Bible Strands
Isaiah 55:13
Instead of the thornbush, the cypress will grow, and instead of the brier, the myrtle will spring up; this will make a name for the LORD, an everlasting sign, never to be destroyed.”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The LORD speaks to the gathered remnant of Israel, in the midst of a call to come and be refreshed (Isa 55:1–3). This is the closing declaration of that call: the visible result of God's provision.
The words — תַּחַת (ta.chat), "in place of," is repeated and forms the structural hinge of the verse, marking a direct substitution. יַעֲלֶה (ya.'a.leh), "it will grow up," is also repeated, pairing each replacement with active, upward growth.
The thread — Isaiah 41:19 uses the same botanical imagery (cedars, cypresses, myrtles planted in the wilderness) as a sign of God's power among the nations. 1 Peter 2:9 echoes the purpose clause: the people exist to "proclaim the virtues" of the one who called them.
Why it lands — The verse presents a fixed, irreversible substitution: what was painful and useless is replaced by what is beautiful and enduring, and this replacement is the name of the LORD. It asks the reader to accept that the transformation is declared as an "everlasting sign, never to be destroyed," not contingent on their performance.
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
Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
Cross-references
- Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us,
- 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.
- Isaiah 41:19 I will plant cedars in the wilderness, acacias, myrtles, and olive trees. I will set cypresses in the desert, elms and boxwood together,
- Isaiah 61:3 to console the mourners in Zion—to give them a crown of beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and a garment of praise for a spirit of despair. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.
- Jeremiah 33:9 So this city will bring Me renown, joy, praise, and glory before all the nations of the earth, who will hear of all the good I do for it. They will tremble in awe because of all the goodness and prosperity that I will provide for it.
- 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!
- Isaiah 60:13 The glory of Lebanon will come to you—its cypress, elm, and boxwood together—to adorn the place of My sanctuary, and I will glorify the place of My feet.
- Jeremiah 50:5 They will ask the way to Zion and turn their faces toward it. They will come and join themselves to the LORD in an everlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.
- Romans 6:19 I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to escalating wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.
- 1 Peter 4:11 If anyone speaks, he should speak as one conveying the words of God. If anyone serves, he should serve with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.