Surely these shall come from afar; Look! Those from the north and the west, And these from the land of Sinim.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Behold, these shall come from afar; and behold, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.”
- KJV Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.
- BSB Behold, they will come from far away, from the north and from the west, and from the land of Aswan.”
- NASB “Behold, these will come from afar; And behold, these will come from the north and from the west, And these from the land of Aswan.”
- NLT See, my people will return from far away, from lands to the north and west, and from as far south as Egypt.”
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's people will come from every direction, from north, west, and distant Sinim, gathered from afar.
Overview
The exiles return not only from Babylon but from all directions, including the remote land of Sinim (possibly the far south, perhaps Aswan, or a distant region). The point is the worldwide ingathering of God's people. This foreshadows the gospel gathering of believers from east and west into the kingdom (Matthew 8:11; Luke 13:29).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Isa 43:5–6Don’t be afraid; for I am with you. I will bring your offspring from the east, and gather you from the west.
- Rev 7:9After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude, which no man could count, out of every nation and of all tribes, peoples, and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands.
- Ps 22:27All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to Yahweh. All the relatives of the nations shall worship before you.
- Isa 60:9–14Surely the islands will wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring your sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, for the name of Yahweh your God, and for the Holy One of Israel, because he has glorified you.
- Isa 11:10–11It will happen in that day that the nations will seek the root of Jesse, who stands as a banner of the peoples; and his resting place will be glorious.
- Mic 4:2Many nations will go and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of Yahweh, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths.” For the law will go out of Zion, and Yahweh’s word from Jerusalem;
- Zech 8:20–23Yahweh of Armies says: “Many peoples, and the inhabitants of many cities will yet come;
- Isa 2:2–3It shall happen in the latter days, that the mountain of Yahweh’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it.
- Luke 13:29They will come from the east, west, north, and south, and will sit down in God’s Kingdom.
- Ps 72:10–11The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring tribute. The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
- Isa 66:19–20“I will set a sign among them, and I will send those who escape of them to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to far-away islands, who have not heard my fame, nor have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations.
- Ps 72:17His name endures forever. His name continues as long as the sun. Men shall be blessed by him. All nations will call him blessed.
- Matt 8:11I tell you that many will come from the east and the west, and will sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven,
- Rev 11:15The seventh angel sounded, and great voices in heaven followed, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the Kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ. He will reign forever and ever!”
- Zech 2:11Many nations shall join themselves to Yahweh in that day, and shall be my people; and I will dwell among you, and you shall know that Yahweh of Armies has sent me to you.
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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 49:12 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
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