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Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west;
Isaiah 43:5 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Don’t be afraid; for I am with you. I will bring your offspring from the east, and gather you from the west.
  • BSB Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east and gather you from the west.
  • NKJV Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, And gather you from the west;
  • NASB “Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, And gather you from the west.
  • NLT “Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will gather you and your children from east and west.

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

God tells His people not to fear, for He is with them and will gather their offspring from east and west. It promises a worldwide regathering grounded in God's presence.

Overview

The repeated 'don't be afraid' rests on the assurance of God's presence. The LORD pledges to bring His scattered people home from every direction. This regathering foreshadows the gospel ingathering of God's people from all nations into one family in Christ.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 27

  • Deut 30:3That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.
  • Ezek 39:25–29Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name;
  • Isa 49:12Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.
  • Luke 13:29And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God.
  • Isa 60:1–11Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.
  • Isa 44:2Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen.
  • Ezek 36:24–27For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.
  • Acts 18:9–10Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace:
  • Isa 43:2When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.
  • Jer 30:10–11Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid.
  • Zech 8:7Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;
  • Jer 31:8–9Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a great company shall return thither.
  • Isa 41:14Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
  • Isa 27:12–13And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall beat off from the channel of the river unto the stream of Egypt, and ye shall be gathered one by one, O ye children of Israel.
  • Ezek 37:21–28And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land:
  • Isa 41:10Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
  • Isa 66:19–20And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.
  • Ps 106:47Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the heathen, to give thanks unto thy holy name, and to triumph in thy praise.
  • Ps 22:27–31All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee.
  • Isa 41:8But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.
  • John 10:16And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
  • Mic 2:12I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as the flock in the midst of their fold: they shall make great noise by reason of the multitude of men.
  • Jer 30:18–19Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob’s tents, and have mercy on his dwellingplaces; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the palace shall remain after the manner thereof.
  • Isa 11:11–12And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
  • Ps 107:3And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.
  • Jer 46:27–28But fear not thou, O my servant Jacob, and be not dismayed, O Israel: for, behold, I will save thee from afar off, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and be in rest and at ease, and none shall make him afraid.
  • 1 Kgs 8:46–51If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near;

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 43:5YouTube · 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 43:5 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.