Isaiah 59:15

Isaiah 59:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.
• New International Version (NIV)Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey. The Lord looked and was displeased that there was no justice.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Truth is lacking, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. The Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice.
• New King James Version (NKJV)So truth fails, And he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. Then the Lord saw it, and it displeased Him That there was no justice.

Context of Isaiah 59:15

13rebelling and denying the LORD, turning away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering lies from the heart. 14So justice is turned away, and righteousness stands at a distance. For truth has stumbled in the public square, and honesty cannot enter. Truth is missing, and whoever turns from evil becomes prey. The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice. 16He saw that there was no man; He was amazed that there was no one to intercede. So His own arm brought salvation, and His own righteousness sustained Him. 17He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on His head; He put on garments of vengeance and wrapped Himself in a cloak of zeal.

Isaiah 59:15 word by word

וַתְּהִ֤י הָֽאֱמֶת֙ נֶעְדֶּ֔רֶת וְסָ֥ר מֵרָ֖ע מִשְׁתּוֹלֵ֑ל וַיַּ֧רְא יְהוָ֛ה וַיֵּ֥רַע בְּעֵינָ֖יו כִּֽי־אֵ֥ין מִשְׁפָּֽט׃Read the interlinear

• Truthאֱמֶת'emeth · truth: trueH571
• isהָיָהhâyâh · to beH1961
• missingעָדַר‛âdar · to lackH5737
• and whoever turnsסוּרsûr ώûr · to turn aside: departH5493
• from evilרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: evilH7451
• becomes preyשָׁלַלshâlal · to lootH7997
• The LORDיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• lookedרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• and was displeasedרָעַעrâ‛a‛ · be evilH7489
• and was displeasedעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eye: appearanceH5869
• thatכִּיkîy · forH3588
• there was noאַ֫יִן'ayin · nothingH369
• justiceמִשְׁפָּטmishpâţ · justiceH4941

Cross-references for Isaiah 59:15

• Isaiah 48:1“Listen to this, O house of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel, who have descended from the line of Judah, who swear by the name of the LORD, who invoke the God of Israel— but not in truth or righteousness—
• Psalms 5:9For not a word they speak can be trusted; destruction lies within them. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.
• Psalms 12:1Help, O LORD, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men.
• Jeremiah 5:1“Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem. Look now and take note; search her squares. If you can find a single person, anyone who acts justly, anyone who seeks the truth, then I will forgive the city.
• Jeremiah 7:28Therefore you must say to them, ‘This is the nation that would not listen to the voice of the LORD their God and would not receive correction. Truth has perished; it has disappeared from their lips.
• Hosea 4:1Hear the word of the LORD, O children of Israel, for the LORD has a case against the people of the land: “There is no truth, no loving devotion, and no knowledge of God in the land!
• Micah 7:2The godly man has perished from the earth; there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; they hunt one another with a net.
• Habakkuk 1:13Your eyes are too pure to look upon evil, and You cannot tolerate wrongdoing. So why do You tolerate the faithless? Why are You silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?
• Acts 9:1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord. He approached the high priest
• Romans 8:36As it is written: “For Your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
• Hebrews 11:36Still others endured mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.
• 1 John 3:11This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another.
• 2 Kings 9:11When Jehu went out to the servants of his master, they asked, “Is everything all right? Why did this madman come to you?” “You know his kind and their babble,” he replied.
• Jeremiah 29:26‘The LORD has appointed you priest in place of Jehoiada, to be the chief officer in the house of the LORD, responsible for any madman who acts like a prophet—you must put him in stocks and neck irons.
• Hosea 9:7The days of punishment have come; the days of retribution have arrived— let Israel know it. The prophet is called a fool, and the inspired man insane, because of the greatness of your iniquity and hostility.
• Mark 3:21When His family heard about this, they went out to take custody of Him, saying, “He is out of His mind.”

Commentaries on Isaiah 59:15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15And the Lord saw it "And Jehovah saw it" - This third line of the stanza appears manifestly to me to be imperfect by the loss of a phrase. The reader will perhaps more perfectly conceive my idea of the matter if I endeavor to supply the supposed defect, I imagine it might have stood originally in this manner: - לו ויחר יהוה וירא lo veyachar Yehovah vaiyar משפט אין כי בעיניו וירע mishpat ein ki beeyinaiv veyera "And Jehovah saw it, and he was wroth; And it…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15Yea, truth faileth - That is, it is not to be found, it is missing. The word used here (from עדר ‛âdar ) means “to be left, to remain” 2 Samuel 17:22; then “to be missing or lacking” 1 Samuel 30:19; Isaiah 40:26. Here it means that truth had no existence there. And he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey - Margin, Is accounted mad.‘ Noyes renders this, And he that departeth from evil is plundered.‘ Grotius renders it, The innocent man lies open…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-15Verses 9-15 If we shut our eyes against the light of Divine truth, it is just with God to hide from our eyes the things that belong to our peace. The sins of those who profess themselves God's people, are worse than the sins of others. And the sins of a nation bring public judgments, when not restrained by public justice. Men may murmur under calamities, but nothing will truly profit while they reject Christ and his gospel.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15-17The Lord acts like a warrior, determined to win against evil (see Ephesians 6:14).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1515. faileth--is not to be found. he that departeth ... prey--He that will not fall in with the prevailing iniquity exposes himself as a prey to the wicked (Psa 10:8, 9). Lord saw it--The iniquity of Israel, so desperate as to require nothing short of Jehovah's interposition to mend it, typifies the same necessity for a Divine Mediator existing in the deep corruption of man; Israel, the model nation, was chosen to illustrate his awful fact.Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 59:15

• Justice
• Persecution
• Repentance
• Rulers
• Sin
• Truth

In the dictionaries

• Cloke
• Grope
• Heavy
• Iniquity
• Mutter
• Revolt
• Truth
• Fail
• Isaiah
• Lack

Commentaries on Isaiah 59

• 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