Isaiah 1:17

Isaiah 1:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
• New International Version (NIV)Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.
• English Standard Version (ESV)learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow.

Context of Isaiah 1:17

15So when you spread out your hands [in prayer, pleading for My help], I will hide My eyes from you; Yes, even though you offer many prayers, I will not be listening. Your hands are full of blood! 16“Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Get your evil deeds out of My sight. Stop doing evil, Learn to do good. Seek justice, Rebuke the ruthless, Defend the fatherless, Plead for the [rights of the] widow [in court]. 18“Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be like wool. 19If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the best of the land;

Isaiah 1:17 word by word

לִמְד֥וּ הֵיטֵ֛ב דִּרְשׁ֥וּ מִשְׁפָּ֖ט אַשְּׁר֣וּ חָמ֑וֹץ שִׁפְט֣וּ יָת֔וֹם רִ֖יבוּ אַלְמָנָֽה׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Learnלָמַדlâmad · to learn: learnH3925
• to do wellיָטַבyâţab · be goodH3190
• seekדָּרַשׁdârash · to seekH1875
• judgmentמִשְׁפָּטmishpâţ · justiceH4941
• relieveאָשַׁר'âshar 'âshêr · to blessH833
• the oppressedחָמוֹץchâmôts · the ruthlessH2541
• judgeשָׁפַטshâphaţ · to judgeH8199
• the fatherlessיָתוֹםyâthôm · orphanH3490
• pleadרִיבrîyb rûb · to contendH7378
• for the widowאַלְמָנָה'almânâh · widowH490

Cross-references for Isaiah 1:17

• Isaiah 1:23Your rulers are rebels And companions of thieves; Everyone loves bribes And chases after gifts. They do not defend the fatherless, Nor does the widow’s cause come before them [instead they delay or turn a deaf ear].
• Psalms 82:3Vindicate the weak and fatherless; Do justice and maintain the rights of the afflicted and destitute.
• Proverbs 31:9Open your mouth, judge righteously, And administer justice for the afflicted and needy.
• Jeremiah 22:3Thus says the Lord, “Execute justice and righteousness, and rescue the one who has been robbed from the hand of his oppressor. And do no wrong; do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.
• Daniel 4:27Therefore, O king, let my advice to you be [considered and found] acceptable; break away now from your sins and exhibit your repentance by doing what is right, and from your wickedness by showing mercy to the poor, so that [if you repent] there may possibly be a continuance of your prosperity and tranquility and a healing of your error.’
• Micah 6:8He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you Except to be just, and to love [and to diligently practice] kindness (compassion), And to walk humbly with your God [setting aside any overblown sense of importance or self-righteousness]?
• Zephaniah 2:3Seek the Lord [search diligently for Him and regard Him as the foremost necessity of your life], All you humble of the land Who have practiced His ordinances and have kept His commandments; Seek righteousness, seek humility [regard them as vital]. Perhaps you will be hidden [and pardoned and rescued] In the day of the Lord’s anger.
• Zechariah 7:9“Thus has the Lord of hosts said, ‘Dispense true justice and practice kindness and compassion, to each other;
• Zechariah 8:16These are the things which you should do: speak the truth with one another; judge with truth and pronounce the judgment that brings peace in [the courts at] your gates.

Commentaries on Isaiah 1:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Relieve the oppressed "Amend that which is corrupted" - חמוץ אשרו asheru chamots . In rendering this obscure phrase I follow Bochart, (Hieroz. Part i., lib. ii., cap. 7), though I am not perfectly satisfied with this explication of it.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17Learn to do well - , To learn here is to become accustomed to, to practice it. To do well stands opposed to all kinds of evil. “Seek judgment.” The word “judgment” - משׁפט mishpâṭ - here means justice. The direction refers particularly to magistrates, and it is evident that the prophet had them particularly in his view in all this discourse. Execute justice between man and man with impartiality. The word “seek” - דרשׁוּ dı̂reshû - means to pursue, to…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-20Verses 16-20 Not only feel sorrow for the sin committed, but break off the practice. We must be doing, not stand idle. We must be doing the good the Lord our God requires. It is plain that the sacrifices of the law could not atone, even for outward national crimes. But, blessed be God, there is a Fountain opened, in which sinners of every age and rank may be cleansed. Though our sins have been as scarlet and crimson, a deep dye, a double dye, first in the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17Seeking justice means following God's standards of fairness and supporting the rights of the oppressed, orphans, and widows—those who are weak and marginalized in society (see also Jeremiah 7:5–7; 22:3; Zechariah 7:10; Matthew 23:23; 25:31–46; James 1:27).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. seek judgment--justice, as magistrates, instead of seeking bribes (Jr 22:3, 16). judge--vindicate (Psa 68:5; Jas 1:27).Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 1:17

• Church
• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• Justice
• Oppression
• Ordinance
• Orphan
• Poor
• Regeneration
• Reward
• Widow

In the dictionaries

• Convert
• Crib
• Eat
• Fade
• Harlot
• Isaiah, The Book of
• Judgment
• Oblation
• Owner
• Purely

Commentaries on Isaiah 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings