Isaiah 26:3
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Isaiah 26 is a song sung in the day of God's salvation, celebrating the strong city God defends. Verse 3 distills the inward security of those who trust Him.
What Does Isaiah 26:3 Mean?
Isaiah 26:3 promises perfect peace to the person whose mind is firmly fixed on God. The Hebrew literally reads "peace, peace" -- a doubling that intensifies the word into completeness, a peace that is whole and unbroken. This is not the absence of trouble but a settled wholeness in the midst of it.
The condition is precise: this peace belongs to the one "whose mind is stayed" on God. To be stayed means to be supported, leaned upon, propped up -- the mind resting its full weight on God rather than on shifting circumstances. The final clause names the root of it all: "because he trusteth in thee." Peace is the fruit, and trust is the soil it grows in. A mind that keeps returning to God, leaning its anxieties on Him, finds a stability the world cannot give. This verse is among the most beloved in Isaiah because it speaks directly to the anxious heart. It does not command us to stop feeling afraid by willpower; it points us to a Person to lean on. The cure for a scattered, fearful mind is not more effort but a steadier object of trust. Fix the mind on God, and the doubled peace follows.
In the Original Language
"Perfect peace" renders shalom shalom, the word for wholeness doubled for emphasis. "Stayed" is samuk, meaning supported or leaning upon.
Cross References
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
- Philippians 4:7
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.”
- John 14:27
“He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD.”
- Psalm 112:7
Application
When your thoughts scatter into worry, deliberately lean your mind back on God; perfect peace grows from a settled trust in Him.