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O LORD our God, other lords besides You have had dominion, but Your name alone do we confess.
Isaiah 26:13 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Yahweh our God, other lords besides you have had dominion over us, but by you only will we make mention of your name.
  • KJV O LORD our God, other lords beside thee have had dominion over us: but by thee only will we make mention of thy name.
  • NKJV O Lord our God, masters besides You Have had dominion over us; But by You only we make mention of Your name.
  • NASB Lord, our God, other masters besides You have ruled us; But through You alone we confess Your name.
  • NLT O Lord our God, others have ruled us, but you alone are the one we worship.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Though other lords once ruled over them, the people now honor God's name alone. They renounce former masters and cling to the Lord.

Overview

Acknowledging past domination by other lords, perhaps foreign powers or false gods, the people resolve to confess Yahweh's name only. Their exclusive devotion marks true repentance. It pictures the believer's turning from every rival lordship to serve God alone in Christ.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 12

  • Isa 2:8Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made.
  • Isa 63:7I will make known the LORD’s loving devotion and His praiseworthy acts, because of all that the LORD has done for us—the many good things for the house of Israel according to His great compassion and loving devotion.
  • Heb 13:15Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His name.
  • Rom 6:22But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the fruit you reap leads to holiness, and the outcome is eternal life.
  • Isa 12:4and on that day you will say: “Give praise to the LORD; proclaim His name! Make His works known among the peoples; declare that His name is exalted.
  • Amos 6:10And when the relative who is to burn the bodies picks them up to remove them from the house, he will call to one inside, “Is anyone else with you?” “None,” that person will answer. “Silence,” the relative will retort, “for the name of the LORD must not be invoked.”
  • Josh 23:7So you are not to associate with these nations that remain among you. You must not call on the names of their gods or swear by them, and you must not serve them or bow down to them.
  • 2 Chr 12:8Nevertheless, they will become his servants, so that they may learn the difference between serving Me and serving the kings of other lands.”
  • Isa 51:22Thus says your Lord, the LORD, even your God, who defends His people: “See, I have removed from your hand the cup of staggering. From that goblet, the cup of My fury, you will never drink again.
  • Isa 10:11and as I have done to Samaria and its idols, will I not also do to Jerusalem and her idols?”
  • John 8:32Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
  • 1 Cor 4:7For who makes you so superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Isaiah videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Isaiah 26:13YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on IsaiahMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Isaiah sees him most clearly: the virgin's son Immanuel, the child on David's throne, the shoot from Jesse, the light to the nations, and above all the Suffering Servant pierced for our transgressions (ch. 53).

How Isaiah 26:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.