Isaiah 58:3

Isaiah 58:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.
• New International Version (NIV)‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?’ “Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.
• English Standard Version (ESV)'Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?' Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers.
• New King James Version (NKJV)‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and You have not seen? Why have we afflicted our souls, and You take no notice?’ “In fact, in the day of your fast you find pleasure, And exploit all your laborers.

Context of Isaiah 58:3

1The Lord says, ‘Shout out! Shout as loudly as you can! Make as much noise as a trumpet makes! Tell my people that they have not obeyed me. Tell the family of Jacob about their sins. 2Every day my people come to worship me. It seems that they want to know my ways. They seem like a nation of people who are doing the right things. They seem to be obeying the law of their God. They ask me to decide things fairly. Yes, they seem to want to be near to me. They say to me, “We have fasted to please you, but you do not see it. We make ourselves humble and you do not even look.” Listen to me! Yes you fast, but you do it to please yourselves. At the same time as you are fasting, you are being cruel to the people who work for you. 4Yes! While you are fasting, you are also quarrelling and you are fighting. You hit each other with your fists. If you want your prayers to reach me in heaven, you cannot continue to fast in the way that you do today. 5The way that you fast does not please me at all: You make yourselves humble for a day. You bend down your head, like a piece of weak grass. You lie down on sackcloth and ashes. Do you think that you are really fasting when you do that? Do you think that it pleases me, the Lord?

Isaiah 58:3 word by word

לָ֤מָּה צַּ֙מְנוּ֙ וְלֹ֣א רָאִ֔יתָ עִנִּ֥ינוּ נַפְשֵׁ֖נוּ וְלֹ֣א תֵדָ֑ע הֵ֣ן בְּי֤וֹם צֹֽמְכֶם֙ תִּמְצְאוּ־חֵ֔פֶץ וְכָל־עַצְּבֵיכֶ֖ם תִּנְגֹּֽשׂוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Wherefore have we fastedצוּםtsûm · to fastH6684
• and thou seestרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• have we afflictedעָנָה‛ânâh · to afflictH6031
• our soulנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: myselfH5315
• and thou takest no knowledgeיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• Behold, in the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• of your fastצוֹםtsôm tsôm · fastH6685
• ye findמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
• pleasureחֵ֫פֶץchêphets · pleasureH2656
• and exactנָגַשׂnâgaώ · to oppressH5065
• all your laboursעָצֵב‛âtsêb · workerH6092

Cross-references for Isaiah 58:3

• Numbers 23:4Balaam said to the Lord, ‘I made seven altars. On each altar, I have offered a bull and a male sheep.’
• Micah 3:9So listen to this, you leaders of Jacob's people. You are Israel's rulers. But you never do what is right and fair. You take what is good. And you make it seem bad.
• Zechariah 7:5He said, ‘Say this to all the people in this country and to the priests: “You lived in Babylon for many years. You ate no food and you were sad in the fifth month and in the seventh month. But you did not do this for me.
• Malachi 3:14You have said, “We serve God, but that has not helped us at all. We are careful to do what he tells us to do. When we do wrong things, we have sad faces to show the Lord Almighty that we are sorry.
• Matthew 20:11When they received their money, they were not happy. They told the master that he had not been fair to them.
• Luke 15:29“Listen,” the older son replied, “I have worked a lot for you for many years. I have always obeyed you. But you never even killed a young goat for me so that I could be happy with my friends. We could have had a meal together.
• Luke 18:9Jesus told a story to teach other people. These people thought that they were very good in front of God. They thought that they were much better than other people.
• Leviticus 16:29On the tenth day of the seventh month, Israel's people must not eat any food. This is a rule that you must obey for all time. The people who are travelling with them must not eat any food. None of them must do any work.
• Leviticus 23:27‘The tenth day of the seventh month is the Day of Atonement. On that day, the people must come together. They must not eat any food. They must make an offering of food to the Lord.
• Psalms 69:10When I weep and I stop eating food, it causes people to insult me.
• Daniel 10:2At that time I, Daniel, was very sad for three weeks.
• Jonah 3:6The king of Nineveh heard about God's message. He got up from his throne and he removed his royal clothes. He dressed himself in sackcloth and he sat in ashes on the ground.
• Nehemiah 5:7I thought carefully about what they had said. Then I said to the Jewish leaders and officers, ‘You are cheating your own people! You are taking back more money than you have lent to them.’ I told the Jews to come together for a big meeting.
• Proverbs 28:9If you refuse to listen to God's law, God will refuse to listen to your prayers.
• Jeremiah 34:9Everyone in Judah who had a Hebrew slave must let their slave go free, both male and female slaves. Nobody should keep another Israelite person as their slave.
• Matthew 18:28But then that same servant went away and he met another servant of the king. This other servant had to pay back a debt of 100 silver coins to the first servant. The first servant took hold of the neck of the other servant to hurt him. He said, “Give me the money that is mine.”

Commentaries on Isaiah 58:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Have we adopted our soul "Have we afflicted our souls" - Twenty-seven MSS. (six ancient) of Dr. Kennicott's, thirty-six of De Rossi's, and two of my own, and the old edition of 1488 have the noun in the plural number, נפשינו naphsheynu, our souls; and so the Septuagint, Chaldee, and Vulgate. This reading is undoubtedly genuine. In the day of your fast ye find pleasure - Fast days are generally called holidays, and holidays are days of idleness and…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Wherefore have we fasted - They had fasted much, evidently with the expectation of delivering themselves from impending calamities, and securing the divine favor. They are here introduced as saying that they had been disappointed. God had not interposed as they had expected. Chagrined and mortified, they now complain that he had not noticed their very conscientious and faithful regard for the duties of religion. And thou seest not? - All had been in vain…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 3-12Verses 3-12 A fast is a day to afflict the soul; if it does not express true sorrow for sin, and does not promote the putting away of sin, it is not a fast. These professors had shown sorrow on stated or occasioned fasts. But they indulged pride, covetousness, and malignant passions. To be liberal and merciful is more acceptable to God than mere fasting, which, without them, is vain and hypocritical. Many who seem humble in God's house, are hard at home…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Fasting should be a time of self-deprivation in order to focus on God and pleasing him (Leviticus 16:29; see Zechariah 7:5). However, these people were only interested in pleasing themselves and continuing in their sins.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. Wherefore--the words of the Jews: "Why is it that, when we fast, Thou dost not notice it" (by delivering us)? They think to lay God under obligation to their fasting (Psa 73:13; Mal 3:14). afflicted ... soul--(Le 16:29). Behold--God's reply. pleasure--in antithesis to their boast of having "afflicted their soul"; it was only in outward show they really enjoyed themselves. Gesenius not so well translates, "business." exact ... labours--rather…Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 58:3

• Fasting
• Hypocrisy
• Presumption
• Unbelief

In the dictionaries

• Aloud
• Light
• Abstinence
• Commentaries
• Exact
• Guilt
• Isaiah
• Saviour

Commentaries on Isaiah 58

• 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
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings