The Meaning of Isaiah 38:21 Explained

Isaiah 38:21

KJV: For Isaiah had said, Let them take a lump of figs, and lay it for a plaister upon the boil, and he shall recover.

YLT: And Isaiah saith, 'Let them take a bunch of figs, and plaster over the ulcer, and he liveth.'

Darby: Now Isaiah had said, Let them take a cake of figs, and lay it for a plaster upon the boil, and he shall recover.

ASV: Now Isaiah had said, Let them take a cake of figs, and lay it for a plaster upon the boil, and he shall recover.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

For Isaiah  had said,  Let them take  a lump  of figs,  and lay [it] for a plaister  upon the boil,  and he shall recover. 

What does Isaiah 38:21 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The poem having ended, Isaiah now added a postscript giving more detail about Hezekiah"s recovery. Isaiah 38:21-22 are more smoothly integrated into the story of Hezekiah"s recovery in2Kings20 than they are here. This fact has led scholars to speculate about which account was first, which was second, or did both draw from a common source? There is no way to answer this question for sure. Hezekiah had evidently suffered from a boil, but the boil was probably only a symptom of a more serious disease (cf. Isaiah 38:1). When Isaiah , acting as a physician, applied a fig poultice to the boil, the king recovered (cf. James 5:14).
"This is an example of healing occurring because of a combination of prayer, medicine, and God"s work." [1]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 38

1  Hezekiah, having received a message of death, by prayer has his life lengthened
8  The sun goes ten degrees backward, for a sign of that promise
9  His song of thanksgiving

What do the individual words in Isaiah 38:21 mean?

And had said Isaiah let them take a lump of figs and apply [it] as a poultice on the boil and he shall recover
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְשַׁעְיָ֔הוּ יִשְׂא֖וּ דְּבֶ֣לֶת תְּאֵנִ֑ים וְיִמְרְח֥וּ עַֽל־ הַשְּׁחִ֖ין וְיֶֽחִי

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר  And  had  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
יְשַׁעְיָ֔הוּ  Isaiah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יְשַׁעְיָה 
Sense: the major prophet, son of Amoz, who prophesied concerning Judah and Jerusalem during the days of kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah of Judah; author of the prophetic book by his name; tradition has it that he was sawn asunder in the trunk of a carob tree by king Manasseh and that this is the incident referred to in Heb :37.
יִשְׂא֖וּ  let  them  take 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: נָשָׂא  
Sense: to lift, bear up, carry, take.
דְּבֶ֣לֶת  a  lump 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: דְּבֵלָה  
Sense: fig cake, lump of pressed figs.
תְּאֵנִ֑ים  of  figs 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural
Root: תְּאֵנָה  
Sense: fig, fig tree.
וְיִמְרְח֥וּ  and  apply  [it]  as  a  poultice 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: מָרַח  
Sense: (Qal) to rub.
הַשְּׁחִ֖ין  the  boil 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: שְׁחִין  
Sense: boil, inflamed spot, inflammation, eruption.
וְיֶֽחִי  and  he  shall  recover 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect Jussive, third person masculine singular
Root: חָיָה  
Sense: to live, have life, remain alive, sustain life, live prosperously, live for ever, be quickened, be alive, be restored to life or health.

What are the major concepts related to Isaiah 38:21?

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