Isaiah 49:21

21 And you will think to yourself, Who bore me these? I was bereaved and desolate, exiled and sent off. So who raised these? I was left behind, I was alone; where were these?

Isaiah 49:21 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 49:21

Then shalt thou say in thine heart
In, a way of admiration, secretly within herself, astonished at the numerous crowds flocking in; who hath begotten me these?
not their natural parents, nor they themselves; for they are not born of blood, nor of the will of man, nor of the will
of the flesh;
nor ministers of the Gospel, though they are instruments, yet not the cause; but God only, Father, Son, and Spirit, to whom regeneration is only ascribed: regeneration is a wonderful work of God; it is unaccountable to the natural man; it is amazing to the saints themselves; and it is matter of astonishment to the church of God; especially when on a sudden, and without means, and in great numbers, men are born again; and particularly when these come from among the Gentiles, which seems to be the case here: seeing I have lost my children;
by captivity and the sword, by the tyranny and cruelty of the man of sin: and am desolate;
or alone, as if without a husband, or any to take care of her: this represents the church in the wilderness, during the reign of antichrist, ( Revelation 12:14 ) , while she seems to be forsaken of the Lord her husband, though she is not: and a captive;
to the Romish antichrist; see ( Revelation 13:10 ) : and removing to and fro;
being forced to flee from place to place, by reason of persecution: there is, no doubt, an allusion in all this to the case of the Jews in the Babylonish captivity: and who hath brought up these?
the same that begot them, even the Lord himself; who nourishes and brings up his children with the milk of the Gospel, and the breasts of Gospel ordinances; so that they are brought up from children to young men, from young men to fathers, till they become perfect men; even the church in the wilderness, with her children, are nourished by him, for a time, and times, and half a time, ( Revelation 12:14 ) which is wonderful: behold, I was left alone;
seemingly without husband or children, in a desolate and wilderness state: these, where had they been?
in the ruins of Adam's fall; in a state of darkness; in the graves of sin; in a pit wherein is no water; in the hands of Satan, and among wicked men; even in Babylon itself, but now called out; see ( Revelation 18:4 ) .

Isaiah 49:21 In-Context

19 As for your ruins and desolate places and destroyed land— you will soon be crowded with settlers, and those who swallowed you will be far away.

20 You will again hear the children who were born bereaved say, "The place is too crowded for me; make room for me to settle."

21 And you will think to yourself, Who bore me these? I was bereaved and desolate, exiled and sent off. So who raised these? I was left behind, I was alone; where were these?

22 The LORD God says: Look, I will raise my hand to the nations, and to the peoples I will lift up my signal. They will bring your sons in their arms, and will carry your daughters on their shoulders.

23 Kings will be your attendants, and their queens your nursemaids. With faces to the ground they will bow down to you; they will lick the dust from your feet. You will know that I am the LORD; the one who hopes in me won't be ashamed.