Isaiah 45 15

Isaiah 45:15 kjv

Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.

Isaiah 45:15 nkjv

Truly You are God, who hide Yourself, O God of Israel, the Savior!

Isaiah 45:15 niv

Truly you are a God who has been hiding himself, the God and Savior of Israel.

Isaiah 45:15 esv

Truly, you are a God who hides himself, O God of Israel, the Savior.

Isaiah 45:15 nlt

Truly, O God of Israel, our Savior,
you work in mysterious ways.

Isaiah 45 verses

Isaiah 45 15 Meaning

Isaiah 45:15 is a profound exclamatory prayer, acknowledging the paradoxical nature of God. It declares God's transcendent, mysterious character ("who hides Himself") even while affirming His intimate covenantal relationship with Israel and His active role as their Redeemer ("the Savior"). The verse articulates that God's ways are often beyond human comprehension, yet His faithfulness and saving power are unwavering. It stands as a confession of faith in a God who reveals Himself through action, despite remaining inscrutable in His essence and methods.

Isaiah 45 15 Context

Isaiah 45 is part of the "Book of Consolation" (Isa 40-55), a section largely addressed to exiles in Babylon. It emphasizes God's absolute sovereignty, uniqueness, and His power to save His people, especially in the context of His unexpected use of Cyrus, a pagan king, to facilitate Israel's return from exile.Before verse 15, God asserts His omnipotence, declaring Himself as the only true God (vv. 5-7), creator (vv. 7-13), and controller of history (vv. 1-4). He directly challenges idols and their worshipers, portraying them as powerless (vv. 9-11). The passage describes how God sovereignly prepares the way for His people's salvation.Verse 15 acts as an interjection, a profound confession of faith. It transitions from God's grand declarations of His power and unique identity to a recognition of His mysterious nature. It acknowledges that even when God is actively working in history, His methods and timing are not always transparent to human understanding. Despite this, the confession ends with the steadfast truth: He is the God of Israel, the Savior.

Isaiah 45 15 Word analysis

• Truly (Hebrew: אָכֵן, ʾāḵēn): This adverb serves as an emphatic particle, meaning "surely," "indeed," or "verily." It signals a weighty and profound statement, often used to introduce a solemn truth or a confession of faith. Its placement here stresses the sincerity and certainty of the following declaration about God's nature.
• You are a God (Hebrew: אַתָּה אֵל, ʾattāh ʾēl):
  • אַתָּה (ʾattāh): The pronoun "You," a direct address to God, emphasizing His personal nature even amidst His mystery.
  • אֵל (ʾēl): A generic term for God or a powerful being, but when used without the definite article in conjunction with "You," it profoundly affirms God's divine essence and power. It's often used for the supreme Deity.
• who hides Himself (Hebrew: מִסְתַּתֵּר, mistattēr): This is a Piel participle, meaning "one who hides himself" or "one who keeps himself secret."
  • Piel Stem: Implies an intensive or active action, suggesting God actively chooses to conceal Himself, rather than merely being hidden. It's a deliberate self-concealment.
  • Reflexive nuance: The form conveys that God is hiding Himself (Hithpael could also express this, but Piel here functions similarly), signifying an aspect of His being or mode of operation.
  • Significance: This concept denotes God's transcendence, His incomprehensibility, and the fact that His ways are not always transparent to human reason. It does not imply absence or apathy, but a mysterious depth. It also sets Him apart from the visible, tangible, yet powerless idols of other nations.
• O God of Israel (Hebrew: אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, ʾĕlōhê Yiśrāʾēl):
  • אֱלֹהֵי (ʾĕlōhê): The construct form of אֱלֹהִים (ʾělōhîm), meaning "God of" or "God belonging to."
  • יִשְׂרָאֵל (Yiśrāʾēl): "Israel." This specific title links the transcendent, mysterious God directly to His covenant people. It anchors His universal sovereignty to a particular relationship and historical context. Despite His hiddenness, He remains personally involved with Israel.
• the Savior (Hebrew: מוֹשִׁיעַ, mōšîaʿ): This is a Hiphil participle, meaning "one who saves" or "deliverer."
  • Hiphil Stem: Denotes causative action, emphasizing that God causes salvation; He actively intervenes to rescue.
  • Participle form: Suggests an ongoing, active role, not just a one-time event. God is continually a Savior.
  • Significance: This word provides a powerful contrast to "who hides Himself." The hidden God is precisely the God who reveals Himself most profoundly through salvation and deliverance. His hiddenness doesn't prevent Him from acting decisively on behalf of His people. This term also starkly distinguishes Him from the impotent gods of Babylon.

Words-group analysis:

• "Truly, You are a God who hides Himself": This phrase encapsulates the core theological mystery – the ineffable transcendence of God. He is not merely distant, but actively (though perhaps inscrutably to us) conceals the fullness of His being and purpose. This isn't a defect in God but an aspect of His divine nature, evoking awe and humility.
• "O God of Israel, the Savior": This forms the crucial counterpoint and resolution to the preceding statement. The hidden, transcendent God is simultaneously the intimately personal covenant God of Israel and their active, unwavering Deliverer. His hiddenness does not equate to absence or lack of concern; rather, it underscores that His saving actions emerge from a wisdom and power that transcends human understanding. This juxtaposition of mystery and deliverance fosters faith that perseveres even when God's plans are not fully clear.

Isaiah 45 15 Bonus section

The Hebrew term for "hides Himself," mistattēr, shares its root with terms related to "mystery" in later Jewish thought. It is not about God being completely absent but about Him being sovereignly beyond full human discovery. This idea served as a potent polemic against pagan deities which were visible in their statues and predictable in their rituals. Israel's God, while not seen, demonstrated His reality through mighty, historical actions, particularly those highlighted in Isaiah 45 like the raising of Cyrus. This verse serves as a reminder that waiting upon the Lord often involves trusting His hidden wisdom even amidst bewildering circumstances, a concept that deepens in the New Testament with the "mystery of Christ" (Col 1:26-27).

Isaiah 45 15 Commentary

Isaiah 45:15 offers a profoundly important theological confession. It presents God as both hidden and revealed, transcendent and immanent, mysterious yet actively involved in salvation. The phrase "a God who hides Himself" does not suggest a reluctant or elusive deity, but rather speaks to God's inherent majesty and the limits of human comprehension. His ways, purposes, and very being are too vast and complex for human minds to fully grasp (Job 11:7, Rom 11:33). This hiddenness encourages humility and prevents attempts to confine God within human frameworks, implicitly condemning the visible but powerless idols. Yet, this confession is immediately balanced by "O God of Israel, the Savior." The inscrutable God is not an abstract concept; He is the personal God who entered into covenant with Israel, and whose ultimate characteristic is salvation. He proves His existence and character not through direct, unambiguous revelation of His "face," but through His powerful and redemptive acts in history, particularly His deliverance of Israel from Babylonian exile and His ultimate work of salvation through Christ. The paradox invites sustained trust and worship, acknowledging that even when we don't understand His methods, we can rely on His saving character.