Isaiah 54:3

¹ Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.

² Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.

⁴ Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.

⁵ For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

This was said to Israel at a particular time, so it is wise to read it together with the surrounding text. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: For you will spread out to the right and left; your descendants will dispossess the nations and inhabit the desolate cities.
KJV: For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.
WEB: For you will spread out on the right hand and on the left; and your offspring will possess the nations and settle in desolate cities.
ASV: For thou shalt spread aboard on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall possess the nations, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.
DARBY: For thou shalt spread abroad on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall possess nations, and they shall make desolate cities to be inhabited.
BLB: For to the right and to the left you will break through, and your seed will inherit the nations, and will settle the cities left desolate.

ÅB: For du skal brede deg ut både til høyre og til venstre, og din slekt skal ta hedningefolk i eie og bygge opp igjen ødelagte byer.
OTB: For du skal bre deg ut til høyre og til venstre; dine etterkommere skal ta nasjoner i eie og bo i de øde byene.
B1930: For du skal brede dig ut både til høire og til venstre, og din ætt skal ta hedningefolk i eie og bygge op igjen ødelagte byer.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Isaiah 43:5–6
Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west;
Read in context
Genesis 28:14
And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
Read in context
Isaiah 60:3–13
And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.
Read in context
Isaiah 49:18–19
Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth.
Read in context
Ezekiel 36:35–36
And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited.
Read in context
Psalms 72:8–11
He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.
Read in context
Isaiah 52:9
Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.
Read in context
Isaiah 42:1–12
Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
Read in context