The Meaning of Isaiah 45:5 Explained

Isaiah 45:5

KJV: I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:

YLT: I am Jehovah, and there is none else, Except Me there is no God, I gird thee, and thou hast not known Me.

Darby: I am Jehovah, and there is none else; there is no God beside me: I girded thee, and thou hast not known me;

ASV: I am Jehovah, and there is none else; besides me there is no God. I will gird thee, though thou hast not known me;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I [am] the LORD,  and [there is] none else, [there is] no God  beside  me: I girded  thee, though thou hast not known  me: 

What does Isaiah 45:5 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The issue is who the Lord Isaiah , not who Cyrus is. Yahweh is the only true God, so He could choose whom He would, even though Cyrus did not know Him.

Context Summary

Isaiah 45:1-13 - Jehovah's Chosen Instrument
Cyrus is one of the noblest figures in ancient history. His character became a model for the Greek youth in strength, simplicity, humanity, purity, and self-restraint. We have seen that Jehovah had assured His people that Jerusalem would be restored, Isaiah 44:26. They probably expected a repetition of the Red Sea and the Exodus. But God does not repeat Himself; and their deliverance from captivity was to be achieved through the victories that made Cyrus master of Babylon. See Ezra 1:1-4.
God's plans are achieved through individuals, whom He equips and raises up for their specific work. There is much in all our lives that we cannot account for, and which is due to the girding of the Almighty. We do not always recognize the real sources of our lives. They are hidden in God. He girds us though we do not know Him. Let us not gird ourselves in our own strength, but stretch forth our hands unto Him, sure that He will neither fail nor forsake. See John 21:18. They who thus utterly yield to God are bidden in the exercise of a daring faith to command, that is, to claim, His saving power. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 45

1  God calls Cyrus for his church's sake
5  By his omnipotence he challenges obedience
20  He convinces the idols of vanity by his saving power

What do the individual words in Isaiah 45:5 mean?

I [am] Yahweh and [there is] no other besides Me [There is] no God I will gird you and though not you have known Me
אֲנִ֤י יְהוָה֙ וְאֵ֣ין ע֔וֹד זוּלָתִ֖י אֵ֣ין אֱלֹהִ֑ים אֲאַזֶּרְךָ֖ וְלֹ֥א יְדַעְתָּֽנִי

אֲנִ֤י  I  [am] 
Parse: Pronoun, first person common singular
Root: אֲנִי  
Sense: I (first pers.
יְהוָה֙  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וְאֵ֣ין  and  [there  is]  no 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: אַיִן 
Sense: nothing, not, nought n.
ע֔וֹד  other 
Parse: Adverb
Root: עֹוד  
Sense: a going round, continuance adv.
זוּלָתִ֖י  besides  Me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: זוּלָה  
Sense: a removal, a putting away prep.
אֵ֣ין  [There  is]  no 
Parse: Adverb
Root: אַיִן 
Sense: nothing, not, nought n.
אֱלֹהִ֑ים  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
אֲאַזֶּרְךָ֖  I  will  gird  you 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, first person common singular, second person masculine singular
Root: אָזַר  
Sense: gird, encompass, equip, clothe.
וְלֹ֥א  and  though  not 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
יְדַעְתָּֽנִי  you  have  known  Me 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine singular, first person common singular
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.