The Meaning of Isaiah 51:22 Explained

Isaiah 51:22

KJV: Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again:

YLT: Thus said thy Lord Jehovah, and thy God, He pleadeth for his people: 'Lo, I have taken out of thy hand the cup of trembling, The goblet, the cup of My fury, Thou dost not add to drink it any more.

Darby: thus saith thy Lord, Jehovah, and thy God, who pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I take out of thy hand the cup of bewilderment, the goblet-cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again:

ASV: Thus saith thy Lord Jehovah, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thy hand the cup of staggering, even the bowl of the cup of my wrath; thou shalt no more drink it again:

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Thus saith  thy Lord  the LORD,  and thy God  [that] pleadeth  the cause of his people,  Behold, I have taken out  of thine hand  the cup  of trembling,  [even] the dregs  of the cup  of my fury;  thou shalt no more  drink it again: 

What does Isaiah 51:22 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The God offering Israel a comforting promise was her master, Yahweh, the God of the covenant, the God who had taken her to Himself, who consistently defends His people. He promised that the Israelites would never again experience the outpouring of His wrath as they had. Obviously the Jews have experienced worse persecution in recent history than they did during the Babylonian exile: the German holocaust, the Russian pogroms, etc. And they will undergo the worst trials of their history in the Tribulation (cf. Jeremiah 30:4-7). I take it that God meant that He would not punish them as He had because He would provide the Servant to drink the cup of His wrath for His people. They would not have to suffer in the future as they had in the past because God would provide a Savior who would suffer in their place. That so many of the Jews have suffered terribly and will yet do so is because they have rejected the Savior that God provided.

Context Summary

Isaiah 51:12-23 - "the Captive Exile Shall Be Loosed"
During the Sepoy mutiny in India, when a number of English men and women were shut up in a quarter of Cawnpore, expecting a terrible death by assault or slow starvation, a torn page of the Bible, containing this passage, was found on the street pavement and was of unspeakable comfort. Oh, the blessedness of appropriating Isaiah 51:16! See Isaiah 49:7.
We are too apt to forget that God pleads the cause of His people, even when they have sinned and have reduced themselves to sore straits, Isaiah 51:17 and Isaiah 51:22. We think more of the earth than of the over-arching skies; of the fading grass than of the tree of Life; of man than of God. The near obscures the distant, and the flaring earth lights, the shine of the stars! Root yourself in God! Think of Him who sits at the right hand of the throne, the seat of resistless, ceaseless energy! Believe that God has placed Himself between you and all enemies and circumstances which threaten. To fear all day is impossible in face of these paragraphs. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 51

1  An exhortation after the pattern of Abraham, to trust in Christ
3  By reason of his comfortable promises,
4  Of his righteous salvation
7  And man's mortality
9  Christ by his sanctified arm defends his from the fear of man
17  He bewails the afflictions of Jerusalem
21  And promises deliverance

What do the individual words in Isaiah 51:22 mean?

thus says your Lord Yahweh and your God [Who] pleads the cause of His people See I have taken out of your hand - the cup of trembling the dregs of the cup of My fury no You shall drink it longer
כֹּֽה־ אָמַ֞ר אֲדֹנַ֣יִךְ יְהוָ֗ה וֵאלֹהַ֙יִךְ֙ יָרִ֣יב עַמּ֔וֹ הִנֵּ֥ה לָקַ֛חְתִּי מִיָּדֵ֖ךְ אֶת־ כּ֣וֹס הַתַּרְעֵלָ֑ה קֻבַּ֙עַת֙ כּ֣וֹס חֲמָתִ֔י לֹא־ תוֹסִ֥יפִי לִשְׁתּוֹתָ֖הּ עֽוֹד

כֹּֽה־  thus 
Parse: Adverb
Root: כֹּה  
Sense: thus, here, in this manner.
אָמַ֞ר  says 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
אֲדֹנַ֣יִךְ  your  Lord 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person feminine singular
Root: אֲדֹנָי  
Sense: my lord, lord.
יְהוָ֗ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וֵאלֹהַ֙יִךְ֙  and  your  God 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural construct, second person feminine singular
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
יָרִ֣יב  [Who]  pleads  the  cause 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: רִיב  
Sense: to strive, contend.
עַמּ֔וֹ  of  His  people 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: עַם 
Sense: nation, people.
הִנֵּ֥ה  See 
Parse: Interjection
Root: הִנֵּה  
Sense: behold, lo, see, if.
לָקַ֛חְתִּי  I  have  taken 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: יָקַח 
Sense: to take, get, fetch, lay hold of, seize, receive, acquire, buy, bring, marry, take a wife, snatch, take away.
מִיָּדֵ֖ךְ  out  of  your  hand 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, feminine singular construct, second person feminine singular
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
כּ֣וֹס  the  cup 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: כֹּוס 
Sense: cup.
הַתַּרְעֵלָ֑ה  of  trembling 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: תַּרְעֵלָה  
Sense: reeling, staggering.
קֻבַּ֙עַת֙  the  dregs 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: קֻבַּעַת  
Sense: cup.
כּ֣וֹס  of  the  cup 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: כֹּוס 
Sense: cup.
חֲמָתִ֔י  of  My  fury 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: חֵמָא 
Sense: heat, rage, hot displeasure, indignation, anger, wrath, poison, bottles.
לֹא־  no 
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
תוֹסִ֥יפִי  You  shall 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, second person feminine singular
Root: יָסַף 
Sense: to add, increase, do again.
לִשְׁתּוֹתָ֖הּ  drink  it 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct, third person feminine singular
Root: שָׁתָה  
Sense: to drink.
עֽוֹד  longer 
Parse: Adverb
Root: עֹוד  
Sense: a going round, continuance adv.