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In the book of Isaiah, there are many different speakers, or individuals who express words. These speakers include the Lord, Isaiah, God’s covenant people, King Hezekiah, the wicked, and many others. Some of the speakers are nonhuman objects, such as clay, trees, and cities. While the most important and oft-cited speakers are the Lord and the prophet Isaiah, there are about sixty different speakers in the book of Isaiah,[1] many of whom speak multiple times. Because of this large variety of speakers, it can be difficult to identify the speaker in a given chapter or passage.

As God’s prophet, spokesman, and messenger, Isaiah serves as the speaker, narrator, and relater of history (see, for example, Isaiah 37–39). Time after time, throughout his book, Isaiah also fills the important role of introducing these other speakers. In this chapter, I will explain my eight criteria for identifying various speakers in Isaiah. The chapter’s chief objective is to unlock yet another barrier to comprehending Isaiah.

1. Vocative Case

On several occasions, Isaiah and others address the Lord directly in a speech form called the vocative (for example, “O Lord”). In most of these cases, it is clear who the speaker is. For example, Hezekiah speaks in the following passage, introduced with the words “and said”: “Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, And said, Remember now, O LORD’” (Isaiah 38:2–3). In these verses, then, I identify Isaiah as the narrator or chronicler and Hezekiah as the speaker:

For other instances of direct address to the Lord in Isaiah, see Isaiah 2:6; 6:11; 12:1; 25:1; 26:8–17 (several times); 33:2; 37:16–20 (several times); 38:3, 14, 16, 20; 63:16–17; and 64:8–9, 12.

2. Self-Identification Statements

Sometimes the Lord introduces himself with phrases such as “I am the Lord” (Isaiah 42:8; 43:3, 11, 15; 44:24; 45:5–6, 18; 51:15) and “I the LORD” (27:3; 41:13, 17; 42:6; 45:3, 8, 19, 21; 60:16, 22; 61:8). These self-identification statements make it certain that he is the speaker. Similarly, the Lord repeatedly uses first-person pronouns (that is, I, me, my, and mine) when referring to himself. For example, “For my name’s sake will I defer mine anger” (48:9) and “to whom will ye liken me, and make me equal” (46:5).[2] In these and other verses, the Lord is speaking in the first person.

The following example gives even further illustration of this principle. In Isaiah 43, Isaiah is the narrator in verse 1a and the Lord is clearly the speaker in Isaiah verses 1b–7:

How can we be certain that the Lord is the speaker? Because he makes several statements that he is God, such as “I have redeemed thee” and “I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour.” And note that the first-person pronouns—I and my—refer to the Lord.

3. Prophetic Speech Forms

The book of Isaiah regularly attests prophetic speech forms that introduce the Lord as the speaker (see chapter 14 in this volume, especially the section “Prophetic Speech Forms in Isaiah”). These speech forms include the following expressions: “thus saith the Lord,” “saith the Lord,” “hearken to me [the Lord],” “the Lord hath sworn,” “I have sworn by myself,” “the word of the Lord to Isaiah,” “declares the Lord God,” and “for the Lord has spoken.” For instance, in Isaiah 10:24, the prophet introduces the Lord’s words thusly: “Therefore thus saith the Lord God of hosts” (emphasis added). This statement is followed by the Lord’s actual words.

Further examples of this speech form can be seen in Isaiah 7:7; 18:4; 22:15; and 30:12. These prophetic speech forms—declared by either Isaiah or the Lord himself—generally introduce the Lord as the speaker.

4. Introductory Phrases

Both the Lord and Isaiah use various expressions when they introduce other speakers, such as “saying,” “say,” “said,” “saidst,” “declared,” “called,” “spoke,” “this song will be sung,” and similar terms. For instance, in Isaiah 6 the prophet first shares his sacred vision in the Lord’s temple and then introduces the words of one of the seraphs with the following introduction: “And one [of the seraphs] cried unto another, and said” (v. 3; emphasis added). The full transcript, including Isaiah’s words and the words of the seraph, are shown below:

In another example, Isaiah 4 introduces seven female speakers with the word “saying”:

And in yet another example, in Isaiah 5, Isaiah speaks concerning wicked persons and introduces their actual words with the expression, that say.

Note that we do not always know whether the Lord is speaking or his prophet Isaiah. We should also note here that not all speakers are introduced with these introductory expressions.

5. Textual Clues

Sometimes the identity of the speaker is unclear, but clues in the text help us to make an accurate identification. These clues include the greater context of the speaker’s words, the content and meaning of the passage, and much more. For example, Isaiah 2:3 states, “And many people shall go and say”—(note the use of the term say is introducing a new speaker)—“Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths.” Isaiah identifies the speaker as “many people.” The first-person plurals—us, we—also make it clear that there is more than one speaker. Inasmuch as the content and the context of the passage make it clear that the “many people” are going to the Lord’s temple, I have identified this hypothetical “speaker” to represent God’s covenant people.

Figure 7.1. The portion of the Great Isaiah Scroll (Hebrew, 100 BC), where Isaiah prophesies, “Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the House of the God of Jacob” (Isaiah 2:3). (Photo by Israel Museum. “The Great Isaiah Scroll,” Column 2. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

6. Divine Titles

Isaiah sometimes uses divine titles when he refers to Jehovah, such as “LORD,” “LORD of Hosts,” “God,” “LORD God of Israel,” “Maker,” “Holy One of Israel,” and many others. In several such cases, I identify Isaiah as the speaker.[3] For example, consider Isaiah 3:1:

Despite this potential identification, the Lord himself may be the speaker in these passages. It is also important to recognize that the Lord may be considered the speaker at many points throughout the book, because the Lord is the source of revelation to his prophet Isaiah.

Isaiah (and other speakers) also refers to the Lord using third-person pronouns—he, his, and him—as the following three examples illustrate (note that I have placed he, his, and him in bold font):

“And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths” (2:3)

“Therefore is the anger of the LORD kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them” (5:25)

“And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation” (25:9).

7. Various Speakers

There is a large variety of speakers in Isaiah. These include righteous persons (such as “God’s covenant people,” “Christ’s disciples,” “worshippers,” and “the righteous”) as well as evil characters (“the wicked,” “idolaters,” “haters,” “men of scorning,” “wicked leaders,” and “Lucifer”). For example, righteous worshippers speak in Isaiah 12, as the following illustrates:

Isaiah also presents several unusual and perhaps unexpected speakers, such as clay, “dead spirits,” “Babylon,” “Thing formed,” “Lady Zion,” and others. For example, in Isaiah 49:14, Lady Zion speaks these words:

Isaiah’s writings also present the words of individuals who would be born in later dispensations. For example, although Isaiah does not name him, a careful reading of the text seems to indicate that this includes John the Baptist (Isaiah 40:3).

8. Repeated Speakers

The top two speakers in the book of Isaiah, in terms of both importance and quantity, are the Lord (about 216 times) and the prophet Isaiah (about 344 times). Altogether, there are about 60 different speakers in Isaiah, counting also the unnamed individual(s) as separate persons. Isaiah presents the 60 speakers about 700 times. For the list of the 60, see the table 7.1. This great number helps us to comprehend how exacting Isaiah’s writings are and how the prophet was so methodical in his presentation. In fact, the identification of the various speakers tends to make Isaiah’s writings easier to understand. When we, the readers of Isaiah, identify these various speakers and read their words in the context of other speakers, we can more skillfully comprehend Isaiah’s writings.

Table 7.1. Number of Times the 60 Different Speakers in Isaiah Speak

Although I have attempted to identify most of the speakers in Isaiah, we should keep the following items in mind:

In this chapter I offer suggestions regarding who the speakers are, but my suggestions are sometimes tentative because we cannot always be certain who the speaker is in a given verse. This is true especially with regard to the Lord and Isaiah—we do not always know whether the Lord is speaking or his prophet Isaiah is. In the end, students of Isaiah will have to determine this matter for themselves.

Table 7.1 lists the number of times each speaker speaks in Isaiah. For example, Isaiah speaks 344 times; the Lord speaks 216 times, and so forth. These numbers, of course, are tentative. As we continue to search Isaiah’s writings, we will be able to fine-tune both the speakers and the number of times they speak.

In the end, we should remember that all of Isaiah’s text is written to and for every generation of readers! From the first verse of Isaiah to the very last, each of us can benefit from the Lord’s word as he revealed it to his prophet and seer Isaiah.

Notes

[1] On the multiple speakers in Isaiah, see Parry, Book of Isaiah, viii–x.

[2] For even more examples, see Isaiah 41:8–10; 42:6–9.

[3] In other cases, Isaiah can be explicitly identified as the speaker; see Isaiah 39:3, which describes one of Isaiah’s visits to King Hezekiah.