Isaiah 43:20 (ASV)

Passage

The beasts of the field shall honor me, the jackals and the ostriches; because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen,

Nearby Context

Isaiah 43:18 Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.

Isaiah 43:19 Behold, I will do a new thing; now shall it spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43:20 The beasts of the field shall honor me, the jackals and the ostriches; because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen,

Isaiah 43:21 the people which I formed for myself, that they might set forth my praise.

Isaiah 43:22 Yet thou hast not called upon me, O Jacob; but thou hast been weary of me, O Israel.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "beasts", "field", "shall", "honor", "jackals", "ostriches", "give", and "waters". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "beasts" and "field", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "Behold I will do a new thing..." into verse 21's "the people which I formed for myself...", so "beasts" and "field" belong inside that flow. In Isaiah context, the local focus is the Holy One of Israel, judgment and restoration, the servant of the LORD, and Zion's hope.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "beasts" and "field" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.