Isaiah 55:11
“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Isaiah 55 closes its invitation with an assurance that God's spoken word is as reliable and productive as rain that waters the earth.
What Does Isaiah 55:11 Mean?
Isaiah 55:11 promises that God's word always accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it. The verse completes a comparison begun in the previous lines: just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return without watering the earth and making it fruitful, so God's word does not return to Him "void." It is never wasted, never powerless, never sent out in vain.
Two strong affirmations follow. God's word "shall accomplish that which I please" -- it carries out His intentions effectively. And it "shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it" -- it succeeds in its mission. The image is of a purposeful sending: God dispatches His word like a messenger with a task, and that messenger does not come back having failed. This gives weighty assurance to everything God has spoken throughout the chapter -- His invitation, His pardon, His promises. Because His word is effective, those promises can be trusted to come true. For the reader, this means that what God declares, He brings about. His word is not mere sound but living power that achieves its end. When He promises mercy, restoration, or salvation, the very promise carries the certainty of its fulfillment.
In the Original Language
The Hebrew dabar means word, speech, or matter; shub means to return or turn back, here promising that God's word will not come back empty.
Cross References
“For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven... but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud.”
- Isaiah 55:10
“The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.”
- Isaiah 40:8
“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.”
- Matthew 24:35
Application
Trust the promises God has spoken, for His word never fails; what He declares He surely accomplishes in its appointed time.