Isaiah 64
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The Great Isaiah Scroll, the best preserved of the biblical scrolls found at Qumran from the second century BC, contains all the verses in this chapter.
Book	Book of Isaiah
Hebrew Bible part	Nevi'im
Order in the Hebrew part	5
Category	Latter Prophets
Christian Bible part	Old Testament
Order in the Christian part	23

Isaiah 64 is the sixty-fourth chapter of the Book of Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. This book contains the prophecies attributed to the prophet Isaiah, and is one of the Books of the Prophets.^[1] Chapters 56-66 are often referred to as Trito-Isaiah.^[2] This chapter contains "a prayer for help" in a format which T. K. Cheyne describes as "a liturgical psalm".^[3]

Text

The original text was written in the Hebrew language. This chapter is divided into 12 verses. In Hebrew texts, Isaiah 64:1 is numbered as 63:19b, and verses 2-12 are numbered as verses 1–11.^[4]

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Codex Cairensis (895), the Petersburg Codex of the Prophets (916), Aleppo Codex (10th century), Codex Leningradensis (1008).^[5]

Fragments containing parts of this chapter were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls (3rd century BC or later):

• 1QIsa^a: complete
• 1QIsa^b: extant: verses 1, 6‑8
• 4QIsa^b (4Q56): extant: verses 5‑11

There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus (B; ${\displaystyle {\mathfrak {G))}$^B; 4th century), Codex Sinaiticus (S; BHK: ${\displaystyle {\mathfrak {G))}$^S; 4th century), Codex Alexandrinus (A; ${\displaystyle {\mathfrak {G))}$^A; 5th century) and Codex Marchalianus (Q; ${\displaystyle {\mathfrak {G))}$^Q; 6th century).^[6]

Parashot

The parashah sections listed here are based on the Aleppo Codex.^[7] Isaiah 64 is a part of the Consolations (Isaiah 40–66). {P}: open parashah; {S}: closed parashah.

[{S} 63:7-19] 64:1-2 {S} 64:3-11 {P}

Verse 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.^[8]

A similar message is found in Jeremiah 18:6:

“O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the Lord. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel!”