The Meaning of Isaiah 44:22 Explained

Isaiah 44:22

KJV: I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.

YLT: I have blotted out, as by a thick cloud, Thy transgressions, And as by a cloud thy sins, Return unto Me, for I have redeemed thee.

Darby: I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.

ASV: I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I have blotted out,  as a thick cloud,  thy transgressions,  and, as a cloud,  thy sins:  return  unto me; for I have redeemed  thee. 

What does Isaiah 44:22 Mean?

Study Notes

redeemed
Heb. "goel," Redemp. (Kinsman type).
Redeemer
Redemption: Kinsman type, summary. The goel, or Kinsman-Redeemer, is a beautiful type of Christ.
(1) The kinsman redemption was of persons, and an inheritance Leviticus 25:48 ; Leviticus 25:25 ; Galatians 4:5 ; Ephesians 1:7 ; Ephesians 1:11 ; Ephesians 1:14
(2) The Redeemer must be a kinsman Leviticus 25:48 ; Leviticus 25:49 ; Ruth 3:12 ; Ruth 3:13 ; Galatians 4:4 ; Hebrews 2:14 ; Hebrews 2:15 .
(3) The Redeemer must be able to redeem Ruth 4:4-6 ; Jeremiah 50:34 ; John 10:11 ; John 10:18
(4) Redemption is effected by the goel paying the just demand in full Leviticus 25:27 ; 1 Peter 1:18 ; 1 Peter 1:19 ; Galatians 3:13 . (See Scofield " Exodus 14:30 ") See Scofield " Romans 3:24 "
come to Zion
The time when the "Redeemer shall come to Zion" is fixed, relatively, by Romans 11:23-29 as following the completion of the Gentile Church. That is also the order of the great dispensational passage, Acts 15:14-17 .
In both, the return of the Lord to Zion follows the outcalling of the Church.
come to Zion
The time when the "Redeemer shall come to Zion" is fixed, relatively, by Romans 11:23-29 as following the completion of the Gentile Church. That is also the order of the great dispensational passage, Acts 15:14-17 .
In both, the return of the Lord to Zion follows the outcalling of the Church.

Verse Meaning

What Israel needed above all was forgiveness and cleansing from her sins (cf. Isaiah 43:25). The Lord had taken the initiative to provide this for His people. He would blow their sin away as quickly and as easily as a wind blows a cloud or mist away.
"The clouds intervene between heaven and earth as sin and transgressions intervene between God and His people." [1]
"Jehovah has blotted out Israel"s sin, inasmuch as He does not impute it any more, and thus has redeemed Israel." [2]
Yet God"s people must respond to His initiative by returning to Him. He had provided redemption in the Exodus , but it was only the first of several redemptions that He would provide. He would redeem them from captivity by using His servant Cyrus ( Isaiah 44:28), and He would redeem them from sin by using His Servant Messiah at His first advent. He would also redeem them from captivity in the Tribulation by using His Servant Messiah at His second advent.
The summary reference to redemption in Isaiah 44:22 (cf. Isaiah 42:10 to Isaiah 44:22) prepares the reader for the next section of Isaiah"s prophecy.

Context Summary

Isaiah 44:21-28 - The Promise Of Redemption
What divine comfort there is in these gracious words! Notwithstanding all their wanderings and sins, the Chosen People were Jehovah's elect race. Nothing could make Him forget them; He had redeemed them with the saving strength of His right hand. He could never forget them, but He would forget their sins. Their transgressions had melted into the blue azure of His love. If sought for, they could not be found. Nature was asked to be one great orchestra of praise. And notice that our redemption brings more glory to Jehovah than our undoing would.
In Isaiah 45:1-25 the people are assured that they would return from captivity, to rebuild Jerusalem and reinhabit the cities of Judah. They probably expected that their return would be marked by miracles as marvelous as those through which their fathers emerged from Egyptian bondage. But God never repeats Himself; and His purposes would work out through a heathen monarch, Cyrus, whom God was preparing as the executor of His purpose, Isaiah 44:28. "Deep in unfathomable mines of never-failing skill, He treasures up His bright designs, and works His sovereign will." [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 44

1  God comforts the church with his promises
7  The vanity of idols
9  And folly of idol makers
21  He exhorts to praise God for his redemption and omnipotence

What do the individual words in Isaiah 44:22 mean?

I have blotted out like a [thick] cloud your transgressions and like a cloud your sins Return to Me for I have redeemed you
מָחִ֤יתִי כָעָב֙ פְּשָׁעֶ֔יךָ וְכֶעָנָ֖ן חַטֹּאותֶ֑יךָ שׁוּבָ֥ה אֵלַ֖י כִּ֥י גְאַלְתִּֽיךָ

מָחִ֤יתִי  I  have  blotted  out 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: מָחָא 
Sense: to wipe, wipe out.
כָעָב֙  like  a  [thick]  cloud 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, common singular
Root: עָב 
Sense: darkness, cloud, thicket.
פְּשָׁעֶ֔יךָ  your  transgressions 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: פֶּשַׁע  
Sense: transgression, rebellion.
וְכֶעָנָ֖ן  and  like  a  cloud 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-k, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: עָנָן  
Sense: cloud, cloudy, cloud-mass.
חַטֹּאותֶ֑יךָ  your  sins 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: חַטָּאָה 
Sense: sin, sinful.
שׁוּבָ֥ה  Return 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular, third person feminine singular
Root: שׁוּב  
Sense: to return, turn back.
אֵלַ֖י  to  Me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
גְאַלְתִּֽיךָ  I  have  redeemed  you 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular, second person masculine singular
Root: גְּאוּלִים 
Sense: to redeem, act as kinsman-redeemer, avenge, revenge, ransom, do the part of a kinsman.