New English Translation
Isaiah 55:7
7The wicked need to abandon their lifestyle and sinful people their plans. They should return to the Lord, and he will show mercy to them, and to their God, for he will freely forgive them.
Isaiah 55:7 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
- New International Version (NIV)Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
- English Standard Version (ESV)let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the Lord, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.
Context of Isaiah 55:7
5Look, you will summon nations you did not previously know; nations that did not previously know you will run to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he bestows honor on you. 6Seek the Lord while he makes himself available; call to him while he is nearby! The wicked need to abandon their lifestyle and sinful people their plans. They should return to the Lord, and he will show mercy to them, and to their God, for he will freely forgive them. 8“Indeed, my plans are not like your plans, and my deeds are not like your deeds, 9for just as the sky is higher than the earth, so my deeds are superior to your deeds and my plans superior to your plans.
Read all of Isaiah 55Isaiah 55:7 word by word
יַעֲזֹ֤ב רָשָׁע֙ דַּרְכּ֔וֹ וְאִ֥ישׁ אָ֖וֶן מַחְשְׁבֹתָ֑יו וְיָשֹׁ֤ב אֶל־יְהוָה֙ וִֽירַחֲמֵ֔הוּ וְאֶל־אֱלֹהֵ֖ינוּ כִּֽי־יַרְבֶּ֥ה לִסְלֽוֹחַ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Let the wickedרָשָׁעrâshâ‛ · wickedH7563
- forsakeעָזַב‛âzab · to leave: forsakeH5800
- his wayדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: conductH1870
- and the unrighteousאָ֫וֶן'âven · evil: wickednessH205
- manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- his thoughtsמַחֲשָׁבָהmachăshâbâh machăshebeth · plotH4284
- and let him returnשׁוּבshûb · to return: repentH7725
- unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- and he will have mercyרָחַםrâcham · to have compassionH7355
- upon him; and to our Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- for he will abundantlyרָבָהrâbâh · to multiplyH7235
- pardonסָלַחsâlach · to forgiveH5545
Cross-references for Isaiah 55:7
- Isaiah 1:16Wash! Cleanse yourselves! Remove your sinful deeds from my sight. Stop sinning!
- 2 Chronicles 7:14if my people, who belong to me, humble themselves, pray, seek to please me, and repudiate their sinful practices, then I will respond from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.
- Proverbs 28:13The one who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses them and forsakes them will find mercy.
- Jeremiah 3:3That is why the rains have been withheld, and the spring rains have not come. Yet in spite of this you are obstinate as a prostitute. You refuse to be ashamed of what you have done.
- Jeremiah 8:4The Lord said to me, “Tell them, ‘The Lord says, Do people not get back up when they fall down? Do they not turn around when they go the wrong way?
- Ezekiel 3:18When I say to the wicked, “You will certainly die,” and you do not warn him – you do not speak out to warn the wicked to turn from his wicked deed and wicked lifestyle so that he may live – that wicked person will die for his iniquity, but I will hold you accountable for his death.
- Ezekiel 18:21“But if the wicked person turns from all the sin he has committed and observes all my statutes and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.
- Ezekiel 33:11Say to them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but prefer that the wicked change his behavior and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil deeds! Why should you die, O house of Israel?’
- Hosea 14:1Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for your sin has been your downfall!
- Jonah 3:10When God saw their actions – they turned from their evil way of living! – God relented concerning the judgment he had threatened them with and he did not destroy them.
- Matthew 9:13Go and learn what this saying means: ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
- Luke 15:10In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”
- Acts 3:19Therefore repent and turn back so that your sins may be wiped out,
- Acts 26:20but I declared to those in Damascus first, and then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds consistent with repentance.
- 1 Corinthians 6:9Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners, practicing homosexuals,
- James 4:8Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and make your hearts pure, you double-minded.
Commentaries on Isaiah 55:7
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-13Verses 6-13 Here is a gracious offer of pardon, and peace, and of all happiness. It shall not be in vain to seek God, now his word is calling to us, and his Spirit is striving with us. But there is a day coming when he will not be found. There may come such a time in this life; it is certain that at death and judgment the door will be shut. There must be not only a change of the way, but a change of the mind. We must alter our judgments about persons and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7Let the wicked man forsake his way and … return to the LORD: True conversion means changing how we live to follow God's rules (see Isaiah 1:16–17; 30:15; 59:20). have compassion: God's compassion reaches those in need, wherever they are. He will freely pardon: Forgiveness of sin is key to the good news of redemption (see Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; see also Psalms 32:1; 86:5; 99:8; 103:2–5).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. unrighteous--Hebrew, "man of iniquity"; true of all men. The "wicked" sins more openly in "his way"; the "unrighteous" refers to the more subtle workings of sin in the "thoughts." All are guilty in the latter respect, thought many fancy themselves safe, because not openly "wicked in ways" (Psa 94:11). The parallelism is that of gradation. The progress of the penitent is to be from negative reformation, "forsaking his way," and a farther step, "his…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 55:7
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 55
- 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
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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Commentaries