Isaiah 54:1
Rejoice, Thou Barren
Wording onlyQuoted by the apostles in Galatians 4:27, in the older Greek wording
Paul’s song for the barren woman matches the Greek line for line. Your Isaiah sings it a little differently.
Side by Side
The Older Text
Septuagint, translated before Messiah
Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that dost not travail: for more are the children of the desolate than of her that has a husband.
The Later Text
Masoretic, finished about 1,000 years after the cross
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 Yahuah.
Quoted in Galatians 4:27
The apostle’s Old Testament
For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.
Your KJV reads: the Hebrew in Isaiah (“Sing, O barren”), then the Greek wording in Galatians (“Rejoice, thou barren”).
See what changed and why ↓What Your Bible Says
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 Yahuah.
Isaiah 54:1 KJV
Isaiah calls the woman who never had a child to sing. Her house will fill with more children than the woman who has a husband.
What the Older Text Says
Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that dost not travail.
Isaiah 54:1, Septuagint
The Greek says “rejoice” where the Hebrew says “sing,” and “break forth and cry” where the Hebrew says “break forth into singing, and cry aloud.” Paul’s words in Galatians 4:27 match the Greek almost exactly.
What Changed
The Hebrew calls her to sing twice, then to cry aloud. The Greek turns this into joy and a shout. The barren woman still celebrates, and her children still outnumber the married wife’s. Nothing in the meaning moves.
The last line is also slightly shorter in the Greek. The Hebrew compares the desolate woman with “the married wife.” The Greek says “her that has a husband,” and Paul says “she which hath an husband.” Again Paul follows the Greek, and again the sense is the same.
Purpose of the Change
No motive evident: wording variation only. The pair still matters because Paul quoted the Greek wording, the Old Testament the Galatians were reading.
The Bottom Line
Paul quoted the Greek. The Hebrew sings the same promise.
The barren mother is the Jerusalem above, and Scripture ends with her: “And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Revelation 21:2).
Dig Deeper The evidence, for anyone who wants it
Two Mothers
Paul uses the verse to describe “Jerusalem which is above,” which “is free, which is the mother of us all” (Galatians 4:26). He ties the bondwoman to Mount Sinai (Galatians 4:24–25). His quarrel is not with the Law. It is with men who sought standing before Elohim by their own works, as Abraham tried to bring the promise through Hagar by the flesh. The free woman stands for the promise Yahuah keeps by His own power. Delivered by that promise, His children walk in His Law, which is “holy, and just, and good” (Romans 7:12).
The Children of the Barren
Sarah was barren, and Yahuah gave her Isaac. Isaiah takes that story and promises it to desolate Zion: she will have more children than she can count. Paul says those born of the promise, Gentiles included, are those children.