Doubtless you are our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: you, O LORD, are our father, our redeemer; your name is from everlasting.
thou art
Isaiah 64:8 But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.
Exodus 4:22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:
Deuteronomy 32:6 Do ye thus requite the LORD, O foolish people and unwise? is not he thy father that hath bought thee? hath he not made thee, and established thee?
through
Job 14:21 His sons come to honour, and he knoweth it not; and they are brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them.
Ecclesiastes 9:5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Isaiah 63:12 That led them by the right hand of Moses with his glorious arm, dividing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name?
Isaiah 41:14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 43:14 Thus saith the LORD, your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; For your sake I have sent to Babylon, and have brought down all their nobles, and the Chaldeans, whose cry is in the ships.
though Abraham does not know us
Here, the text acknowledges a disconnect between the current generation and their patriarch, Abraham. This may reflect a period of spiritual decline or a sense of alienation from their ancestral roots. Abraham, the father of the nation, is seen as distant, highlighting the people's need to rely on God directly rather than solely on their heritage.
and Israel does not acknowledge us
"Israel" here likely refers to Jacob, also known as Israel, the father of the twelve tribes. The phrase suggests a feeling of being forgotten or unrecognized by their forefathers. This could symbolize a loss of identity or a departure from the covenantal faithfulness expected of them. It underscores the importance of a personal relationship with God rather than relying on ancestral connections.
You, O LORD, are our Father
Reiterating God as Father emphasizes His role as the ultimate source of identity and belonging for His people. This repetition serves to affirm their faith and trust in God, despite feeling disconnected from their patriarchal lineage. It also highlights the covenant relationship, where God remains faithful even when His people falter.
our Redeemer from Everlasting is Your name
This phrase identifies God as the eternal Redeemer, pointing to His role in delivering and saving His people throughout history. The concept of redemption is central in the Bible, foreshadowing the ultimate redemption through Jesus Christ. The term "from Everlasting" emphasizes God's eternal nature and unchanging character, assuring believers of His perpetual presence and salvation. This connects to passages like Isaiah 44:6 and Revelation 1:8, which speak of God's eternal existence and sovereignty.
Isaiah is speaking for a generation that feels cut off, yet he begins with an unshakable confession: “Yet You are our Father.”
• This is no mere metaphor; Scripture consistently presents God as the literal, covenant Father of His people (Deuteronomy 32:6; Psalm 103:13; Malachi 2:10).
• The word “Yet” signals a contrast: regardless of the nation’s sins (Isaiah 63:10), God’s fatherly relationship endures.
• Like the prodigal son who remembered his father’s house (Luke 15:17-20), Israel is urged to remember who God is, not who they have been.
Isaiah admits that their forefather Abraham—long dead—could not vouch for this wayward generation.
• John 8:39-40 shows how physical descent from Abraham is not enough; true children share Abraham’s faith (Romans 4:12).
• By confessing that Abraham “does not know us,” the prophet highlights the gap between heritage and heart, echoing Romans 9:6-8: “Not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.”
“Israel” here likely points to Jacob, later renamed Israel (Genesis 32:28). Even the patriarch whose name they bear would disapprove of their current state.
• Hosea 1:9-10 mirrors this tension—God calls them “Not My People” yet promises restoration.
• The line confronts any false security in tradition; standing with God requires living faith, not merely lineage (Galatians 3:29).
The confession is repeated, now using the covenant name “LORD” (YHWH), doubling down on intimacy and covenant faithfulness.
• Repetition reinforces certainty: despite disqualification by patriarchs, God’s paternity is unchanged (Isaiah 64:8; 2 Samuel 7:14).
• God’s covenant name assures that His promises outlast human failures (Exodus 3:15; Psalm 105:8).
The verse climaxes by calling God “Redeemer”—the kinsman who pays the price to free relatives (Leviticus 25:25).
• Exodus 15:13 celebrates God’s redemptive character; Isaiah 44:6 combines “Redeemer” with “First and Last,” echoed in Revelation 1:17-18.
• “From Everlasting” anchors redemption in God’s eternal nature (Micah 5:2; Hebrews 9:12). He doesn’t start loving when we improve; His redeeming love predates time.
Isaiah 63:16 moves from confession to confidence. Though the patriarchs cannot vouch for a sinful generation, God remains their literal Father and eternal Redeemer. Line by line, the verse strips away reliance on ancestry, presses the people to personal faith, and anchors hope in God’s unwavering, everlasting covenant love.
(16) Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham . . .--Better, For Abraham is ignorant of us. The passage is striking as being an anticipation of the New Testament thought, that the Fatherhood of, God rests on something else than hereditary descent, and extends not to a single nation only, but to all mankind. Abraham might disclaim his degenerate descendants, but Jehovah would still recognise them. Implicitly, at least, the words contain the truth that "God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham" (Matthew 3:9). He is still their Redeemer. The words may possibly imply the thought that, as in the case of Jeremiah (2 Maccabees 15:13-14), and Rachel (Jeremiah 31:15), Abraham was thought of as watching over his posterity, and interceding for them. So, eventually, Abraham appears in the popular belief of Israel, as welcoming his children in the unseen world (Luke 16:22).Verse 16. - Doubtless thou art our Father; rather, for thou art our Father. This is the ground of their appeal to God. As their Father, he must love them, and must be ready to listen to them. Abraham and Isaac, their earthly fathers, were of no service, lent them no aid, seemed to have ceased to feel any interest in them. It cannot be justly argued from this that the Jews looked to Abraham and Isaac as actual "patron saints," or directed towards them their religious regards. Had this been so, there would have been abundant evidence of it. Thou, O Lord, art our Father (comp. Isaiah 64:8; and see also Deuteronomy 32:6, and Jeremiah 3:4). Though the relationship was revealed under the old covenant, it was practically realized only upon the rarest occasions. Our Redeemer; thy name, etc.; rather, our Redeemer has been thy name from of old. "Redeemer" first appears as a name of God in Job (Job 19:25) and in the Psalms (Psalm 19:14; Psalm 78:35). It is an epitheton usitatum only in the later portion of Isaiah. There it occurs thirteen times.