Isaiah 41 · Verse 18

Isaiah 41:18

I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
Isaiah 41:18, King James Version

Isaiah 41:18 in other translations

BSBI will open rivers on the barren heights, and fountains in the middle of the valleys. I will turn the desert into a pool of water, and the dry land into flowing springs.
WEBI will open rivers on the bare heights, and springs in the middle of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
ASVI will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
YLTI open on high places rivers, And in midst of valleys fountains, I make a wilderness become a pond of water, And a dry land become springs of water.
DARBYI will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness into a pool of water, and the dry land into water-springs.
BBEI will make rivers on the dry mountain-tops, and fountains in the valleys: I will make the waste land a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
WebsterI will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

What does Isaiah 41:18 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
18. Alluding to the waters with which Israel was miraculously supplied in the desert after having come out of Egypt. high places--bare of trees, barren, and unwatered (Jr 4:11; 14:6). "High places ... valleys" spiritually express that in all circumstances, whether elevated or depressed, God's people will have refreshment for their souls, however little to be expected it might seem.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Isaiah 41:10-20

God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with God's people, that seek their ruin…

Read the full comment on Isaiah 41:10-20 →

Isaiah 41:18 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

אֶפְתַּ֤ח'ef.TachI will openH6605
עַל\־'al-onH5921
שְׁפָיִים֙she.fa.Yimbare heightsH8205
נְהָר֔וֹתne.ha.RotriversH5104
וּבְת֥וֹךְu.ve.Tokhand in [the] middle ofH8432
בְּקָע֖וֹתbe.ka.'otvalleysH1237
מַעְיָנ֑וֹתma'.ya.NotspringsH4599
אָשִׂ֤ים'a.SimI will makeH7760
מִדְבָּר֙mid.Bar[the] wildernessH4057
לַאֲגַם\־la.'a.gam-<into> a pool ofH98
מַ֔יִםMa.yimwaterH4325
וְאֶ֥רֶץve.'E.retzand a landH776
צִיָּ֖הtzi.YahdryH6723
לְמוֹצָ֥אֵיle.mo.Tza.'ei<into> springs ofH4161
מָֽיִם\׃Ma.yimwaterH4325

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Isaiah 41:18

  • Isaiah 35:6-7

    Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes.

  • Psalms 107:35

    He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings.

  • Isaiah 58:11

    And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

  • Isaiah 30:25

    And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.

  • Revelation 7:17

    For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

  • Ezekiel 47:1-8

    Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar. Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side. And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ankles. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins. …

  • Isaiah 43:19-20

    Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen.

  • Isaiah 44:3

    For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:

  • Isaiah 49:9-10

    That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places. They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.

  • Revelation 22:1

    And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

  • Isaiah 32:2

    And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

  • Joel 3:18

    And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the Lord, and shall water the valley of Shittim.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
12:3; 30:25; 32:2; 35:6,7; 43:19,20; 44:3; 48:21; 49:9,10; 58:11
Ps 46:4; 78:15,16; 105:41; 107:35; Eze 47:1-8; Joe 3:18; Zec 14:8
Re 7:17; 22:1

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Isaiah 41:17

    When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

  • Isaiah 41:18

    I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

  • Isaiah 41:19

    I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together:

Read all of Isaiah 41

Isaiah 41:18 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
En los altos abriré ríos, y fuentes en mitad de los llanos: tornaré el desierto en estanques de aguas, y en manaderos de aguas la tierra seca.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Je ferai couler des rivières sur les hauteurs, et des fontaines au milieu des vallées; je changerai le désert en un étang d’eau, et la terre aride en des sources jaillissantes.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Ich werde Ströme hervorbrechen lassen auf den kahlen Höhen, und Quellen inmitten der Talebenen; ich werde die Wüste zum Wasserteich machen, und das dürre Land zu Wasserquellen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Aperiam in supinis collibus flumina, et in medio camporum fontes: ponam desertum in stagna aquarum, et terram inviam in rivos aquarum.