New King James Version
Isaiah 11:4
4But 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.
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.
- English Standard Version (ESV)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.
- 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
2The 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 of the fear of the Lord. 3His delight is in the fear of the Lord, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears; 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. 5Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, And faithfulness the belt of His waist. 6“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling 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 with justice.
- 2 Samuel 8:15So David reigned over all Israel; and David administered judgment and justice to all his people.
- 2 Samuel 23:2“The Spirit of the Lord spoke by me, And His word was on my tongue.
- 1 Kings 10:8Happy are your men and happy are these your servants, who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom!
- Psalms 45:6Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.
- Psalms 72:1Give the king Your judgments, O God, And Your righteousness to the king’s Son.
- Psalms 82:2How long will you judge unjustly, And show partiality to the wicked? Selah
- Jeremiah 23:5“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
- Jeremiah 33:15‘In those days and at that time I will cause to grow up to David A Branch of righteousness; He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
- Matthew 11:5The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them.
- Revelation 19:11Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.
- Isaiah 1:17Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow.
- Proverbs 31:8Open your mouth for the speechless, In the cause of all who are appointed to die.
- Jeremiah 5:28They have grown fat, they are sleek; Yes, they surpass the deeds of the wicked; They do not plead the cause, The cause of the fatherless; Yet they prosper, And the right of the needy they do not defend.
- Isaiah 29:19The humble also shall increase their joy in the Lord, And the poor among men shall rejoice In the Holy One of Israel.
- Isaiah 61:1“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal 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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries