Isaiah 38:16 · Bible study
Isaiah 38:16 Commentary: What 'These Things' Mean for Life
Hebrew · 11 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
What does Hezekiah mean by 'these things'? This study examines the Hebrew text and key commentaries to uncover the source of life in God's word and deeds.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Hezekiah confesses that human life and spiritual vitality come entirely from God’s promises and acts.
- Key words: live (חָיָה), spirit (רוּחַ), restore to health (תַּחֲלִים), preserve alive (הַחֲיֵה).
- Main debate: Whether ‘these things’ refers to God’s word, his acts, or the entire experience of suffering and deliverance.
- Theological theme: Dependence on God’s word for life, echoing Deuteronomy 8:3 and the New Testament use of that text.
- Best use: Comfort and model for prayer after illness or in seasons of weakness; also a text for teaching on God’s sovereignty over life and death.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
O Lord, by such things men live, and in all of them my spirit finds life. You have restored me to health and have let me live.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Lord, men live by these things; and my spirit finds life in all of them. You restore me, and cause me to live.
KJV King James Version 1769
O Lord, by these things men live, and in all these things is the life of my spirit: so wilt thou recover me, and make me to live.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
O Lord, by these things men live; And wholly therein is the life of my spirit: Wherefore recover thou me, and make me to live.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
Lord, by these do men live, And by all in them is the life of my spirit, And Thou savest me, make me also to live,
Darby Darby Bible 1890
Lord, by these things [men] live, and in all these things is the life of my spirit; and thou hast recovered me, and made me to live.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
O Lord, if man's life be such, and the life of my spirit be in such things as these, thou shalt correct me, and make me to live.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Oh Señor, sobre ellos vivirán tus piedades, y á todos diré consistir en ellas la vida de mi espíritu; pues tú me restablecerás, y me harás que viva.
Ó Senhor, por estas coisas é que se vive, e em todas elas está a vida de meu espírito. Então cura-me, e deixa-me viver.
Seigneur, c’ est par tes bontés qu’ on jouit de la vie,
Herr, davon lebt man, und das Leben meines Geistes steht ganz darin; denn du ließest mich wieder stark werden und machtest mich leben.
Heere, bij deze dingen leeft men, en in dit alles is het leven van mijn geest; want Gij hebt mij gezond gemaakt en mij genezen.
O Signore, mediante queste cose si vive, e in tutte queste cose sta la vita del mio spirito; guariscimi dunque, e rendimi la vita.
Panie! kto po nich i w nich żyć będzie, wszystkim znajomy będzie żywot dychania mego, żeś mi zdrowie przywrócił, a zachowałeś mię przy żywocie.
Господи! так живут, и во всем этом жизнь моего духа; Ты исцелишь меня, даруешь мне жизнь.
主啊，人得存活 乃在乎此。我靈 存活 也全 在此。所以求你使我痊癒，仍然存活。
O Lord, for this cause I am waiting for you, give rest to my spirit: make me well again, and let me come back to life.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Isaiah 38:16
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that Hezekiah here confesses human life depends wholly on God’s gracious intervention. Barnes identifies 'these things' as 'the promises of God and their fulfillment'; Gill speaks of 'the promise of God, and by his power performing it.' Keil and Delitzsch describe them as 'the gracious words and gracious acts of God.' Wesley similarly points to 'thy promises, and thy performance of them.' The Hebrew suffixes on 'them' reach back to verse 15, where Hezekiah says God 'has both spoken to me and himself has done it.' So the consensus holds that life, physical and spiritual, flows from God’s word and his act of deliverance. The verse is not a general platitude but a personal testimony rooted in a specific recovery from near death. Across traditions, readers find here a model of grateful dependence: every breath is a gift from the Lord who speaks and saves.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- God’s promises and word: Points to the context of v.15 (God has spoken and done) and the echo of Deuteronomy 8:3. Supported by Barnes, Gill, Keil and Delitzsch, Wesley.
- God’s benefits and acts: Emphasizes the fulfilled act of healing as the primary referent. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown highlight 'benefits' implied in the context.
- The experience of suffering and deliverance: Some modern readers include the trial itself as part of what teaches dependence and deepens faith. Implied by the wider psalm structure.
- Reference to posterity and long life: Calvin and the Geneva Bible interpret 'by these things' as referring to the extra years granted, which will instruct future generations.
