New Living Translation
Isaiah 65:4
4At night they go out among the graves, worshiping the dead. They eat the flesh of pigs and make stews with other forbidden foods.
Isaiah 65:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Which remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine’s flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;
- New International Version (NIV)who sit among the graves and spend their nights keeping secret vigil; who eat the flesh of pigs, and whose pots hold broth of impure meat;
- English Standard Version (ESV)who sit in tombs, and spend the night in secret places; who eat pig's flesh, and broth of tainted meat is in their vessels;
- New King James Version (NKJV)Who sit among the graves, And spend the night in the tombs; Who eat swine’s flesh, And the broth of abominable things is in their vessels;
Context of Isaiah 65:4
2All day long I opened my arms to a rebellious people. But they follow their own evil paths and their own crooked schemes. 3All day long they insult me to my face by worshiping idols in their sacred gardens. They burn incense on pagan altars. At night they go out among the graves, worshiping the dead. They eat the flesh of pigs and make stews with other forbidden foods. 5Yet they say to each other, ‘Don’t come too close or you will defile me! I am holier than you!’ These people are a stench in my nostrils, an acrid smell that never goes away. 6“Look, my decree is written out in front of me: I will not stand silent; I will repay them in full! Yes, I will repay them—
Read all of Isaiah 65Isaiah 65:4 word by word
הַיֹּֽשְׁבִים֙ בַּקְּבָרִ֔ים וּבַנְּצוּרִ֖ים יָלִ֑ינוּ הָאֹֽכְלִים֙ בְּשַׂ֣ר הַחֲזִ֔יר וּמְרַ֥ק פִּגֻּלִ֖ים כְּלֵיהֶֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Which remainיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- among the gravesקֶ֫בֶרqeber qibrâh · graveH6913
- and lodgeלוּןlûn lîyn · to lodgeH3885
- in the monumentsנָצַרnâtsar · to watchH5341
- which eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- swine’sחֲזִירchăzîyr · swineH2386
- fleshבָּשָׂרbâώâr · fleshH1320
- and brothפָּרָקpârâq · brothH6564
- and brothמָרָקmârâq · brothH4839
- of abominableפִּגּוּלpiggûl piggûl · refuseH6292
- their vesselsכְּלִיkelîy · article/utensilH3627
Cross-references for Isaiah 65:4
- Numbers 19:11“All those who touch a dead human body will be ceremonially unclean for seven days.
- Deuteronomy 18:11or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead.
- Matthew 8:28When Jesus arrived on the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gadarenes, two men who were possessed by demons met him. They came out of the tombs and were so violent that no one could go through that area.
- Mark 5:2When Jesus climbed out of the boat, a man possessed by an evil spirit came out from the tombs to meet him.
- Luke 8:27As Jesus was climbing out of the boat, a man who was possessed by demons came out to meet him. For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in the tombs outside the town.
- Isaiah 66:3But those who choose their own ways— delighting in their detestable sins— will not have their offerings accepted. When such people sacrifice a bull, it is no more acceptable than a human sacrifice. When they sacrifice a lamb, it’s as though they had sacrificed a dog! When they bring an offering of grain, they might as well offer the blood of a pig. When they burn frankincense, it’s as if they had blessed an idol.
- Leviticus 11:7The pig has evenly split hooves but does not chew the cud, so it is unclean.
- Deuteronomy 14:8And you may not eat the pig. It has split hooves but does not chew the cud, so it is ceremonially unclean for you. You may not eat the meat of these animals or even touch their carcasses.
- Exodus 23:19“As you harvest your crops, bring the very best of the first harvest to the house of the Lord your God. “You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.
- Exodus 34:26“As you harvest your crops, bring the very best of the first harvest to the house of the Lord your God. “You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.”
- Deuteronomy 14:3“You must not eat any detestable animals that are ceremonially unclean.
- Ezekiel 4:14Then I said, “O Sovereign Lord, must I be defiled by using human dung? For I have never been defiled before. From the time I was a child until now I have never eaten any animal that died of sickness or was killed by other animals. I have never eaten any meat forbidden by the law.”
Commentaries on Isaiah 65:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Which remain among the graves - "For the purpose of evoking the dead. They lodged in desert places that demons might appear to them; for demons do appear in such places, to those who do believe in them." - Kimchi. In the monuments "In the caverns" - בנצורים bannetsurim, a word of doubtful signification. An ancient MS. has בצורים batstsurim, another בצרים batstsurim, "in the rocks;" and Le Clec thinks the Septuagint had it so in their copy. They render it…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Which remain among the graves - That is, evidently for purposes of necromancy and divination. They do it to appear to hold converse with the dead, and to receive communications from them. The idea in necromancy was, that departed spirits must be acquainted with future events, or at least with the secret things of the invisible world where they dwelt, and that certain persons, by various arts, could become intimate with them, or familiar‘ with them, and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4spending nights in secret places: God had banned the practice of necromancy (consulting dead spirits; see Isaiah 8:19–22; 47:9; Deuteronomy 18:9–11). the meat of pigs and polluted broth from their bowls: See Isaiah 66:3–4; Leviticus 11:7; Deuteronomy 14:3, 8.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. remain among ... graves--namely, for purposes of necromancy, as if to hold converse with the dead (Is 8:19, 20; compare Mr 5:3); or, for the sake of purifications, usually performed at night among sepulchres, to appease the manes [Maurer]. monuments--Hebrew, "pass the night in hidden recesses," either the idol's inmost shrines ("consecrated precincts") [Horsley], where they used to sleep, in order to have divine communications in dreams [Jerome]; or…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 65:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 65
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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