🕊️WEB · Isaiah 43:17
What does Isaiah 43:17 mean?
"who brings out the chariot and horse, the army and the mighty man (they lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinct, they are quenched like a wick):"
— Isaiah 43:17 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
Yahweh, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says: “For your sake, I have sent to Babylon, and I will bring all of them down as fugitives, even the Chaldeans, in the ships of their rejoicing.
I am Yahweh, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King.”
Yahweh, who makes a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters says:
who brings out the chariot and horse, the army and the mighty man (they lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinct, they are quenched like a wick):
“Don’t remember the former things, and don’t consider the things of old.
Behold, I will do a new thing. It springs out now. Don’t you know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
The animals of the field shall honor me, the jackals and the ostriches; because I give water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen,
Explanation
Isaiah 43:17 recalls a scene of overwhelming military defeat, but the verse only makes sense as part of a larger sentence that begins in verse 16. Together they read as one thought: the LORD is the one "who makes a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters, who brings out the chariot and horse, the army and the mighty man." This is a direct reference to the exodus from Egypt, when God parted the Red Sea for Israel to escape and then closed the waters over Pharaoh's pursuing army. The chariots, horses, soldiers, and mighty men mentioned here are Egypt's forces, and the verse describes their total destruction: "they lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinct, they are quenched like a wick." The imagery of a snuffed-out candle wick captures how completely and finally that army was ended.
The verse comes from the prophet Isaiah, writing to the people of Judah, likely addressing those facing or anticipating the trauma of exile in Babylon. Isaiah 40–55 in particular speaks comfort to a discouraged, defeated people, reminding them of who God is and what he has already done for them. By invoking the exodus—Israel's founding act of deliverance—Isaiah reaches back to the most vivid proof of God's power to save his people from seemingly hopeless circumstances. The Israelites in exile could feel much like their ancestors once did: trapped, outmatched, and facing destruction. Isaiah reminds them that the same God who defeated Pharaoh's army is still their
Compare translations
Go deeper with ScriptureCompanion AI
Ask questions about any verse, follow reading plans, write personal prayers, and track your daily habit — all grounded in verified scripture text.