Isaiah 49:12

12 See, they will come from afar— some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan.^[a] ”

Isaiah 49:12 in Other Translations

12 Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.

12 Behold, these shall come from afar, and behold, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Syene."

12 See, my people will return from far away, from lands to the north and west, and from as far south as Egypt. ”

12 Look: These coming from far countries, and those, out of the north, These streaming in from the west, and those from all the way down the Nile!"

12 Lo, these shall come from far; and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.

12 They will come from far away. They will come from the north and from the west, and they will come from the land of Sinim.

12 See, these will come from far away, from the north and from the west, and from the land of Sinim.

12 They will come from far away. Some of them will come from the north. Others will come from the west. Still others will come from Aswan in the south."

Isaiah 49:12 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 49:12

Behold, these shall come from far
This is a prophecy of the conversion of the Jews, or of the Gentiles, or of both, in the latter day, in the several parts of the world; who shall come to Christ, and to his churches, and join in fellowship with them: the allusion is to the return of the Jews from their captivity in Babylon, and from all other parts at that time; some are said to come "from far", from the east, as it is generally interpreted, from the several eastern nations, as Persia, Judea lying west from them, on the western or Mediterranean sea: and, lo, these from the north;
from Media, as some; or rather from Babylon, which lay north of Judea: and from the west;
or "from the sea"; the Mediterranean sea, and the countries beyond it, which lie west of Judea: and these from the land of Sinim.
The Targum and Vulgate Latin version render it, from the land of the south, with which Jarchi and Kimchi agree, where dwelt the Sinites, which were of the children of Canaan, ( Genesis 10:17 ) , as the latter observes; and where were the wilderness of Sin, and mountain of Sinai, according to the observation of Jerom. Aben Ezra thinks Egypt is meant, which lay south of Judea, and conjectures that Sinai, a place in it, is designed; perhaps Sin, as others are of opinion, called "the strength of Egypt", ( Ezekiel 30:15 ) , the same city the Greeks called Pelusium; and R. Saadiah, in Kimchi, supposes it is here intended, which is most likely; the Pelusiotae are meant. Manasseh ben Israel ^F7 will have it that the Chinese are intended: China is indeed called, by Ptolemy ^F8, the country of the Sinites; and if this is designed, which is not probable, it cannot be so called from the family of Cina, as Martinius ^F9 thinks, since that family was not in being till two or three hundred years after this prophecy; and, if it concerns them, it will have its accomplishment, when the kingdoms of this world shall become Christ's, ( Revelation 11:15 ) compare with this ( Matthew 8:12 ) yea, they are said to have received the Gospel, in the first times of it, by the means of the apostles, Thomas, or Bartholomew ^F11. The Septuagint version renders it, "from the land of the Persians"; and the Arabic version, "from the land of Persia"; and the Syriac version, "from the sea of Senjam".

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FOOTNOTES:

F7 Spes Israelis, p. 48.
F8 Geograph. l. 7. c. 3.
F9 Hist. Sinic. p. 195.
F11 Vid Fabricii Lux Evangelii, p. 652, 653.

Isaiah 49:12 In-Context

10 They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat down on them. He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water.

11 I will turn all my mountains into roads, and my highways will be raised up.

12 See, they will come from afar— some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan. ”

13 Shout for joy, you heavens; rejoice, you earth; burst into song, you mountains! For the LORD comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.

14 But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me.”

Cross References

• 1. S Isaiah 2:3; S Isaiah 11:11; Isaiah 43:5-6
• 2. Isaiah 59:19; S Matthew 8:11

Footnotes

• [a]. Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text "Sinim"