What is the meaning of Isaiah 43:21?

The people

• God names a distinct group—“The people.” In context, He is speaking of Israel, the nation He chose (Exodus 19:5-6).

• Yet Scripture widens the circle: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people He has chosen as His inheritance” (Psalm 33:12). In Christ, Gentile believers are grafted in, becoming “a chosen people, a royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9).

• The phrase reminds us that identity begins with belonging to God, not with human merit or achievement (Isaiah 43:1).

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I formed

• The verb is intentional. We are not random; we are God’s workmanship (Ephesians 2:10).

• He formed Israel in the Exodus, forging a nation out of slavery. He forms the church through the new birth, shaping lives by the Spirit (2 Corinthians 5:17).

• “Know that the LORD is God. It is He who made us, and we are His” (Psalm 100:3). Every heartbeat is a reminder of the Potter’s skilled hands.

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for Myself

• Purpose is personal. God forms a people “for His own possession” (Titus 2:14).

• Relationship comes first: “You are Mine!” (Isaiah 43:1). Ownership means security, value, and accountability.

• He reserves the right to our loyalty, time, bodies, talents—“You were bought at a price; therefore glorify God with your body” (1 Corinthians 6:20).

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will declare

• God’s people have a clear assignment: proclamation. Not maybe, but will.

• This includes lips: “He put a new song in my mouth… many will see and fear” (Psalm 40:3).

• It includes lives: “Created in Christ Jesus to do good works” (Ephesians 2:10). Service, compassion, integrity—all speak.

• The aim is outward-facing: “Declare His glory among the nations” (Psalm 96:3).

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My praise

• God is the sole object of the praise we declare. “Let them give glory to the LORD and declare His praise in the islands” (Isaiah 42:12).

• Praise is both doxology and mission. The crescendo reaches its fullness in heaven: “By Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe… they sang a new song” (Revelation 5:9-10).

• Daily worship offers a foretaste: “Offer your bodies as living sacrifices… your spiritual service of worship” (Romans 12:1).

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summary

Isaiah 43:21 shows God claiming a people, crafting them deliberately, binding them to Himself, and sending them out as heralds of His glory. We exist because He formed us; we belong because He wants us; we live to declare His praise—now and forever.