Isaiah 65:8

This is what the LORD says: “As the new wine is found in a cluster of grapes, and men say, ‘Do not destroy it, for it contains a blessing,’ so I will act on behalf of My servants; I will not destroy them all.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Yahweh addresses the rebellious Israelites in Isaiah 65, speaking immediately after pronouncing full payment for their iniquities and the iniquities of their fathers. The declaration marks a pivot from corporate judgment to the preservation of a faithful remnant.

The words — תִּירוֹשׁ (ti.ro.Vosh) denotes new wine, the unfermented grape juice pressed and stored in a cluster. אֶשְׁכּוֹל ('esh.Kol) refers to the cluster itself, emphasizing the intact, valuable portion that prompts the command not to destroy it.

The thread — The remnant motif appears in Isaiah 6:13 and Romans 9:27, where a preserved fraction survives judgment. Amos 9:8 parallels this by distinguishing the destruction of the sinful kingdom from the preservation of the house of Jacob.

Why it lands — The text demands recognition that divine judgment operates with measured restraint, sparing those designated as servants. It requires readers to distinguish between corporate condemnation and individual preservation without assuming universal immunity.

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

כֹּ֣ה׀kohthus אָמַ֣ר'a.Marhe says יְהוָ֗הYah.wehYahweh כַּאֲשֶׁ֨רka./'a.Sherjust/ as יִמָּצֵ֤אyi.ma.Tze'it is found הַתִּירוֹשׁ֙ha./ti.ro.Voshthe/ new wine בָּֽאֶשְׁכּ֔וֹלba./'esh.Kolin the/ cluster of grapes וְאָמַר֙ve./'a.Marand/ someone says אַל־'al-may not תַּשְׁחִיתֵ֔הוּtash.chi.Te./huyou destroy/ it כִּ֥יkifor בְרָכָ֖הve.ra.Khahblessingבּ֑וֹb/o[is] in/ itכֵּ֤ןkenso אֶֽעֱשֶׂה֙'e.'e.SehI will act לְמַ֣עַןle.Ma.'anfor [the] sake of עֲבָדַ֔י'a.va.Da/iservants/ my לְבִלְתִּ֖יle./vil.Tito/ not הַֽשְׁחִ֥יתhash.Chitto destroy הַכֹּֽל׃ha./Kol<the>/ everyone

King James Version

Thus saith the Lord, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants’ sakes, that I may not destroy them all.

Cross-references

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.
Amos 9:8 Surely the eyes of the Lord GOD are on the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from the face of the earth. Yet I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob,” declares the LORD.
Isaiah 6:13 And though a tenth remains in the land, it will be burned again. As the terebinth and oak leave stumps when felled, so the holy seed will be a stump in the land.”
Jeremiah 30:11 For I am with you to save you, declares the LORD. Though I will completely destroy all the nations to which I have scattered you, I will not completely destroy you. Yet I will discipline you justly, and will by no means leave you unpunished.”
Mark 13:20 If the Lord had not cut short those days, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom He has chosen, He has cut them short.
Romans 11:5 In the same way, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace.
Romans 11:24 For if you were cut from a wild olive tree, and contrary to nature were grafted into one that is cultivated, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!
Joel 2:14 Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave a blessing behind Him—grain and drink offerings for the LORD your God.
Matthew 24:22 If those days had not been cut short, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short.