What is clear: Hezekiah attributes his life and recovery directly to God, affirming that human existence depends on divine word and act.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning of 'these things' | All commentators agree that 'these things' refer to God's gracious intervention in Hezekiah's life, his promise and its fulfillment. | Some (Barnes, Gill, Keil) identify them primarily as God's word/promises; others (Jamieson, Calvin) emphasize the benefits/acts; a few modern readers include the experience of suffering itself as part of what gives life. |
| Nature of the verbs at the end of the verse | All agree that the verbs express restoration and preservation of life by God. | Whether they are imperatives (prayer) or perfects (statement of fact). The Hebrew form can support either; context suggests a prayerful affirmation. |
| Role of personal sin in suffering | Hezekiah links his recovery to forgiveness: God has cast his sins behind his back (v.17). Suffering is connected to sin in a general sense. | Some traditions read this as specific divine discipline for particular sins; others see it as the general human condition that suffering exposes our need for grace. The degree of personal causation remains debated. |
Historical & Cultural Context
This verse comes from Hezekiah’s thanksgiving song (Isaiah 38:9, 20), a psalm probably copied from a separate source and inserted after the narrative of his illness and recovery. The king had been struck with a fatal boil; Isaiah told him to set his house in order, then God granted fifteen more years of life (Isaiah 38:1, 6). In verse 15 Hezekiah marvels that God ‘has spoken to me, and himself has done it.’ The words 'these things' (עליהם, בהן) refer directly to that speaking and doing, the promise through Isaiah and its fulfilment. The Hebrew construction uses the preposition על (on, by, according to) with the verb 'to live,' a pattern found in Deuteronomy 8:3 where ‘man does not live by bread only but by every word from the mouth of the Lord.’ Hezekiah is echoing that foundational text. His phrase 'my spirit finds life' (רוּחִי, my spirit, inner self) shows the depth of revival: not just physical survival but restored courage and faith. The imperatives or volitives ‘restore me’ and ‘make me to live’ (תַּחֲלִימֵנִי, הַחֲיֵנִי) can be read as prayer rising from confidence; the context suggests God had already begun recovery. Culturally, life and health were seen as covenant blessings (Deuteronomy 30:19, 20), and suffering often prompted self-examination and recognition of sin, Hezekiah speaks of sins cast behind God’s back (verse 17). So the historical setting transforms a general principle into a king’s raw testimony: God’s word brought him back from the gate of death.
Textual Notes
Clarke notes that the ancient versions vary in how they render the Hebrew text, and some manuscripts omit the phrase ‘and in all of them’ (וּלְכָל בָּהֶן). A few Hebrew manuscripts read ‘in them’ (בהם) with masculine suffix instead of feminine. The reading in the Masoretic Text is well attested, however, and the variations do not affect the core meaning. No significant textual issues divide commentators on this verse.
Reception History
Hezekiah’s song, including this verse, has been read in Christian tradition as a model for prayer during sickness and thanksgiving after recovery. Early church writers (notably in the Eastern tradition) saw it as foreshadowing the resurrection hope. Medieval commentators often allegorized 'these things' as the sacraments or the Word. In Protestant devotional literature, for example, the Puritan practice of keeping ‘sickness journals’, this verse was cited to argue that health comes from God’s promise, not merely natural causes. The verse also appears in various hymn traditions about God’s sustaining power, though no single hymn is universally attached to it. Across eras, readers have found in Hezekiah’s words a pattern: acknowledge total dependence, ground your hope in God’s promise, and ask him to complete the work he has begun.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- Life is sustained by God’s word and work. Hezekiah declares that “men live by these things”, not by bread, strength, or medicine alone, but by the promises and acts of the Lord. This echoes Deuteronomy 8:3 and Christ’s quotation in Matthew 4:4.
- Spiritual revival accompanies physical restoration. “My spirit finds life in all of them.” Hezekiah’s inner being was revived along with his body. Healing is never merely biological; it touches the whole person.
- Confidence leads to prayer for continued life. Hezekiah moves from gratitude to petition: “You restore me, and cause me to live.” The same God who began the work is asked to complete it.
Five-point outline
- Acknowledging dependence: “O Lord, by these things men live.” Hezekiah starts with a universal truth, all human life hangs on God’s provision.
- Identifying ‘these things’: The context shows they are God’s promise and its fulfillment, the word sent through Isaiah and the healing that followed.
- Personal appropriation: “In all these things is the life of my spirit.” He takes the general truth and makes it his own story.
- Prayer and hope together: “Restore me and make me to live.” He asks for what God has already pledged, a pattern of faith seeking more.
- Testimony that extends beyond the moment: By weaving his experience into a liturgical song, Hezekiah ensures that future generations will hear and trust the same God.
