Isaiah 57:9

Isaiah 57:9 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And thou wentest to the king with ointment, and didst increase thy perfumes, and didst send thy messengers far off, and didst debase thyself even unto hell.
• New International Version (NIV)You went to Molek with olive oil and increased your perfumes. You sent your ambassadors far away; you descended to the very realm of the dead!
• English Standard Version (ESV)You journeyed to the king with oil and multiplied your perfumes; you sent your envoys far off, and sent down even to Sheol.
• New King James Version (NKJV)You went to the king with ointment, And increased your perfumes; You sent your messengers far off, And even descended to Sheol.

Context of Isaiah 57:9

7Upon a high and lofty mountain You have [openly and shamelessly] made your [idolatrous and adulterous] bed; Even there you went up to offer sacrifice [to idols, in spiritual unfaithfulness to Me]. 8Behind the door and the doorpost You have set up your [pagan] symbol; Indeed, far removed from Me, you have uncovered yourself, And have gone up and made your bed wide. And you have made a [new] agreement for yourself with the adulterers, You have loved their bed, You have looked [with passion] on their manhood. You have gone to the king [of a pagan land] with oil And increased your perfumes; You have sent your messengers a great distance And made them go down to Sheol (the realm of the dead). 10You were wearied by the length of your road, Yet you did not say, ‘It is no use.’ You found renewed strength, Therefore you did not grow weak. 11“About whom were you worried and fearful That you lied and did not remember Me, Nor give Me a thought? Was I not silent even for a long time And [as a result] you do not fear Me?

Isaiah 57:9 word by word

וַתָּשֻׁ֤רִי לַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙ בַּשֶּׁ֔מֶן וַתַּרְבִּ֖י רִקֻּחָ֑יִךְ וַתְּשַׁלְּחִ֤י צִרַ֙יךְ֙ עַד־מֵ֣רָחֹ֔ק וַתַּשְׁפִּ֖ילִי עַד־שְׁאֽוֹל׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And thou wentestשׁוּרshûr · to travelH7788
• to the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• with ointmentשֶׁ֫מֶןshemen · oilH8081
• and didst increaseרָבָהrâbâh · to multiplyH7235
• thy perfumesרַקּוּחַraqqûach · perfumeryH7547
• and didst sendשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
• thy messengersצִירtsîyr · envoyH6735
• far offרָחֹקrâchôq râchôq · distantH7350
• and didst debaseשָׁפֵלshâphêl · to abaseH8213
• unto hellשְׁאוֹלshe'ôl she'ôl · hell: SheolH7585

Cross-references for Isaiah 57:9

• Isaiah 30:1“Woe (judgment is coming) to the rebellious children,” declares the Lord, “Who carry out a plan, but not Mine, And make an alliance [by pouring out a libation], but not of My Spirit, In order to add sin to sin;
• Isaiah 31:1Woe (judgment is coming) to those who go down to Egypt for help, Who rely on horses And trust in chariots because they are many, And in horsemen because they are very strong, But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek and consult the Lord!
• 2 Kings 16:7So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and son. Come up and rescue me from the hand of the kings of Aram and of Israel, who are rising up against me.”
• Ezekiel 16:33Men give gifts to all prostitutes, but you give your gifts to all your lovers, bribing the pagan nations to come to you [as allies] from every direction for your obscene immoralities.
• Ezekiel 23:16When she saw [the sketches of] them, she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.
• Hosea 7:11Ephraim also is like a silly dove, without heart or good sense; They call to Egypt [for help], they go to Assyria.
• Hosea 12:1Ephraim feeds on the [emptiness of the] wind And [continually] pursues the [parching] east wind [which brings destruction]; Every day he multiplies lies and violence. Further, he makes a covenant with Assyria And (olive) oil is carried to Egypt [to seek alliances].
• Proverbs 7:17I have perfumed my bed With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
• Isaiah 2:9So the common man has been humbled [before idols] And the man of importance has been degraded, Therefore do not forgive them [O Lord].
• Colossians 2:18Let no one defraud you of your prize [your freedom in Christ and your salvation] by insisting on mock humility and the worship of angels, going into detail about visions [he claims] he has seen [to justify his authority], puffed up [in conceit] by his unspiritual mind,

Commentaries on Isaiah 57:9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9And thou wentest to the king with ointment "And thou hast visited the king with a present of oil" - That is, the king of Assyria, or Egypt. Hosea, chap, Hosea 12:1, reproaches the Israelites for the same practice: - "They make a covenant with Assyria, And oil is carried to Egypt." It is well known, that in all parts of the east, whoever visits a great person must carry him a present. "It is counted uncivil," says Maundreg, p. 26, "to visit in this country…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9And thou wentest to the king - Margin, Respectedst.‘ Jerome renders this, Thou hast adorned thyself with royal ointment, and hast multiplied thy painting; and evidently understands it as a continuance of the sentiment in the previous verses as referring to the kind of decoration which harlots used. The Septuagint renders it, Thou hast multiplied thy fornication with them, and hast done it with many who are far from thee.‘ The Chaldee renders it, When thou…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 3-12Verses 3-12 The Lord here calls apostates and hypocrites to appear before him. When reproved for their sins, and threatened with judgments, they ridiculed the word of God. The Jews were guilty of idolatry before the captivity; but not after that affliction. Their zeal in the worship of false gods, may shame our indifference in the worship of the true God. The service of sin is disgraceful slavery; those who thus debase themselves to hell, will justly have…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-13This passage reflects on how common evil had become among God’s people. Many of them were greedy and wanted more and more for themselves (Isaiah 56:9–12). They treated righteous people with hatred and violence (Isaiah 57:1–2). They also worshiped idols instead of the true God (Isaiah 57:3–13).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. the king--the idol which they came to worship, perfumed with oil, like harlots (Jr 4:30; Eze 23:16, 40). So "king" means idol (Am 5:26; Zep 1:5); (malcham meaning "king") [Rosenmuller]. Rather, the king of Assyria or Egypt, and other foreign princes, on whom Israel relied, instead of on God; the "ointment" will thus refer to the presents (Ho 12:1), and perhaps the compliances with foreigners' idolatries, whereby Israel sought to gain their favor…Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 57:9

• Anointing
• Hell
• Idolatry
• Infidelity
• Perfume

In the dictionaries

• Bed
• Dirt
• Eternity
• Inhabit
• Lofty
• Perfumes
• Hades
• Isaiah
• Saviour
• Trade

Commentaries on Isaiah 57

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• 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