Isaiah 59:21
"As for Me, this is My covenant with them," says the LORD. "My Spirit will not depart from you, and My words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth or from the mouths of your children and grandchildren, from now on and forevermore," says the LORD.
As for Me
This phrase emphasizes the personal commitment of God. In Hebrew, the phrase can be understood as "I, even I," which underscores the divine initiative and authority. It is God Himself who is speaking, highlighting His sovereignty and the personal nature of His covenant. This reflects the unchanging character of God, who is faithful and true to His promises.

this is My covenant
The term "covenant" (Hebrew: "berit") is a solemn agreement or promise. In the biblical context, it often refers to God's unbreakable promises to His people. This covenant is not just a legal contract but a relational bond, signifying God's enduring commitment to His people. Historically, covenants were sealed with rituals and sacrifices, underscoring their seriousness and sacredness.

with them
The "them" refers to the people of Israel, God's chosen nation. This highlights the communal aspect of God's promises, which are not just for individuals but for the entire community of believers. It reflects the collective identity of God's people, who are bound together by His covenant.

says the LORD
The use of "LORD" (Hebrew: "YHWH") is significant as it is the personal name of God, denoting His eternal existence and faithfulness. When God speaks, it is with ultimate authority and certainty. This phrase assures the reader of the divine origin and reliability of the promise.

My Spirit will not depart from you
The "Spirit" (Hebrew: "Ruach") represents God's presence and power. The promise that His Spirit will not depart signifies a perpetual divine presence and guidance. This is a profound assurance of God's ongoing relationship with His people, echoing the New Testament promise of the Holy Spirit's indwelling in believers.

and My words that I have put in your mouth
God's "words" are His divine revelations and truths. The imagery of putting words in someone's mouth suggests inspiration and empowerment to speak God's truth. This reflects the prophetic tradition where God's messengers are given His words to proclaim. It underscores the authority and power of God's word in the life of His people.

will always be on your lips
The phrase "on your lips" indicates constant meditation and proclamation of God's word. It suggests that God's truths should be a continual part of one's speech and life. This aligns with the biblical emphasis on the importance of speaking and living according to God's word.

on the lips of your children and on the lips of their descendants
This highlights the generational aspect of God's covenant. The faith and teachings are to be passed down through generations, ensuring that God's truths endure. It reflects the biblical mandate for parents to teach their children about God, fostering a legacy of faith.

from this time on and forevermore
This phrase emphasizes the eternal nature of God's covenant. It is not limited by time but extends into eternity. This assurance of permanence provides hope and stability, reminding believers of God's unchanging promises and eternal faithfulness.

says the LORD
Reiterating "says the LORD" at the end of the verse reinforces the divine authority and certainty of the promise. It serves as a bookend to the verse, reminding the reader that these are not mere human words but the assured declarations of the Almighty God.

Persons / Places / Events
1. The LORD (Yahweh)
The covenant-making God of Israel, who speaks directly to His people, promising His enduring presence and word.

2. The People of Israel
The recipients of God's covenant, representing those who are in a relationship with God and are recipients of His promises.

3. The Spirit of the LORD
The divine presence and power that God promises will remain with His people, signifying His ongoing relationship and guidance.

4. The Words of the LORD
The divine revelation and truth given to the people, meant to be perpetually spoken and lived out by them and their descendants.

5. Descendants of Israel
Future generations who are included in the covenant promise, emphasizing the enduring nature of God's word and Spirit.
Teaching Points
The Everlasting Covenant
God's covenant is not temporary but eternal, emphasizing His unchanging nature and faithfulness to His promises.

The Role of the Holy Spirit
The Spirit's presence is a sign of God's ongoing relationship with His people, empowering them to live according to His will.

The Importance of God's Word
God's words are meant to be internalized and spoken, guiding the lives of believers and being passed down through generations.

Generational Faithfulness
The promise extends to future generations, highlighting the responsibility of teaching and living out God's truth for the benefit of descendants.

Living in the Promise
Believers today are called to live in the reality of God's covenant, relying on His Spirit and word for guidance and strength.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the promise of God's Spirit not departing from us impact our daily walk with Him?

2. In what ways can we ensure that God's words remain on our lips and the lips of our children?

3. How does the concept of an everlasting covenant provide comfort and assurance in uncertain times?

4. What practical steps can we take to pass down our faith to future generations, as seen in this passage?

5. How do the connections to other scriptures enhance our understanding of God's promise in Isaiah 59:21?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Jeremiah 31:31-34
This passage speaks of the new covenant where God writes His law on the hearts of His people, similar to the promise of His words being on their lips.

Ezekiel 36:26-27
God promises to give a new heart and put His Spirit within His people, paralleling the promise of the Spirit not departing.

Acts 2:17-18
The outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost fulfills the promise of God's Spirit being with His people.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7
The command to keep God's words on one's heart and teach them to children aligns with the promise of God's words being on the lips of descendants.

Matthew 28:20
Jesus' promise to be with His disciples always echoes the enduring presence of God's Spirit and word.
The Gospel-CovenantR. Tuck Isaiah 59:21
The Hope of the RuedW. Clarkson Isaiah 59:21
Jehovah as Champion of the PeopleE. Johnson Isaiah 59:15-21
The Redeemer Coming to His ChurchJ. Benson. D. D.Isaiah 59:20-21
People
Isaiah, Jacob
Places
Jerusalem, Zion
Topics
Age, Agreement, Children's, Covenant, Depart, Descendants, Evermore, Forever, Forth, Henceforth, Mouth, Mouths, Offspring, Offspring's, Says, Seed, Seed's, Spirit
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Isaiah 59:21

     1352   covenant, the new
     3035   Holy Spirit, presence of
     3040   Holy Spirit, promise of
     3110   Holy Spirit, titles of
     3236   Holy Spirit, and Scripture
     3263   Holy Spirit, guidance
     3272   Holy Spirit, in OT
     3278   Holy Spirit, indwelling
     6682   mediation
     9145   Messianic age

Isaiah 59:20-21

     7024   church, nature of

Library
Flimsy Garments
'Their webs shall not become garments.'--ISAIAH lix. 6. 'I counsel thee to buy of me ... white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear.'--REV. iii. 18. The force of these words of the prophet is very obvious. He has been pouring out swift, indignant denunciation on the evil-doers in Israel; and, says he, 'they hatch cockatrice's eggs and spin spiders' webs,' pointing, as I suppose, to the patient perseverance, worthy of a better cause, which bad men
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Salvation
ISAIAH lix. 15, 16. And the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment. And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him, and his righteousness it sustained him. This text is often held to be a prophecy of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. I certainly believe that it is a prophecy of his coming, and of something better still; namely, his continual presence; and a very noble and deep one, and one from
Charles Kingsley—The Good News of God

How Shall one Make Use of Christ as the Life, when Wrestling with an Angry God Because of Sin?
That we may give some satisfaction to this question, we shall, 1. Shew what are the ingredients in this case, or what useth to concur in this distemper. 2. Shew some reasons why the Lord is pleased to dispense thus with his people. 3. Shew how Christ is life to the soul in this case. 4. Shew the believer's duty for a recovery; and, 5. Add a word or two of caution. As to the first, There may be those parts of, or ingredients in this distemper: 1. God presenting their sins unto their view, so as
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life

'The Breastplate of Righteousness'
'Having put on the breastplate of righteousness.'--Eph. vi. 14. There can be no doubt that in this whole context the Apostle has in mind the great passage in Isaiah lix. where the prophet, in a figure of extreme boldness, describes the Lord as arming Himself to deliver the oppressed faithful, and coming as a Redeemer to Zion. In that passage the Lord puts on righteousness as a breastplate--that is to say, God, in His manifestation of Himself for the deliverance of His people, comes forth as if arrayed
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture Ephesians, Peter,John

The Universal Chorus
And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto Him that stteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. M en have generally agreed to dignify their presumptuous and arrogant ^* disquisitions on the works and ways of God, with the name of wisdom ; though the principles upon which they proceed, and the conclusions which they draw from
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2

