Isaiah 50:2
Wherefore, when I came, was there no man? when I called, was there none to answer? Is my hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem? or have I no power to deliver? behold, at my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a wilderness: their fish stinketh, because there is no water, and dieth for thirst.
Studiennotiz
Study Note
God's question 'wherefore, when I came, was there no man? when I called, was there none to answer?' frames Israel's problem not as divine absence but as human unresponsiveness — the initiative was God's, the silence was Israel's. The following demonstration of divine power (drying up the sea, clothing heavens in blackness) is a compressed recitation of the Exodus plagues and the Sinai theophany, proving that God's capacity to deliver remains fully intact. The rhetorical question 'is my hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem?' became a touchstone for faith confronting circumstances where redemption seems impossible, deployed in Numbers 11:23 (God to Moses about the quail) and developed in the New Testament's logic of divine omnipotence. The verse reflects the Deutero-Isaiah pattern: exile is not evidence of divine impotence but of human obstinacy — a reframing that converts despair into responsibility.
Andere Übersetzungen
Wherefore, when I came, was there no man? when I called, was there none to answer? Is my hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem? or have I no power to deliver? Behold, at my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a wilderness: their fish stink, because there is no water, and die for thirst.
Wherefore have I come, and there is no one? I called, and there is none answering, Hath My hand been at all short of redemption? And is there not in me power to deliver? Lo, by My rebuke I dry up a sea, I make rivers a wilderness, Their fish stinketh, for there is no water, And dieth with thirst.
Why, then, when I came, was there no man? and no one to give answer to my voice? has my hand become feeble, so that it is unable to take up your cause? or have I no power to make you free? See, at my word the sea becomes dry, I make the rivers a waste land: their fish are dead for need of water, and make an evil smell.
Querverweise
Is any thing too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the …
And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe …
And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of …
And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a …
But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a …
And the Lord said unto Moses, Is the Lord’s hand waxed short? thou shalt see now whether my word shall …
That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city …
Now therefore let not Hezekiah deceive you, nor persuade you on this manner, neither yet believe him: for no god …
He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up: so he led them through the depths, as through …
He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground;