Bible Strands
Isaiah 52:12
For you will not leave in a hurry nor flee in haste, for the LORD goes before you, and the God of Israel is your rear guard.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The prophet addresses the exiled community immediately after commanding them to leave Babylon and purify themselves. He describes their forthcoming departure as a divinely orchestrated movement rather than a panicked escape.
The words — חִפָּזוֹן (chipazon) denotes "haste" and מְנוּסָה (menusah) denotes "flight." The Hebrew text explicitly negates both terms to describe a deliberate, unhurried exodus.
The thread — Exodus 14:19 records the angel of God moving from the front to the rear of the Israelite camp to shield them. Isaiah 58:8 parallels this movement by stating that righteousness will precede the people's advance.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to reject panic-driven action in favor of trusting God's positioning. It demands submission to a divinely controlled timeline rather than human urgency.
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
For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for the Lord will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your rereward.
Cross-references
- Deuteronomy 20:4 For the LORD your God goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.”
- Isaiah 58:8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will come quickly. Your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
- Exodus 14:19 And the angel of God, who had gone before the camp of Israel, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from before them and stood behind them,
- Exodus 13:21 And the LORD went before them in a pillar of cloud to guide their way by day, and in a pillar of fire to give them light by night, so that they could travel by day or night.
- Isaiah 45:2 “I will go before you and level the mountains; I will break down the gates of bronze and cut through the bars of iron.
- Exodus 12:11 This is how you are to eat it: You must be fully dressed for travel, with your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. You are to eat in haste; it is the LORD’s Passover.
- Micah 2:13 One who breaks open the way will go up before them; they will break through the gate, and go out by it. Their King will pass through before them, the LORD as their leader.
- Numbers 10:25 Finally, the divisions of the camp of Dan set out under their standard, serving as the rear guard for all units, with Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai in command.
- 1 Chronicles 14:15 As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, move out to battle, because this will mean that God has gone out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.”
- Judges 4:14 Then Deborah said to Barak, “Arise, for this is the day that the LORD has delivered Sisera into your hand. Has not the LORD gone before you?” So Barak came down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him.