The Lack of Prayer
"Ye have not, because ye ask not."--JAS. iv. 2. "And He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor."--ISA. lix. 16. "There is none that calleth upon Thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee."--ISA. lxiv. 7. At our last Wellington Convention for the Deepening of the Spiritual Life, in April, the forenoon meetings were devoted to prayer and intercession. Great blessing was found, both in listening to what the Word teaches of their need and power, and in joining
Andrew Murray—The Ministry of Intercession

God Seeks Intercessors
"I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night. Ye that are the Lord's remembrancers, keep not silence, and give Him no rest till He make Jerusalem a praise in the earth."--ISA. lxii. 6, 7. "And He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor."--ISA. lix. 16. "And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered, and there was none to uphold."--ISA. lxiii. 5. "There is none that calleth upon Thy name, that
Andrew Murray—The Ministry of Intercession

"For the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus Hath Made Me Free from the Law of Sin and Death. "
Rom. viii. 2.--"For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." That which makes the delivery of men from the tyranny of sin and death most difficult, and utterly impossible unto nature, is, that sinners have given up themselves unto it, as if it were true liberty, that the will and affections of men are conquered, and sin hath its imperial throne seated there. Other conquerors invade men against their will, and so they rule against their will.
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Hindrances to Mourning
What shall we do to get our heart into this mourning frame? Do two things. Take heed of those things which will stop these channels of mourning; put yourselves upon the use of all means that will help forward holy mourning. Take heed of those things which will stop the current of tears. There are nine hindrances of mourning. 1 The love of sin. The love of sin is like a stone in the pipe which hinders the current of water. The love of sin makes sin taste sweet and this sweetness in sin bewitches the
Thomas Watson—The Beatitudes: An Exposition of Matthew 5:1-12

Concerning Perfection.
Concerning Perfection. In whom this pure and holy birth is fully brought forth, the body of death and sin comes to be crucified and removed, and their hearts united and subjected to the truth; so as not to obey any suggestions or temptations of the evil one, but to be free from actual sinning and transgressing of the law of God, and in that respect perfect: yet doth this perfection still admit of a growth; and there remaineth always in some part a possibility of sinning, where the mind doth not most
Robert Barclay—Theses Theologicae and An Apology for the True Christian Divinity

Wherefore Christ Undertook a Method of Setting us Free So Painful and Laborious, when a Word from Him, or an Act of his Will, Would Alone
Wherefore Christ undertook a method of setting us free so painful and laborious, when a word from Him, or an act of His will, would alone have sufficed. 19. Then he labours to teach and persuade us that the devil could not and ought not to have claimed for himself any right over man, except by the permission of God, and that, without doing any injustice to the devil, God could have called back His deserter, if He wished to show him mercy, and have rescued him by a word only, as though any one denies
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

The Beginning of Justification. In what Sense Progressive.
1. Men either idolatrous, profane, hypocritical, or regenerate. 1. Idolaters void of righteousness, full of unrighteousness, and hence in the sight of God altogether wretched and undone. 2. Still a great difference in the characters of men. This difference manifested. 1. In the gifts of God. 2. In the distinction between honorable and base. 3. In the blessings of he present life. 3. All human virtue, how praiseworthy soever it may appear, is corrupted. 1. By impurity of heart. 2. By the absence of
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Some General Uses from this Useful Truth, that Christ is the Truth.
Having thus cleared up this truth, we should come to speak of the way of believers making use of him as the truth, in several cases wherein they will stand in need of him as the truth. But ere we come to the particulars, we shall first propose some general uses of this useful point. First. This point of truth serveth to discover unto us, the woful condition of such as are strangers to Christ the truth; and oh, if it were believed! For, 1. They are not yet delivered from that dreadful plague of
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life

