The Meaning of Isaiah 49:15 Explained

Isaiah 49:15

KJV: Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

YLT: Forget doth a woman her suckling, The loved one -- the son of her womb? Yea, these forget -- but I -- I forget not thee.

Darby: Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Even these forget, but I will not forget thee.

ASV: Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, these may forget, yet will not I forget thee.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Can a woman  forget  her sucking child,  that she should not have compassion  on the son  of her womb?  yea, they may forget,  yet will I not forget  thee. 

What does Isaiah 49:15 Mean?

Verse Meaning

God"s response to His "wife"s" complaint was to assure her of His unfailing commitment to her. Human mothers may possibly neglect the children they cared so much for that they nursed, though this is unnatural. They may even stop showing compassion to the children they carried in their wombs for nine months, though this is inconsistent. Yet Yahweh would never, ever forget (abandon) His chosen people (cf. Psalm 27:10).
"This is one of the strongest, if not the strongest expression of God"s love in the Old Testament, and is often compared with Jeremiah 31:20." [1]

Context Summary

Isaiah 49:14-26 - The Lord Cannot Forget His Own
These assurances were given to the chosen race on the eve of their return from Babylon. They were timid and reluctant to quit the familiar scenes of their captivity; they dreaded the dangers and privations of their way home, and questioned whether the great empire of their captors would ever let them go or allow their city to rise from its ruins. Therefore the Lord's voice takes on a tone of unusual persuasiveness. Let us ponder His assurances of compassion and comfort, Isaiah 49:13; Isaiah 49:15-16.
He will lead us with a shepherd's care, Isaiah 49:10. He will make obstacles subserve His purpose, Isaiah 49:11. His love is more than motherhood, Isaiah 49:15. He treasures the remembrance of His own, Isaiah 49:16. Zion thinks herself cast away as a derelict, Isaiah 49:14, but such is not the case. Even her broken walls are ever before God, with a view to their rebuilding, Isaiah 49:19, etc. God's love is stronger than our strongest enemies, Isaiah 49:25, etc. Let us hide in it, standing above the fears that compose the cloudland of our soul, in the upper peaks of a strong faith. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 49

1  Christ being sent to the Jews, complains of them
5  He is sent to the Gentiles with gracious promises
13  God's love is perpetual to his church
18  The ample restoration of the church
24  The powerful deliverance out of captivity

What do the individual words in Isaiah 49:15 mean?

Can forget a woman her nursing child and not have compassion on the son of her womb surely these may forget and yet I will not forget you
הֲתִשְׁכַּ֤ח אִשָּׁה֙ עוּלָ֔הּ מֵרַחֵ֖ם בֶּן־ ؟ בִּטְנָ֑הּ גַּם־ אֵ֣לֶּה תִשְׁכַּ֔חְנָה וְאָנֹכִ֖י לֹ֥א אֶשְׁכָּחֵֽךְ

הֲתִשְׁכַּ֤ח  Can  forget 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: כָּשַׁח 
Sense: to forget, ignore, wither.
אִשָּׁה֙  a  woman 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: אִשָּׁה  
Sense: woman, wife, female.
עוּלָ֔הּ  her  nursing  child 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person feminine singular
Root: עוּל  
Sense: suckling, sucking child.
מֵרַחֵ֖ם  and  not  have  compassion  on 
Parse: Preposition-m, Verb, Piel, Infinitive construct
Root: רָחַם  
Sense: to love, love deeply, have mercy, be compassionate, have tender affection, have compassion.
בֶּן־  the  son 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
؟ בִּטְנָ֑הּ  of  her  womb 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person feminine singular
Root: בֶּטֶן  
Sense: belly, womb, body.
גַּם־  surely 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: גַּם  
Sense: also, even, indeed, moreover, yea.
אֵ֣לֶּה  these 
Parse: Pronoun, common plural
Root: אֵהֶל 
Sense: these.
תִשְׁכַּ֔חְנָה  may  forget 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine plural
Root: כָּשַׁח 
Sense: to forget, ignore, wither.
וְאָנֹכִ֖י  and  yet  I  will 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Pronoun, first person common singular
Root: אָנׄכִי  
Sense: I (first pers.
אֶשְׁכָּחֵֽךְ  forget  you 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, first person common singular, second person feminine singular
Root: כָּשַׁח 
Sense: to forget, ignore, wither.