Isaiah 59:16

Isaiah 59:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.
• New International Version (NIV)He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm achieved salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him.
• English Standard Version (ESV)He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no one to intercede; then his own arm brought him salvation, and his righteousness upheld him.
• New King James Version (NKJV)He saw that there was no man, And wondered that there was no intercessor; Therefore His own arm brought salvation for Him; And His own righteousness, it sustained Him.

Context of Isaiah 59:16

14Judges do not decide in a fair way. Nobody tries to do what is right. There is no place for truth on the streets of our towns. Honest people have to leave. 15Nobody can speak the truth. If anyone tries to stop doing evil things, other people will attack him. The Lord saw how his people were living. He saw that there was no justice. It made him very sad. He saw that there was nobody who would help, and he was very upset. So he used his own strength to help. Because he had to do what was right, he made his people safe. 17He always does what is right, like a soldier who always puts on his armour. His power to save people is like the helmet that he wears. He is angry against people who do evil things, and he works hard to punish them. That is like the clothes that he wears. 18He will punish his enemies for the bad things that they have done. He will be very angry with them. He will punish all his enemies, even those who live in lands far away.

Isaiah 59:16 word by word

וַיַּרְא֙ כִּֽי־אֵ֣ין אִ֔ישׁ וַיִּשְׁתּוֹמֵ֖ם כִּ֣י אֵ֣ין מַפְגִּ֑יעַ וַתּ֤וֹשַֽׁע לוֹ֙ זְרֹע֔וֹ וְצִדְקָת֖וֹ הִ֥יא סְמָכָֽתְהוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And he sawרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• no manאִישׁ'îysh · man: anyoneH376
• and wonderedשָׁמֵםshâmêm · be desolate: appalledH8074
• no intercessorפָּגַעpâga‛ · to fall onH6293
• therefore his armזְרוֹעַzerôa‛ zerôa‛ zerô‛âh zerô‛âh · armH2220
• brought salvationיָשַׁעyâsha‛ · to saveH3467
• unto him; and his righteousnessצְדָקָהtsedâqâh · righteousnessH6666
• it sustainedסָמַךְsâmak · to supportH5564

Cross-references for Isaiah 59:16

• Isaiah 50:2Nobody was there to meet me, when I came to help you. When I called out to you, nobody answered me. Do you think that my arm is too weak to rescue you? Am I not strong enough to save you? Look! I can speak to the sea so that it becomes dry! I can cause rivers to become deserts. Then the fish die because they have no water.
• Isaiah 64:7Nobody prays in your name, or calls out to you to help them. It seems that you have turned away from us. You have left us for our sins to rule us.
• Genesis 18:23Then Abraham went near to the Lord and he asked, ‘Will you destroy the good people as well as the bad people?
• Psalms 106:23So God said that he would destroy them. But God's servant, Moses, spoke on their behalf. He asked God not to be angry with his people, and God agreed.
• Jeremiah 5:1The Lord said, ‘Run along all the streets of Jerusalem. Look carefully all around you. Look in all the public places of the city. Try to find one person who is honest. Try to find one person who wants to know the truth. If you find one person like that, I will forgive all the people in the city.
• Ezekiel 22:30I looked among the people for a man who would make the land safe. He would make it a good, strong place again, with nothing bad in it. Then I would not destroy it. But I could not find anyone like that.
• Mark 6:6Jesus was very surprised because the people there would not believe in him. Then he went to visit the other villages that were near there. He was teaching the people who lived in those villages.
• Isaiah 52:10The Lord has shown all the nations how strong he is. They can all see his holy power. People all over the world will know that our God has rescued his people.
• Isaiah 63:3He says, ‘I have walked on the grapes alone. Nobody from the nations came to help me. I walked on them because I was angry. I squeezed them to pieces in my anger. Their blood splashed on my clothes, and it made all my clothes dirty.
• Psalms 98:1Sing a new song to praise the Lord. He has done great things. He has used his own power and his holy strength to win against his enemies.

Commentaries on Isaiah 59:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16And wondered that there was no intercessor - This and the following verses some of the most eminent rabbins understand as spoken of the Messiah. Kimchi says that Rabbi Joshua ben Levi proposes this objection: "It is written, 'Behold, he will come in the clouds of heaven as the son of man,' Daniel 7:13; and elsewhere it is written, 'He cometh lowly, and riding upon an ass,' Zechariah 9:9. How can these texts be reconciled? Thus: If the Jews have merit, he…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16And he saw that there was no man - That is, no wise and prudent man qualified to govern the affairs of the people. Or, that there was no man qualified to interpose and put an end to these evils; no one qualified to effect a reformation, and to save the nation from the calamities which their sins deserved. The reason why God provided a Redeemer was, that such was the extent and nature of human depravity, that no one on earth could arrest it, and save the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-21Verses 16-21 This passage is connected with the following chapters. It is generally thought to describe the coming of the Messiah, as the Avenger and Deliverer of his church. There was none to intercede with God to turn away his wrath; none to interpose for the support of justice and truth. Yet He engaged his own strength and righteousness for his people. God will make his justice upon the enemies of his church and people plainly appear. When the enemy…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. 1616. no man--namely, to atone by his righteousness for the unrighteousness of the people. "Man" is emphatic, as in 1Ki 2:2; no representative man able to retrieve the cause of fallen men (Is 41:28; 63:5, 6; Jr 5:1; Eze 22:30). no intercessor--no one to interpose, "to help ... uphold" (Is 63:5). his arm--(Is 40:10; 51:5). Not man's arm, but His alone (Psa 98:1; 44:3). his righteousness--the "arm" of Messiah. He won the victory for us, not by mere might as…Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 59:16

• Anthropomorphisms
• Arm
• Jesus Continued
• Soldiers

In the dictionaries

• Cloke
• Grope
• Heavy
• Iniquity
• Mutter
• Revolt
• Isaiah
• Saviour
• Servant of Jehovah; Servant of the Lord; Servant of Yahweh

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