Bible Strands
Isaiah 34:16
Search and read the scroll of the LORD: Not one of these will go missing, not one will lack her mate, because He has ordered it by His mouth, and He will gather them by His Spirit.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Isaiah pronounces judgment on Edom (v.15 describes its desolation) and commands his audience to verify the prophecy against the written word of Yahweh.
The words — דִּרְשׁוּ (dir.Shu), "seek," is a strong imperative from the root דרש (H1875), denoting diligent searching rather than casual looking. It is the same verb used of seeking God in Deuteronomy 4:29.
The thread — The assurance that not a single element will be missing echoes Matthew 5:18 ("not a single jot... will disappear") and the permanence of God's spoken word in Psalms 33:9. The command to seek and read the scroll parallels Joshua 1:8's charge to meditate on the Book of the Law.
Why it lands — It places the burden on the reader to verify the claim against the text itself, not to accept it on the prophet's authority alone. The verse is a testable assertion: check the scroll, and nothing will be lacking.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Seek ye out of the book of the Lord, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them.
Cross-references
- Psalms 33:9 For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.
- Joshua 1:8 This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in all you do.
- Matthew 5:18 For I tell you truly, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single jot, not a stroke of a pen, will disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.
- Isaiah 30:8 Go now, write it on a tablet in their presence and inscribe it on a scroll; it will be for the days to come, a witness forever and ever.
- Psalms 33:6 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the stars by the breath of His mouth.
- Proverbs 23:12 Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.
- Luke 21:33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
- John 10:35 If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and the Scripture cannot be broken—
- Daniel 10:21 But first I will tell you what is inscribed in the Book of Truth. Yet no one has the courage to support me against these, except Michael your prince.
- Malachi 3:16 At that time those who feared the LORD spoke with one another, and the LORD listened and heard them. So a scroll of remembrance was written before Him regarding those who feared the LORD and honored His name.