English Standard Version
Isaiah 6:9
9And he said, "Go, and say to this people: "'Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.'
Isaiah 6:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not.
- New International Version (NIV)He said, “Go and tell this people: “ ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
- New King James Version (NKJV)And He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’
- New Living Translation (NLT)And he said, “Yes, go, and say to this people, ‘Listen carefully, but do not understand. Watch closely, but learn nothing.’
Context of Isaiah 6:9
7And he touched my mouth and said: "Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for." 8And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here I am! Send me." And he said, "Go, and say to this people: "'Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.' 10Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed." 11Then I said, "How long, O Lord?" And he said: "Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste,
Read all of Isaiah 6Isaiah 6:9 word by word
וַיֹּ֕אמֶר לֵ֥ךְ וְאָמַרְתָּ֖ לָעָ֣ם הַזֶּ֑ה שִׁמְע֤וּ שָׁמ֙וֹעַ֙ וְאַל־תָּבִ֔ינוּ וּרְא֥וּ רָא֖וֹ וְאַל־תֵּדָֽעוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 6:9
- Isaiah 29:13And the Lord said: "Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,
- Isaiah 30:8And now, go, write it before them on a tablet and inscribe it in a book, that it may be for the time to come as a witness forever.
- Exodus 32:7And the Lord said to Moses, "Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.
- Jeremiah 15:1Then the Lord said to me, "Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them out of my sight, and let them go!
- Hosea 1:9And the Lord said, "Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God."
- Isaiah 43:8Bring out the people who are blind, yet have eyes, who are deaf, yet have ears!
- Isaiah 44:18They know not, nor do they discern, for he has shut their eyes, so that they cannot see, and their hearts, so that they cannot understand.
- Matthew 13:14Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: "'"You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive."
- Mark 4:12so that "'they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.'"
- Luke 8:10he said, "To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that 'seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'
- John 12:40"He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them."
- Acts 28:26"'Go to this people, and say, "You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive."
- Romans 11:8as it is written, "God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day."
Commentaries on Isaiah 6:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9And he said - לי li, to me, two MSS. and the Syriac. Thirteen MSS. have ראה raah, in the regular form.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9And he said - The expressions which follow are those which denote hardness of heart and blindness of mind. They would hear the words of the prophet, but they would not understand him. They were so obstinately bent on iniquity that they would neither believe nor regard him. This shows the spirit with which ministers must deliver the message of God. It is their business to deliver the message, though they should know that it will neither be understood nor…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-13Verses 9-13 God sends Isaiah to foretell the ruin of his people. Many hear the sound of God's word, but do not feel the power of it. God sometimes, in righteous judgment, gives men up to blindness of mind, because they will not receive the truth in the love of it. But no humble inquirer after Christ, need to fear this awful doom, which is a spiritual judgment on those who will still hold fast their sins. Let every one pray for the enlightening of the Holy…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9never understanding … never perceiving: The prophet's words revealed the true feelings of his audience. The people were so deep in sin that hearing the truth pushed them further from God instead of closer (for example, Ahaz, Isaiah 7). Yet, the truth needed to be spoken. Jesus also used this principle in his own preaching (Matthew 13:14–15; Luke 8:10; 19:42; John 12:40; see also Acts 28:26–27; Romans 11:8).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. Hear ... indeed--Hebrew, "In hearing hear," that is, Though ye hear the prophet's warnings again and again, ye are doomed, because of your perverse will (Joh 7:17), not to understand. Light enough is given in revelation to guide those sincerely seeking to know, in order that they may do, God's will; darkness enough is left to confound the wilfully blind (Is 43:8). So in Jesus' use of parables (Mt 13:14). see ... indeed--rather, "though ye see again and…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 6:9
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 6
- 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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