution comes wrapped in theological vocabulary.

If you've been excluded by your own community — pushed out by a church, silenced by a religious institution, cut off by the very people who should have supported your faithfulness — Isaiah sees you. He addresses you specifically: ye that tremble at His word. You're the ones who take God's word seriously enough to shake. And your brothers, who share your tradition and speak your language, have decided that your trembling is the problem.

"He shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed." That's the promise. Not that you'll be vindicated by a committee vote or an institutional review. God Himself will appear. And His appearing will sort the truth from the performance. The ones who trembled will rejoice. The ones who used God's name to justify hatred will be exposed. The shame they should have felt when they cast you out will finally catch up with them.

Keep trembling. The appearance is coming. And the joy is reserved for you — not for the ones who held the meetings and voted you out.

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture