New King James Version
Isaiah 29:15
15Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord, And their works are in the dark; They say, “Who sees us?” and, “Who knows us?”
Isaiah 29:15 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?
- New International Version (NIV)Woe to those who go to great depths to hide their plans from the Lord, who do their work in darkness and think, “Who sees us? Who will know?”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Ah, you who hide deep from the Lord your counsel, whose deeds are in the dark, and who say, "Who sees us? Who knows us?"
- New Living Translation (NLT)What sorrow awaits those who try to hide their plans from the Lord, who do their evil deeds in the dark! “The Lord can’t see us,” they say. “He doesn’t know what’s going on!”
Context of Isaiah 29:15
13Therefore the Lord said: “Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men, 14Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvelous work Among this people, A marvelous work and a wonder; For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, And the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.” Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord, And their works are in the dark; They say, “Who sees us?” and, “Who knows us?” 16Surely you have things turned around! Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay; For shall the thing made say of him who made it, “He did not make me”? Or shall the thing formed say of him who formed it, “He has no understanding”? 17Is it not yet a very little while Till Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, And the fruitful field be esteemed as a forest?
Read all of Isaiah 29Isaiah 29:15 word by word
ה֛וֹי הַמַּעֲמִיקִ֥ים מֵֽיהוָ֖ה לַסְתִּ֣ר עֵצָ֑ה וְהָיָ֤ה בְמַחְשָׁךְ֙ מַֽעֲשֵׂיהֶ֔ם וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ מִ֥י רֹאֵ֖נוּ וּמִ֥י יוֹדְעֵֽנוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Woeהוֹיhôy · woe!H1945
- unto them that seek deepעָמֹק‛âmaq · be deepH6009
- to hideסָתַרsâthar · to hideH5641
- their counselעֵצָה‛êtsâh · counselH6098
- from the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- and their worksמַעֲשֶׂהma‛ăώeh · deedH4639
- are in the darkמַחְשָׁךְmachshâk · darknessH4285
- and they sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Who seethרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
- us? and who knowethיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
Cross-references for Isaiah 29:15
- Isaiah 5:18Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of vanity, And sin as if with a cart rope;
- Isaiah 28:15Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death, And with Sheol we are in agreement. When the overflowing scourge passes through, It will not come to us, For we have made lies our refuge, And under falsehood we have hidden ourselves.”
- Isaiah 30:1“Woe to the rebellious children,” says the Lord, “Who take counsel, but not of Me, And who devise plans, but not of My Spirit, That they may add sin to sin;
- Job 22:13And you say, ‘What does God know? Can He judge through the deep darkness?
- Psalms 10:11He has said in his heart, “God has forgotten; He hides His face; He will never see.”
- Psalms 64:5They encourage themselves in an evil matter; They talk of laying snares secretly; They say, “Who will see them?”
- Psalms 139:1O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
- Jeremiah 23:24Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?” says the Lord; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord.
- Ezekiel 8:12Then He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the room of his idols? For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us, the Lord has forsaken the land.’ ”
- Ezekiel 9:9Then He said to me, “The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great, and the land is full of bloodshed, and the city full of perversity; for they say, ‘The Lord has forsaken the land, and the Lord does not see!’
- Zephaniah 1:12“And it shall come to pass at that time That I will search Jerusalem with lamps, And punish the men Who are settled in complacency, Who say in their heart, ‘The Lord will not do good, Nor will He do evil.’
- Revelation 2:23I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works.
- Job 24:13“There are those who rebel against the light; They do not know its ways Nor abide in its paths.
- Job 34:22There is no darkness nor shadow of death Where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.
- Luke 12:1In the meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so that they trampled one another, He began to say to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
- John 3:19And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
Commentaries on Isaiah 29:15
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15Woe unto them that seek deep - That is, who attempt to conceal their “real” intentions under a plausible exterior, and correct outward deportment. This is most strikingly descriptive of the character of a hypocrite who seeks to conceal his plans and his purposes from the eyes of people and of God. His external conduct is fair; his observance of the duties of religion exemplary; his attendance on the means of grace and the worship of God regular; his…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-16Verses 9-16 The security of sinners in sinful ways, is cause for lamentation and wonder. The learned men, through prejudice, said that the Divine prophecies were obscure; and the poor urged their want of learning. The Bible is a sealed book to every man, learned or unlearned, till he begins to study it with a simple heart and a teachable spirit, that he may thence learn the truth and the will of God. To worship God, is to approach him. And if the heart be…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15Their plans might refer to the advice that royal counselors were giving Hezekiah, who at first attempted to free himself from Assyria by making alliances with Egypt (in 715 or 701 BC). The people secretly planned evil deeds, but God saw everything.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1515. seek deep to hide--rather, "That seek to hide deeply," &c. (compare Is 30:1, 2). The reference is to the secret plan which many of the Jewish nobles had of seeking Egyptian aid against Assyria, contrary to the advice of Isaiah. At the same time the hypocrite in general is described, who, under a plausible exterior, tries to hide his real character, not only from men, but even from God.Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 29:15
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 29
- 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