Bible Strands
Isaiah 42:7
to open the eyes of the blind, to bring prisoners out of the dungeon and those sitting in darkness out from the prison house.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — YHWH declares the mission of the appointed Servant, who functions as a covenant for the people and a light to the nations. This declaration occurs within a broader oracle establishing divine sovereignty and the Servant's redemptive mandate.
The words — The text highlights לִפְקֹחַ (li/pəqōaḥ, "to open") and לְהוֹצִיא (ləhōṣî, "to bring out") to describe the Servant's dual action toward the blind and the imprisoned.
The thread — The motif of restoring sight appears in Isaiah 35:5, while the liberation of captives parallels the anointed mission described in Isaiah 61:1. This theme of divine initiative extends into the New Testament's emphasis on revelation in Ephesians 1:17.
Why it lands — The verse demands recognition that divine authority alone initiates liberation from blindness and confinement. It requires the reader to acknowledge that spiritual sight and freedom are granted solely by YHWH's appointed agent, not by human effort.
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
To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.
Cross-references
- Ephesians 1:17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in your knowledge of Him.
- Isaiah 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners,
- Isaiah 35:5 Then the eyes of the blind will be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
- Isaiah 49:9 to say to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ They will feed along the pathways, and find pasture on every barren hill.
- 2 Timothy 2:26 Then they will come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, who has taken them captive to his will.
- Matthew 11:5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.
- Hebrews 2:14 Now since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity, so that by His death He might destroy him who holds the power of death, that is, the devil,
- Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed,
- Luke 24:45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
- 1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.