The Meaning of Isaiah 38:10 Explained

Isaiah 38:10

KJV: I said in the cutting off of my days, I shall go to the gates of the grave: I am deprived of the residue of my years.

YLT: I -- I said in the cutting off of my days, I go in to the gates of Sheol, I have numbered the remnant of mine years.

Darby: I said, In the meridian of my days I shall go to the gates of Sheol: I am deprived of the rest of my years.

ASV: I said, In the noontide of my days I shall go into the gates of Sheol: I am deprived of the residue of my years.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I said  in the cutting off  of my days,  I shall go  to the gates  of the grave:  I am deprived  of the residue  of my years. 

What does Isaiah 38:10 Mean?

Study Notes

grave
Heb. "Sheol,"
hell
Sheol is, in the O.T., the place to which the dead go.
(1) Often, therefore, it is spoken of as the equivalent of the grave, merely, where all human activities cease; the terminus toward which all human life moves (e.g. Genesis 42:38 grave Job 14:13 grave Psalms 88:3 grave
(2) To the man "under the sun," the natural man, who of necessity judges from appearances, sheol seems no more than the grave-- the end and total cessation, not only of the activities of life, but of life itself. Ecclesiastes 9:5 ; Ecclesiastes 9:10
(3) But Scripture reveals sheol as a place of sorrow 2 Samuel 22:6 ; Psalms 18:5 ; Psalms 116:3 ; in which the wicked are turned Psalms 9:17 and where they are fully conscious; Isaiah 14:9-17 ; Ezekiel 32:21 see, especially, Jonah 2:2 what the belly of the great fish was to Jonah that sheol is to those who are therein). The sheol of the O.T. and hades of the N.T. (See Scofield " Luke 16:23 ") are identical.

Verse Meaning

When the king had heard Isaiah"s prophecy of his impending death ( Isaiah 38:1), he bemoaned the fact that he would enter Sheol, the place of departed spirits, in the prime of his life. Evidently the king felt that God was depriving him of years that He owed him, possibly because he was a righteous man or perhaps just because most people think they will live a normal lifespan.

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 38

1  Hezekiah, having received a message of death, by prayer has his life lengthened
8  The sun goes ten degrees backward, for a sign of that promise
9  His song of thanksgiving

What do the individual words in Isaiah 38:10 mean?

I said in the prime of my life I shall go to the gates of Sheol I am deprived of the remainder of my years
אֲנִ֣י אָמַ֗רְתִּי בִּדְמִ֥י יָמַ֛י אֵלֵ֖כָה בְּשַׁעֲרֵ֣י שְׁא֑וֹל פֻּקַּ֖דְתִּי יֶ֥תֶר שְׁנוֹתָֽי

אָמַ֗רְתִּי  said 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
בִּדְמִ֥י  in  the  prime 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: דְּמִי 
Sense: cessation, quiet, rest, silence, pause, peacefulness.
יָמַ֛י  of  my  life 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, first person common singular
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
אֵלֵ֖כָה  I  shall  go 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect Cohortative, first person common singular
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
בְּשַׁעֲרֵ֣י  to  the  gates 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: שַׁעַר  
Sense: gate.
שְׁא֑וֹל  of  Sheol 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: שְׁאֹול  
Sense: sheol, underworld, grave, hell, pit.
פֻּקַּ֖דְתִּי  I  am  deprived 
Parse: Verb, Pual, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: פָּקַד 
Sense: to attend to, muster, number, reckon, visit, punish, appoint, look after, care for.
יֶ֥תֶר  of  the  remainder 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: יֶתֶר 
Sense: .
שְׁנוֹתָֽי  of  my  years 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct, first person common singular
Root: שָׁנָה  
Sense: year.