Isaiah 64 · Verse 4

Isaiah 64:4

For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.
Isaiah 64:4, King James Version

Isaiah 64:4 in other translations

BSBFrom ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides You, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.
WEBFor from of old men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, nor has the eye seen a God besides you, who works for him who waits for him.
ASVFor from of old men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen a God besides thee, who worketh for him that waiteth for him.
YLTEven from antiquity men have not heard, They have not given ear, Eye hath not seen a God save Thee, He doth work for those waiting for Him.
DARBYNever have men heard, nor perceived by the ear, nor hath eye seen a God beside thee, who acteth for him that waiteth for him.
BBEThe ear has not had news of, or the eye seen,... any God but you, working for the man who is waiting for him.
WebsterFor since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, besides thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

What does Isaiah 64:4 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
4. perceived by the ear--Paul (1Co 2:9) has for this, "nor have entered into the heart of man"; the virtual sense, sanctioned by his inspired authority; men might hear with the outward ear, but they could only by the Spirit "perceive" with the "heart" the spiritual significancy of God's acts, both those in relation to Israel, primarily referred to here, and those relating to the Gospel secondarily, which Paul refers to. O God ... what he ... prepared--rather, "nor hath eye seen a god beside thee who doeth such things." They refer to God's past marvellous acts in behalf of Israel as a plea for His now interposing for His people; but the Spirit, as Paul by inspiration shows, contemplated further God's revelation in the Gospel, which abounds in marvellous paradoxes never before heard of by carnal ear, not to be understood by mere human sagacity, and when foretold by the prophets not fully perceived or credited; and even after the manifestation of Christ not to be understood save through the inward teaching of the Holy Ghost. These are partly past and present, and partly future; therefore Paul substitutes "prepared" for "doeth," though his context shows he includes all three. For "waiteth" he has "love Him"; godly waiting on Him must flow from love, and not mere fear.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 4 For since the beginning of the world men have not heard "For never have men heard" - St. Paul is generally supposed to have quoted this passage of Isaiah, 1Cor 2:9; and Clemens Romanus in his first epistle has made the same quotation, very nearly in the same words with the apostle. But the citation is so very different both from the Hebrew text and the version of the Septuagint, that it seems very difficult, if not impossible, to reconcile them by any literal emendation, without going beyond the bounds of temperate criticism. One clause, "neither hath it entered into the heart of man," (which, by the way, is a phrase purely Hebrew, עלה על לב alah al leb, and should seem to belong to the prophet), is wholly left out; and another is repeated without force or propriety; viz., "nor perceived by the ear," after, "never have heard:" and the sense and expression of the apostle is far preferable to that of the Hebrew text. Under these difficulties I am at a loss what to do better, than to offer to the reader this, perhaps disagreeable, alternative: either to consider the Hebrew text and Septuagint in this place as wilfully disguised and corrupted by the Jews; of which practice in regard to other quotations in the New Testament from the Old, they lie under strong suspicions, (see Dr. Owen on the version of the Septuagint, sect. vi.-ix.); or to look upon St. Paul's quotation as not made from Isaiah, but from one or other of the two apocryphal books, entitled, The Ascension of Esaiah, and the Apocalypse of Elias, in both of which this passage was found; and the apostle is by some supposed in other places to have quoted such apocryphal writings. As the first of these conclusions will perhaps not easily be admitted by many, so I must fairly warn my readers that the second is treated by Jerome as little better than heresy. See his comment on this place of Isaiah. - L. I would read the whole verse thus; "Yea, from the time of old they have not heard, they have not hearkened to, an eye hath not seen a God besides thee. He shall work for that one that waiteth for him." This I really think on the whole to be the best translation of the original. The variations on this place are as follows: for שמעו shameu, they have heard, a MS. and the Septuagint read שמענו shamanu, we have heard: for the second לא lo, not, sixty-nine MSS. and four editions have ולא velo, and not, and the Syriac, Chaldee, and Vulgate. And so ועין veayin, and eye, Septuagint and Syriac. את eth, the, (emphatic), is added before אלהים Elohim, God, in MS. Bodleian. למחכי limechakkey, to them that wait, plural, two MSS. and all the ancient Versions. - L.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Isaiah 64:1-5

The church prays that God's power may be manifested. (Is. 64:1-5) A confession of sin, and afflictions bewailed. (Is. 64:6-12) Verses 1-5 They desire that God would manifest himself to them and for them, so that all may see it. This is applicable to the second coming of Christ, when the Lord himself shall descend from heaven. They plead what God had used to do, and had declared his gracious purpose to do, for his…

Read the full comment on Isaiah 64:1-5 →

Isaiah 64:4 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.

וּמֵעוֹלָ֥םu.me.'o.Lamand from long agoH5769
לֹא\־lo'-notH3808
שָׁמְע֖וּsha.me.'Upeople have heardH8085
לֹ֣אlo'notH3808
הֶאֱזִ֑ינוּhe.'e.Zi.nupeople have given earH238
עַ֣יִן'A.yineyeH5869
לֹֽא\־lo'-notH3808
רָאָ֗תָהra.'A.tahit has seenH7200
אֱלֹהִים֙'E.lo.Hima GodH430
זוּלָ֣תְךָ֔zu.La.te.khabesides youH2108
יַעֲשֶׂ֖הya.'a.Seh[who] he actsH6213
לִמְחַכֵּה\־lim.cha.keh-for [one who] waitsH2442
לֽוֹ\׃lofor <the> him

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

Cross references for Isaiah 64:4

  • 1 Corinthians 2:9-10

    But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

  • Psalms 31:19

    Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!

  • James 5:7

    Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.

  • Isaiah 25:9

    And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.

  • Psalms 130:5

    I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.

  • Colossians 1:26-27

    Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

  • Ephesians 3:17-21

    That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, …

  • Genesis 49:18

    I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord.

  • Lamentations 3:25-26

    The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.

  • Isaiah 30:18

    And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.

  • 1 John 3:1-2

    Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

  • John 14:3

    And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
have not.
Ps 31:19; 1Co 2:9,10; Eph 3:5-10,17-21; Col 1:26,27; 1Ti 3:16
1Jo 3:1,2; 4:10; Re 21:1-4,22-24; 22:1-5
seen, etc. or, seen a God besides thee, which doeth so for,etc. prepared.
Ps 31:19; Mt 25:34; Joh 14:3; Heb 11:16
waiteth.
25:9; Ge 49:18; Ps 62:1; 130:5; La 3:25,26; Lu 2:25; Ro 8:19,23-25
1Co 1:7; 1Th 1:10; Jas 5:7

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

Context

  • Isaiah 64:3

    When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou camest down, the mountains flowed down at thy presence.

  • Isaiah 64:4

    For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

  • Isaiah 64:5

    Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved.

Read all of Isaiah 64

Isaiah 64:4 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Ni nunca oyeron, ni oídos percibieron, ni ojo ha visto Dios fuera de ti, que hiciese por el que en él espera.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Tu viens à la rencontre de celui qui se réjouit à pratiquer la justice, de ceux qui se souviennent de toi dans tes voies! Voici, tu as été courroucé, et nous avons péché;… en tes voies est la perpétuité, et nous serons sauvés.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Denn von alters her hat man nicht gehört noch vernommen, hat kein Auge einen Gott gesehen, außer dir, der sich wirksam erwiese für den auf ihn Harrenden.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		A sæculo non audierunt, neque auribus perceperunt; oculus non vidit, Deus, absque te, quæ præparasti exspectantibus te.