Isaiah 55:4 (GNV)

Passage

Beholde, I gaue him for a witnes to the people, for a prince and a master vnto the people.

Nearby Context

Isaiah 55:2 Wherefore doe ye lay out siluer and not for bread? and your labour without being satisfied? hearken diligently vnto me, and eate that which is good, and let your soule delite in fatnes.

Isaiah 55:3 Encline your eares, and come vnto me: heare, and your soule shall liue, and I will make an euerlasting couenant with you, euen the sure mercies of Dauid.

Isaiah 55:4 Beholde, I gaue him for a witnes to the people, for a prince and a master vnto the people.

Isaiah 55:5 Beholde, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and a nation that knew not thee, shall runne vnto thee, because of the Lord thy God, and the holy one of Israel: for hee hath glorified thee.

Isaiah 55:6 Seeke ye the Lord while he may be found: call ye vpon him while he is neere.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "beholde", "gaue", "witnes", "people", "prince", "master", and "vnto". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "beholde" and "gaue", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Encline your eares and come vnto me..." into verse 5's "Beholde thou shalt call a nation that...", so "beholde" and "gaue" 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 "beholde" and "gaue" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.