New King James Version
Isaiah 10:1
1“Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees, Who write misfortune, Which they have prescribed
Isaiah 10:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed;
- New International Version (NIV)Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees,
- English Standard Version (ESV)Woe to those who decree iniquitous decrees, and the writers who keep writing oppression,
- New Living Translation (NLT)What sorrow awaits the unjust judges and those who issue unfair laws.
Context of Isaiah 10:1
“Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees, Who write misfortune, Which they have prescribed 2To rob the needy of justice, And to take what is right from the poor of My people, That widows may be their prey, And that they may rob the fatherless. 3What will you do in the day of punishment, And in the desolation which will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help? And where will you leave your glory?
Read all of Isaiah 10Isaiah 10:1 word by word
ה֥וֹי הַחֹֽקְקִ֖ים חִקְקֵי־אָ֑וֶן וּֽמְכַתְּבִ֥ים עָמָ֖ל כִּתֵּֽבוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Isaiah 10:1
- Isaiah 3:11Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, For the reward of his hands shall be given him.
- Isaiah 5:8Woe to those who join house to house; They add field to field, Till there is no place Where they may dwell alone in the midst of the land!
- Jeremiah 22:13“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness And his chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor’s service without wages And gives him nothing for his work,
- Habakkuk 2:6“Will not all these take up a proverb against him, And a taunting riddle against him, and say, ‘Woe to him who increases What is not his—how long? And to him who loads himself with many pledges’?
- Matthew 11:21“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
- Matthew 23:13“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.
- Matthew 26:24The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”
- Luke 11:42“But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.
- Jude 1:11Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.
- 1 Kings 21:13And two men, scoundrels, came in and sat before him; and the scoundrels witnessed against him, against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, “Naboth has blasphemed God and the king!” Then they took him outside the city and stoned him with stones, so that he died.
- Esther 3:10So the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews.
- Psalms 58:2No, in heart you work wickedness; You weigh out the violence of your hands in the earth.
- Psalms 94:20Shall the throne of iniquity, which devises evil by law, Have fellowship with You?
- Daniel 6:8Now, O king, establish the decree and sign the writing, so that it cannot be changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which does not alter.”
- Micah 3:1And I said: “Hear now, O heads of Jacob, And you rulers of the house of Israel: Is it not for you to know justice?
- Micah 6:16For the statutes of Omri are kept; All the works of Ahab’s house are done; And you walk in their counsels, That I may make you a desolation, And your inhabitants a hissing. Therefore you shall bear the reproach of My people.”
Commentaries on Isaiah 10:1
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1Wo unto them that decree unrighteous decrees - To those who frame statutes that are oppressive and iniquitous. The prophet here refers, doubtless, to the rulers and judges of the land of Judea. A similar description he had before given; Isaiah 1:10, Isaiah 1:23, And that write - Hebrew, And to the writers who write violence.‘ The word translated “grievousness,” עמל ‛âmâl denotes properly “wearisome labor, trouble, oppression, injustice.” Here, it…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1Woes against proud oppressors. (Is. 10:1-4) The Assyrian but an instrument in the hand of God for the punishment of his people. (Is. 10:5-19) The deliverance from him. (Is. 10:20-34) Verses 1-4 These verses are to be joined with the foregoing chapter. Woe to the superior powers that devise and decree unrighteous decrees! And woe to the inferior officers that draw them up, and enter them on record! But what will sinners do? Whither will they flee?Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1Woe: This introduces a threat of divine judgment.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-41. them that decree--namely, unrighteous judges. write grievousness, &c.--not the scribes, but the magistrates who caused unjust decisions (literally, "injustice" or "grievousness") to be recorded by them (Is 65:6) [Maurer], (Is 1:10, 23).Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 10:1
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 10
- 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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries