Isaiah 42:14
“I have long time holden my peace; I have been still, and refrained myself: now will I cry like a travailing woman; I will destroy and devour at once.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →After long silence and restraint, the Lord breaks forth like a woman in labor, mighty and unstoppable. His compassion and justice can no longer be withheld.
Context
God breaks his long silence and describes his imminent, forceful intervention in history.
What Does Isaiah 42:14 Mean?
God describes a period of restraint, of holding his peace and staying his hand, while allowing human history to unfold and his people to experience the consequences of their choices. But that season of patience and silence is coming to an end. Now he will cry out like a woman in the throes of labor, a cry that is involuntary, intense, and unstoppable. This is not anger for anger's sake but the inevitable, powerful expression of one who has waited long enough and whose purposes can no longer be held back. He will destroy and devour at once, sweeping away opposition with a force that cannot be resisted.
The image of a woman in travail is particularly rich: it suggests the pain of waiting, the intensity of the moment, and the birth of something new. God's restraint has not been weakness but the patience of one who carries a promise to term. Now the labor begins, and what emerges will be new creation and the triumph of his purposes. For those who have waited with God through long seasons of seeming inaction, this verse is an assurance that divine patience is not divine indifference.
Application
If you have prayed and waited for God's intervention in an unjust situation, hold onto this verse. God's silence is not abandonment. His patience has limits, and his cry will come. In the meantime, do not lose heart. Your faithfulness in the waiting period is noticed and will be vindicated.