Bible Strands
Isaiah 37:31
And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root below and bear fruit above.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Isaiah delivers this oracle to King Hezekiah during the Assyrian siege, following Hezekiah’s prayer for deliverance. The message addresses the house of Judah at a moment of imminent collapse, promising national preservation and future restoration.
The words — שֹׁ֣רֶשׁ (Sho.resh) means a root, paired with לְ/מָ֑טָּה (le./Ma.tah) meaning downwards, describing the remnant’s hidden, subterranean survival. פְּלֵיטַ֧ת (pe.lei.Tat) translates as the escaped remnant, identifying the specific group that will endure the judgment.
The thread — The agricultural timeline begins in Isaiah 37:30 and concludes with this verse’s promise of regrowth. The same wording appears in 2 Kings 19:30, while Isaiah 27:6 and Psalm 80:9 extend the root imagery to Jacob and Israel’s broader restoration.
Why it lands — The text asserts that a remnant will survive national destruction and resume productive life without human intervention. It requires the reader to recognize that future viability depends entirely on the preservation and action of the LORD of Hosts.
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
And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward:
Cross-references
- Isaiah 27:6 In the days to come, Jacob will take root. Israel will bud and blossom and fill the whole world with fruit.
- 2 Kings 19:30 And the surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root below and bear fruit above.
- Psalms 80:9 You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land.
- Isaiah 1:9 Unless the LORD of Hosts had left us a few survivors, we would have become like Sodom, we would have resembled Gomorrah.
- Isaiah 10:20 On that day the remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no longer depend on him who struck them, but they will truly rely on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.
- Jeremiah 44:28 Those who escape the sword will return from Egypt to Judah, few in number, and the whole remnant of Judah who went to dwell in the land of Egypt will know whose word will stand, Mine or theirs!
- Romans 9:27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: “Though the number of the Israelites is like the sand of the sea, only the remnant will be saved.
- Romans 11:5 In the same way, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace.
- Isaiah 65:9 And I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and heirs from Judah; My elect will possess My mountains, and My servants will dwell there.
- Jeremiah 30:19 Thanksgiving will proceed from them, a sound of celebration. I will multiply them, and they will not be decreased; I will honor them, and they will not be belittled.