English Standard Version
Isaiah 11:4
4but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
Isaiah 11:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.
- New International Version (NIV)but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.
- New King James Version (NKJV)But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, And decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
- New Living Translation (NLT)He will give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited. The earth will shake at the force of his word, and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked.
Context of Isaiah 11:4
2And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. 3And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. 6The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.
Read all of Isaiah 11Isaiah 11:4 word by word
וְשָׁפַ֤ט בְּצֶ֙דֶק֙ דַּלִּ֔ים וְהוֹכִ֥יחַ בְּמִישׁ֖וֹר לְעַנְוֵי־אָ֑רֶץ וְהִֽכָּה־אֶ֙רֶץ֙ בְּשֵׁ֣בֶט פִּ֔יו וּבְר֥וּחַ שְׂפָתָ֖יו יָמִ֥ית רָשָֽׁע׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- But with righteousnessצֶ֫דֶקtsedeq · righteousnessH6664
- shall he judgeשָׁפַטshâphaţ · to judgeH8199
- the poorדַּלdal · poorH1800
- and reproveיָכַחyâkach · to rebukeH3198
- with equityמִישׁוֹרmîyshôr mîyshôr · plainH4334
- for the meekעָנָו‛ânâv ‛ânâyv · poorH6035
- of the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- and he shall smiteנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
- with the rodשֵׁ֫בֶטshêbeţ · tribe: staffH7626
- of his mouthפֶּהpeh · lipH6310
- and with the breathרוּחַrûach · spirit: breathH7307
- of his lipsשָׂפָהώâphâh ώepheth · lipsH8193
- shall he slayמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
- the wickedרָשָׁעrâshâ‛ · wickedH7563
Cross-references for Isaiah 11:4
- Isaiah 32:1Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule in justice.
- 2 Samuel 8:15So David reigned over all Israel. And David administered justice and equity to all his people.
- 2 Samuel 23:2"The Spirit of the Lord speaks by me; his word is on my tongue.
- 1 Kings 10:8Happy are your men! Happy are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!
- Psalms 45:6Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;
- Psalms 72:1Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to the royal son!
- Psalms 82:2"How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah
- Jeremiah 23:5"Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.
- Jeremiah 33:15In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.
- Matthew 11:5the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them.
- Revelation 19:11Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.
- Isaiah 1:17learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.
- Proverbs 31:8Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute.
- Jeremiah 5:28they have grown fat and sleek. They know no bounds in deeds of evil; they judge not with justice the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper, and they do not defend the rights of the needy.
- Isaiah 29:19The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord, and the poor among mankind shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.
- Isaiah 61:1The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
Commentaries on Isaiah 11:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4With the rod of his mouth "By the blast of his mouth" - For בשבט beshebet, by the rod, Houbigant reads בשבת beshebeth, by the blast of his mouth, from נשב nashab, to blow. The conjecture is ingenious and probable; and seems to be confirmed by the Septuagint and Chaldee, who render it by the word of his mouth, which answers much better to the correction than to the present reading. Add to this, that the blast of his mouth is perfectly parallel to the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Shall he judge the poor - That is, he shall see that impartial justice is done them; he shall not take part with the rich against the poor, but shall show that he is the friend of justice. This is the quality of a just and upright magistrate, and this character the Lord Jesus everywhere evinced. He chose his disciples from among the poor; he condescended to be their companion and friend; he provided for their needs; and he pronounced their condition…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4The poor and the exploited would receive the justice due to them, which the wicked leaders of Judah had previously withheld. the rod of his mouth: See Psalm 2:9; Revelation 19:15.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. judge--see that impartial justice is done them. "Judge" may mean here "rule," as in Psa 67:4. reprove--or, "argue"; "decide." But Lowth, "work conviction in." earth--Compare with Mt 5:5, and Re 11:15. earth--its ungodly inhabitants, answering to "the wicked" in the parallel, and in antithesis to the "poor" and "meek," namely, in spirit, the humble pious (Mt 5:3). It is at the same time implied that "the earth" will be extraordinarily wicked when He…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 11:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 11
- 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
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