Isaiah 49:23

Isaiah 49:23

And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.

a. NLT: Kings and queens will serve you and care for all your needs. They will bow to the earth before you and lick the dust from your feet. Then you will know that I am the LORD. Those who trust in me will never be put to shame.”

b. NIV: Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down before you with their faces to the ground; they will lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who hope in me will not be disappointed.”

c. YLT: And kings have been thy nursing fathers, And their princesses thy nursing mothers; Face to the earth -- they bow down to thee, And the dust of thy feet they lick up, And thou hast known that I am Jehovah, That those expecting Me are not ashamed.

d. Amplified Bible: “Kings will be your attendants, And their princesses your nurses.
They will bow down to you with their faces to the earth And lick the dust of your feet;
And you shall know [with an understanding based on personal experience] that I am the Lord; For they shall not be put to shame who wait and hope expectantly for Me.

e. Septuagint: And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their princesses thy nurses, they shall bow down to thee on the face of the earth, and shall lick the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord, and they that wait on me shall not be ashamed. 

f. Stone Edition Torah/Prophets/Writings: Kings will be your nurturersand their princesses your wet nurses. With faces to the ground they will prostrate themselves to you; they will lick the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am HASHEM, and those Who put their hopes in Me shall not be ashamed.

1. “And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers…”

a. and kings [4428 * melek] [Strong: from 4427; a king:--king, royal.]

b. shall be thy nursing fathers [539 * 'aman] [Strong: a primitive root; properly, to build up or support; to foster as a parent or nurse; figuratively to render (or be) firm or faithful, to trust or believe, to be permanent or quiet; morally to be true or certain; once (Isa. 30:21; interchangeable 541) to go to the right hand:--hence, assurance, believe, bring up, establish, + fail, be faithful (of long continuance, stedfast, sure, surely, trusty, verified), nurse, (-ing father), (put), trust, turn to the right.]

c. and their queens [8282 * sarah] [Strong: feminine of 8269; a mistress, i.e. female noble:--lady, princess, queen.]

d. thy nursing mothers [3243 * yanaq yaw-nak' a primitive root; to suck; causatively, to give milk:--milch, nurse(-ing mother), (give, make to) suck(-ing child, -ling).]

1). This verse surely fits in with other passages that speak of the rulers of the world paying homage to by bringing their nations wealth to homor Christ Jesus, the King of the Universe, King of the world, and the King of Israel. There will also be a substantial amount of honor and respect given to the Jewish nation and people.

a). Isaiah 60:11, 12 Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.

60:12 For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

2. “…they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet…”

a. they shall bow down [7812 * shachah] [Strong: a primitive root; to depress, i.e. prostrate (especially reflexive, in homage to royalty or God):--bow (self) down, crouch, fall down (flat), humbly beseech, do (make) obeisance, do reverence, make to stoop, worship.]

b. with their face [639 * 'aph] [Strong: from 599; properly, the nose or nostril; hence, the face, and occasionally a person; also (from the rapid breathing in passion) ire:--anger(-gry), + before, countenance, face, + forebearing, forehead, + (long-)suffering, nose, nostril, snout, X worthy, wrath.]

c. toward the earth [776 * 'erets] [Strong: from an unused root probably meaning to be firm; the earth (at large, or partitively a land):--X common, country, earth, field, ground, land, X natins, way, + wilderness, world.]

d. and lick up [3897 * lachak] [Strong: a primitive root; to lick:--lick (up).]

e. the dust [6083 * `aphar] [Strong: from 6080; dust (as powdered or gray); hence, clay, earth, mud:--ashes, dust, earth, ground, morter, powder, rubbish.]

f. of thy feet [7272 * regel] [Strong: from 7270; a foot (as used in walking); by implication, a step; by euphem. the pudenda:--X be able to endure, X according as, X after, X coming, X follow, ((broken-))foot((-ed, -stool)), X great toe, X haunt, X journey, leg, + piss, + possession, time.] [Gesenius: foot, leg,  of God (anthropomorphic), of seraphim, cherubim, idols, animals, table, according to the pace of (with prep), three times (feet, paces)]

1). The attitude of the world toward Israel will change 180 degrees from hatred and disgust to honor and rejoicing.

a). Isaiah 60:14, 15 The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee; The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

60:15 Whereas thou has been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.

3. “…and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.”

a. and thou shalt know [3045 * yada` yaw-dah' a primitive root; to know (properly, to ascertain by seeing); used in a great variety of senses, figuratively, literally, euphemistically and inferentially (including observation, care, recognition; and causatively, instruction, designation, punishment, etc.) (as follow):--acknowledge, acquaintance(-ted with), advise, answer, appoint, assuredly, be aware, (un-)awares, can(-not), certainly, comprehend, consider, X could they, cunning, declare, be diligent, (can, cause to) discern, discover, endued with, familiar friend, famous, feel, can have, be (ig-)norant, instruct, kinsfolk, kinsman, (cause to let, make) know, (come to give, have, take) knowledge, have (knowledge), (be, make, make to be, make self) known, + be learned, + lie by man, mark, perceive, privy to, X prognosticator, regard, have respect, skilful, shew, can (man of) skill, be sure, of a surety, teach, (can) tell, understand, have (understanding), X will be, wist, wit, wot.]

b. that I am the LORD [3068 * Yhovah yeh-ho-vaw' from 1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God:--Jehovah, the Lord.]

c. for they shall not be ashamed [954 * buwsh] [Strong: a primitive root; properly, to pale, i.e. by implication to be ashamed; also (by implication) to be disappointed or delayed:--(be, make, bring to, cause, put to, with, a-)shamed(-d), be (put to) confounded(-fusion), become dry, delay, be long.]

d. that wait [6960 * qavah] [Strong: a primitive root; to bind together (perhaps by twisting), i.e. collect; (figuratively) to expect:--gather (together), look, patiently, tarry, wait (for, on, upon).]