Illustration hooks
- A farmer after a long drought sees a forecast of rain. He cannot make the rain come, but he can prepare the ground in hope. So we receive God’s promise and then live in active expectation.
- A patient who has been given a difficult diagnosis hears a second opinion that brings hope. The word changes everything, even before the treatment works.
- A student waits for an acceptance letter. While waiting, he already begins to plan and study, the promise of a future shapes his present.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Does God still speak through illness to teach us dependence?
- How do I know whether my suffering is discipline, warning, or simply part of life in a fallen world?
- What does it look like to trust God for recovery when the medical outlook is still uncertain?
Leading a Discussion
Hezekiah’s song invites us to reflect on how God sustains life through his word and acts. This verse is his answer to the question that suffering forces on us: What do we really live by? The group will explore the connection between God’s promises and our experience of revival.
Discussion questions
- Read Isaiah 38:16 in two or three translations. What words or phrases stand out to you?
- Based on the context (especially verses 9, 15), what do you think “these things” refers to? Why?
- Hezekiah says “men live by these things” and also “my spirit finds life.” Is he describing two different kinds of life, or one life with two dimensions?
- How does Deuteronomy 8:3 (quoted by Jesus in Matthew 4:4) illuminate Hezekiah’s statement?
- Hezekiah moves from a general principle to personal prayer. When have you experienced that shift from knowing truth to pleading it in your own situation?
- The verse ends with a request: “Restore me and cause me to live.” Does this fit with the tone of thanksgiving, or is it a new plea? How do prayer and gratitude work together here?
- How can this verse shape the way we pray for someone who is recovering from serious illness? What would you actually say in a prayer based on this model?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Deuteronomy 8:3 | He humbled you, allowed you to be hungry, and fed you with manna, which you didn’t know, neither did your fathers know, that he might teach you that man does not live by bread only, but man lives by every word that proceeds out of Yahweh’s mouth. |
| Job 33:19 | “He is chastened also with pain on his bed, with continual strife in his bones, |
| Job 33:28 | He has redeemed my soul from going into the pit. My life will see the light.’ |
| Psalms 71:20 | You, who have shown us many and bitter troubles, you will let me live. You will bring us up again from the depths of the earth. |
| Psalms 119:25 | My soul is laid low in the dust. Revive me according to your word! |
| Isaiah 64:5 | You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness, those who remember you in your ways. Behold, you were angry, and we sinned. We have been in sin for a long time. Shall we be saved? |
| Matthew 4:4 | But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of God’s mouth.’” |
| I Corinthians 11:32 | But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
10 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke observes that severe afflictions, even those that seem to bring death near, can paradoxically lengthen life and save the soul. He grounds this point in textual variations, noting that the ancient versions support a reading where God's discipline becomes the means of both physical and spiritual restoration.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes identifies "these things" as God's promises and their fulfillment. He argues that human life is sustained solely by God's gracious interventions in times of trouble, not by any human power. The life of the spirit and recovery from illness depend entirely on such divine acts.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin rejects the common reading that Hezekiah is asking for a longer life. Instead, he argues the king means that everyone who lives beyond these years will also come to know the life of his spirit. The favor God shows Hezekiah will be remembered by all future generations.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
This poem, inserted from an independent source, is likely a liturgical adaptation rather than a direct historical record. The personal details are suppressed for Temple worship, and the language points to a later date. The shift from "I" to "we" in verse 20 suggests it was used congregationally.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note emphasizes that God's sovereignty over death and resurrection is made evident through the survival of the faithful. The prophet declares that God caused him to sleep and then gave him life, so that those who outlive him will recognize the life of his spirit as God's work.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill insists that every kind of life—physical existence and the vitality of the spirit—flows entirely from God’s word, promise, power, and continual goodness. Hezekiah’s spirit was revived by the same divine favor that delivered his body. Gill also notes that some interpreters connect the verse to
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch reads Hezekiah's "What shall I say?" as a rhetorical expression of thanks for God's promise and its fulfillment. They argue that "walk quietly all my years upon the trouble of my soul" means walking in humble remembrance of God's grace, not "in spite of" the trouble. For them, God's words and acts are the sole source of life.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange draws a
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry highlights that Hezekiah's sickness was the outward mark of inward trouble—his sins brought him to the brink. The king’s recovery is therefore not just physical but spiritual: God’s healing showed that He had also pardoned his sins, casting them behind His back.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley highlights that it is not the promises alone but God's actual performance of them that restores life. Because God has both spoken and acted faithfully, one word from Him can pull someone back from the brink of death—a result that should not surprise any believer.