Isaiah 43:20

20 The animals of the field will honor me, jackals and daughters of [the] ostrich, for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in [the] desert, to give a drink [to] my chosen people,

Isaiah 43:20 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 43:20

The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons, and the
owls
Which is not to be understood literally of these creatures, who as they had honoured the Lord, when Israel passed through the wilderness, so would again in their way praise the Lord, when they came through the deserts from Babylon, for giving them water to drink in such dry and thirsty places, to which there may be an allusion; but spiritually of the Gentiles, compared to those creatures for the savageness, fierceness, and stupidity of them, and who were reckoned by the Jews no other than as the beasts of the field; who should honour and glorify God for the Gospel brought unto them, and for his grace and mercy bestowed on them: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert;
as before; (See Gill on Isaiah 43:19); because of the plenty of divine grace, and the means of it: to give drink to my people, my chosen;
to refresh and comfort the hearts of his people, whom he had chosen out from among the Gentiles, and now would call them by his grace, and set them a thirsting after Christ, and salvation by him.

Isaiah 43:20 In-Context

18 "You must not remember [the] former things, and you not must consider [the] former things.
19 Look! I [am] about to do a new thing! Now it sprouts! Do you not perceive it? Indeed, I will {make} a way in the wilderness, rivers in [the] desert.
20 The animals of the field will honor me, jackals and daughters of [the] ostrich, for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in [the] desert, to give a drink [to] my chosen people,
21 this people whom I formed for myself, so they might {make known} my praise.
22 But you did not call me, Jacob; for you have become weary of me, Israel.
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.