In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah; We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks.

ISAIAH 26:1KJV
Know the Bible

Isaiah 26:1 (KJV)

What does Isaiah 26:1 mean?

Isaiah 26:1 describes a future time when the people of Judah will sing a song celebrating their security, picturing their city as strong because God has made salvation its protection. The verse uses the image of walls and defenses to show that God’s saving power keeps them safe.

This verse comes from a section where Isaiah is sharing a vision of hope for Judah, looking ahead to a time when God’s people will be delivered from trouble. The prophet imagines a song being sung in the land of Judah, expressing confidence that God Himself has established their safety, not through physical walls, but through His own saving action.

The Hebrew behind Isaiah 26:1

  • The word for "salvation" is יְשׁוּעָה (yeshuah), which means rescue or deliverance. Here, it is pictured as the actual walls and defenses of the city, highlighting that God’s protection is more secure than any physical barrier.
  • The word for "bulwarks" is חֵיל (cheil), which refers to a fortified structure or rampart. By pairing this with "salvation," the verse emphasizes that God’s deliverance is what truly fortifies the people, not just stone or earthworks.
  • The word for "strong" is עֵז (oz), meaning strength or might. This word underlines that the city’s strength comes from God’s power, not its own resources.

Why Isaiah 26:1 matters

  • Isaiah 26:1 shifts the focus from physical defenses to God’s saving work as the true source of security, challenging the idea that safety depends on human effort or military strength.
  • The verse connects to the larger theme in Isaiah of God’s ultimate deliverance and the hope of restoration for His people, even after times of judgment or hardship.
  • Understanding the imagery of "salvation" as walls and "bulwarks" helps clarify that the protection being celebrated is spiritual and divine, not just material or political.

Where else these words appear

“bulwarks” Hebrew H2426 · used in 10 verses

  • 2 Samuel 20:15 And they came and besieged him in Abel of Bethmaachah, and they cast up a bank against the city, and it stood in the trench: and all the people that were with Joab battered the wall, to throw it down.
  • Psalms 10:10 He croucheth, and humbleth himself, that the poor may fall by his strong ones.
  • Lamentations 2:8 The LORD hath purposed to destroy the wall of the daughter of Zion: he hath stretched out a line, he hath not withdrawn his hand from destroying: therefore he made the rampart and the wall to lament; they languished together.

“salvation” Hebrew H3444 · used in 77 verses

  • Genesis 49:18 I have waited for thy salvation, O LORD.
  • Psalms 42:5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.
  • Psalms 118:21 I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.

“sung” Hebrew H7891 · used in 79 verses

  • Exodus 15:1 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
  • Ezra 7:7 And there went up some of the children of Israel, and of the priests, and the Levites, and the singers, and the porters, and the Nethinims, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king.
  • Psalms 65:13 The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with corn; they shout for joy, they also sing.

“appoint” Hebrew H7896 · used in 80 verses

  • Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
  • Job 10:20 Are not my days few? cease then, and let me alone, that I may take comfort a little,
  • Psalms 88:6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.