Tree of Life Version
Isaiah 55:2
2Why do you spend money for what is not bread? Your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance.
Isaiah 55:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.
- New International Version (NIV)Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
Context of Isaiah 55:2
1“Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the water, and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost! Why do you spend money for what is not bread? Your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance. 3Incline your ear and come to Me. Listen, so that your soul may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, the trustworthy loyalty to David. 4Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples.
Read all of Isaiah 55Isaiah 55:2 word by word
לָ֤מָּה תִשְׁקְלוּ־כֶ֙סֶף֙ בְּֽלוֹא־לֶ֔חֶם וִיגִיעֲכֶ֖ם בְּל֣וֹא לְשָׂבְעָ֑ה שִׁמְע֨וּ שָׁמ֤וֹעַ אֵלַי֙ וְאִכְלוּ־ט֔וֹב וְתִתְעַנַּ֥ג בַּדֶּ֖שֶׁן נַפְשְׁכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Wherefore do ye spendשָׁקַלshâqal · to weighH8254
- moneyכֶּ֫סֶףkeseph · silver: moneyH3701
- not breadלֶ֫חֶםlechem · food: breadH3899
- and your labourיְגִיעַyegîya‛ · toilH3018
- satisfiethשׇׂבְעָהώob‛âh · satietyH7654
- notלֹאlô' lô' lôh · notH3808
- hearkenשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
- unto me, and eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- goodטוֹבţôb · goodH2896
- and let your soulנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: appetiteH5315
- delightעָנֹג‛ânag · to delightH6026
- itself in fatnessדֶּ֫שֶׁןdeshen · ashesH1880
Cross-references for Isaiah 55:2
- Isaiah 44:20He is feeding on ashes. A deceived heart has led him astray, so he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, “Isn’t what is in my right hand a fraud?”
- Jeremiah 2:13“My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me —the spring of living water— and they dug their own cisterns— cracked cisterns that hold no water.
- Hosea 8:7“For they sow wind, and reap a whirlwind. There is no mature grain— the sprout yields no meal. Should it produce anything, strangers would swallow it up.
- Hosea 12:1“Ephraim surrounded Me with lies and the house of Israel with deceit.” Though Judah roams restlessly with God, yet he is faithful with holy things.
- Habakkuk 2:13Behold, is it not from Adonai-Tzva’ot that peoples toil to fuel a fire, and nations exhaust themselves for emptiness?
- Matthew 15:9And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”
- Luke 15:15So he went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs.
- Romans 9:31But Israel, who pursued a Torah of righteousness, did not reach the Torah.
- Romans 10:2For I testify about them that they have zeal for God—but not based on knowledge.
- Philippians 3:4though I myself might have confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he might depend on the flesh, I far more—
- Hebrews 13:9Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace—not by foods that have not benefited those occupied by them.
- Isaiah 46:6They lavish gold from a purse and weigh out silver on the scales. They hire a goldsmith so he makes a god. They bow down. Yes, they worship it.
- Isaiah 51:1“Listen to Me, you who pursue justice, you who seek Adonai. Look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug.
- Exodus 15:26He said, “If you diligently listen to the voice of Adonai your God, do what is right in His eyes, pay attention to His mitzvot, and keep all His decrees, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians. For I am Adonai who heals you.”
- Deuteronomy 11:13“Now if you listen obediently to My mitzvot that I am commanding you today—to love Adonai your God and to serve Him with all your heart and soul—
- Psalms 34:11Young lions may lack, and go hungry, but those who seek Adonai want for no good thing.
Commentaries on Isaiah 55:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2Wherefore do ye spend - Why should ye be so zealously attached to a doctrine from which your souls derive neither comfort nor nourishment?Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good: Responding positively to God satisfies one’s spiritual, social, and physical being (see 1:19; 58:13–14; Proverbs 4:10).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. not bread--(Ha 2:13). "Bread of deceit" (Pr 20:17). Contrast this with the "bread of life" (Joh 6:32, 35; also Lu 14:16-20). satisfieth not--(Ec 1:8; 4:8). hearken ... and eat--When two imperatives are joined, the second expresses the consequence of obeying the command in the first (Ge 42:18). By hearkening ye shall eat. So in Is 55:1, "buy and eat." By buying, and so making it your own, ye shall eat, that is, experimentally enjoy it (Joh 6:53)…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 55:2
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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