Christ the Mediator of the Covenant
'Jesus the Mediator of the New Covenant,' &c. Heb 12:24. Jesus Christ is the sum and quintessence of the gospel; the wonder of angels; the joy and triumph of saints. The name of Christ is sweet, it is as music in the ear, honey in the mouth, and a cordial at the heart. I shall waive the context, and only speak of that which concerns our present purpose. Having discoursed of the covenant of grace, I shall speak now of the Mediator of the covenant, and the restorer of lapsed sinners, Jesus the Mediator
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Concerning Justification.
Concerning Justification. As many as resist not this light, but receive the same, it becomes in them an holy, pure, and spiritual birth, bringing forth holiness, righteousness, purity, and all those other blessed fruits which are acceptable to God: by which holy birth, to wit, Jesus Christ formed within us, and working his works in us, as we are sanctified, so are we justified in the sight of God, according to the apostle's words; But ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in
Robert Barclay—Theses Theologicae and An Apology for the True Christian Divinity

A Defence of the Doctrine of Justification, by Faith in Jesus Christ;
SHEWING, TRUE GOSPEL-HOLINESS FLOWS FROM THENCE; OR, MR. FOWLER'S PRETENDED DESIGN OF CHRISTIANITY, PROVED TO BE NOTHING MORE THAN TO TRAMPLE UNDER FOOT THE BLOOD OF THE SON OF GOD; AND THE IDOLIZING OF MAN'S OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS AS ALSO, HOW WHILE HE PRETENDS TO BE A MINISTER OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND, HE OVERTHROWETH THE WHOLESOME DOCTRINE CONTAINED IN THE 10TH, 11TH, AND 13TH, OF THE THIRTY-NINE ARTICLES OF THE SAME, AND THAT HE FALLETH IN WITH THE QUAKER AND ROMANIST, AGAINST THEM. BY JOHN BUNYAN
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

"And we all do Fade as a Leaf, and Our Iniquities, Like the Wind, have Taken us Away. "
Isaiah lxiv. 6.--"And we all do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." Here they join the punishment with the deserving cause, their uncleanness and their iniquities, and so take it upon them, and subscribe to the righteousness of God's dealing. We would say this much in general--First, Nobody needeth to quarrel God for his dealing. He will always be justified when he is judged. If the Lord deal more sharply with you than with others, you may judge there is a difference
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

Covenanting Provided for in the Everlasting Covenant.
The duty of Covenanting is founded on the law of nature; but it also stands among the arrangements of Divine mercy made from everlasting. The promulgation of the law, enjoining it on man in innocence as a duty, was due to God's necessary dominion over the creatures of his power. The revelation of it as a service obligatory on men in a state of sin, arose from his unmerited grace. In the one display, we contemplate the authority of the righteous moral Governor of the universe; in the other, we see
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

An Analysis of Augustin's Writings against the Donatists.
The object of this chapter is to present a rudimentary outline and summary of all that Augustin penned or spoke against those traditional North African Christians whom he was pleased to regard as schismatics. It will be arranged, so far as may be, in chronological order, following the dates suggested by the Benedictine edition. The necessary brevity precludes anything but a very meagre treatment of so considerable a theme. The writer takes no responsibility for the ecclesiological tenets of the
St. Augustine—writings in connection with the donatist controversy.

The True Manner of Keeping Holy the Lord's Day.
Now the sanctifying of the Sabbath consists in two things--First, In resting from all servile and common business pertaining to our natural life; Secondly, In consecrating that rest wholly to the service of God, and the use of those holy means which belong to our spiritual life. For the First. 1. The servile and common works from which we are to cease are, generally, all civil works, from the least to the greatest (Exod. xxxi. 12, 13, 15, &c.) More particularly-- First, From all the works of our
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

Of Justification by Faith. Both the Name and the Reality Defined.
Sections. 1. Connection between the doctrine of Justification and that of Regeneration. The knowledge of this doctrine very necessary for two reasons. 2. For the purpose of facilitating the exposition of it, the terms are explained. 1. What it is to be justified in the sight of God. 2. To be justified by works. 3. To be justified by faith. Definition. 3. Various meanings of the term Justification. 1. To give praise to God and truth. 2. To make a vain display of righteousness. 3. To impute righteousness
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

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