The Meaning of Isaiah 26:19 Explained

Isaiah 26:19

KJV: Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.

YLT: Thy dead live -- My dead body they rise. Awake and sing, ye dwellers in the dust, For the dew of herbs is thy dew, And the land of Rephaim thou causest to fall.

Darby: Thy dead shall live, my dead bodies shall arise. Awake and sing in triumph, ye that dwell in dust; for thy dew is the dew of the morning, and the earth shall cast forth the dead.

ASV: Thy dead shall live; my dead bodies shall arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust; for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast forth the dead.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Thy dead  [men] shall live,  [together with] my dead body  shall they arise.  Awake  and sing,  ye that dwell  in dust:  for thy dew  [is as] the dew  of herbs,  and the earth  shall cast out  the dead. 

What does Isaiah 26:19 Mean?

Study Notes

thy dead men
Eliminate the supplied words, men, and, together with. "Body" is in the plural, "bodies." Isaiah 26:19-21 with Isaiah 27, constitute Jehovah's answer to the plaint of Israel, Isaiah 26:11-18 . Isaiah 28:19 should read: "Thy dead shall live: my dead bodies shall rise" (i.e. the dead bodies of Jehovah's people). The restoration and re-establishment of Israel as a nation is also spoken of as a resurrection Ezekiel 37:1-11 and many hold that no more than this is meant in Isaiah 26:19 . But since the first resurrection is unto participation in the kingdom Revelation 20:4-6 it seems the better view that both meanings are here.

Verse Meaning

Was Isaiah referring to national survival or to individual resurrection here? Probably both. [1] He had been talking about the near-death experiences of Israel in the preceding verses ( Isaiah 26:16-18), and he had already revealed that a remnant would enter the Millennium ( Isaiah 25:6-10; cf. Ezekiel 37). However, in the same passage the prophet also looked forward to the abolition of death itself ( Isaiah 25:7-8). So probably we have both a figurative and a literal resurrection in view, a figurative resurrection of Israel in the future and a literal resurrection of Israelites in the future (cf. Daniel 12:2; Job 19:26). As dew descends, so God would come to the Israelites bringing refreshment and vitality (cf. Psalm 72:6; Hosea 14:5).
Interestingly, Young, who interpreted many of Isaiah"s predictions figuratively, insisted, "The language [2] is not to be taken figuratively" (2:226). [3] He believed, correctly I think, that believers who actually died physically are in view here and that physical resurrection is in view.

Context Summary

Isaiah 26:11-21 - Chastened By Suffering
When God ordains our peace, a world in arms cannot disturb us. Our peace results from the conviction that God is going before us and preparing our works. But be careful to make mention of His name, that is, to give Him the glory.
Do not be afraid of your enemies. When God brings you back from the ends of the earth, He will free you from their toils and snares. Let us, as Isaiah 26:16 suggests, pour out our prayers, as a vessel its contents; though, as the Hebrew signifies, those prayers are but whispers. It is true that apart from God we work no deliverance in the earth, Isaiah 26:18, but when He speaks, even the dead live. Jesus, the resurrection and the life, speaks in Isaiah 26:19. What comfort results to those that dwell in the dust of self-abasement and despair to look up to the ever-living Christ, from whom streams of life-giving energy come to believing hearts! Arise and sing, thou broken heart: even now the stone is being rolled from the door of thy sepulcher; the morning dew is distilling upon thee. Cast out by earth, thou shalt be welcomed by heaven, and sheltered in God's secret place till the storm-burst has spent itself. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 26

1  Trust in God's Provision

What do the individual words in Isaiah 26:19 mean?

Shall live Your dead [Together with] my dead body they shall arise Awake and sing you who dwell in dust for the dew of herbs your dew [is like] and the earth the dead shall cast out -
יִֽחְי֣וּ מֵתֶ֔יךָ נְבֵלָתִ֖י יְקוּמ֑וּן הָקִ֨יצוּ וְרַנְּנ֜וּ שֹׁכְנֵ֣י עָפָ֗ר כִּ֣י טַ֤ל אוֹרֹת֙ טַלֶּ֔ךָ וָאָ֖רֶץ רְפָאִ֥ים תַּפִּֽיל ס

יִֽחְי֣וּ  Shall  live 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: חָיָה  
Sense: to live, have life, remain alive, sustain life, live prosperously, live for ever, be quickened, be alive, be restored to life or health.
מֵתֶ֔יךָ  Your  dead 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: מוּת  
Sense: to die, kill, have one executed.
נְבֵלָתִ֖י  [Together  with]  my  dead  body 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: נְבֵלָה  
Sense: carcass, corpse.
יְקוּמ֑וּן  they  shall  arise 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural, Paragogic nun
Root: קוּם 
Sense: to rise, arise, stand, rise up, stand up.
הָקִ֨יצוּ  Awake 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: קוּץ 
Sense: to awake, wake up.
וְרַנְּנ֜וּ  and  sing 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Piel, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: רוּן 
Sense: to overcome.
שֹׁכְנֵ֣י  you  who  dwell  in 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural construct
Root: שָׁכַן  
Sense: to settle down, abide, dwell, tabernacle, reside.
עָפָ֗ר  dust 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: עָפָר  
Sense: dry earth, dust, powder, ashes, earth, ground, mortar, rubbish.
טַ֤ל  the  dew 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: טַל  
Sense: dew, night mist.
אוֹרֹת֙  of  herbs 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural
Root: אֹורָה 
Sense: light.
טַלֶּ֔ךָ  your  dew  [is  like] 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: טַל  
Sense: dew, night mist.
וָאָ֖רֶץ  and  the  earth 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
רְפָאִ֥ים  the  dead 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: רְפָאִים  
Sense: ghosts of the dead, shades, spirits.
תַּפִּֽיל  shall  cast  out 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: נָפַל  
Sense: to fall, lie, be cast down, fail.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation