Isaiah 58:1-10

New American Standard Bible 1995

58 “^(A)Cry loudly, do not hold back;
Raise your voice like a trumpet,
And declare to My people their ^(B)transgression
And to the house of Jacob their sins.
² “Yet they ^(C)seek Me day by day and delight to know My ways,
As a nation that has done ^(D)righteousness
And ^(E)has not forsaken the ordinance of their God.
They ask Me for just decisions,
They delight ^(F)in the nearness of God.
³ ‘Why have we ^(G)fasted and You do not see?
Why have we humbled ourselves and You do not ^[a]notice?’
Behold, on the ^(H)day of your fast you find your desire,
And drive hard all your workers.
⁴ “Behold, you fast for contention and ^(I)strife and to strike with a wicked fist.
You do not fast like you do today to ^(J)make your voice heard on high.
⁵ “Is it a fast like this which I choose, a day for a man to humble himself?
Is it for bowing ^[b]one’s head like a reed
And for spreading out ^(K)sackcloth and ashes as a bed?
Will you call this a fast, even an ^(L)acceptable day to the Lord?
⁶ “Is this not the fast which I choose,
To ^(M)loosen the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the bands of the yoke,
And to ^(N)let the oppressed go free
And ^(O)break every yoke?
⁷ “Is it not to ^(P)divide your bread ^[c]with the hungry
And ^(Q)bring the homeless poor into the house;
When you see the ^(R)naked, to cover him;
And not to ^(S)hide yourself from your own flesh?
⁸ “Then your ^(T)light will break out like the dawn,
And your ^(U)recovery will speedily spring forth;
And your ^(V)righteousness will go before you;
The glory of the ^(W)Lord will be your rear guard.
⁹ “Then you will ^(X)call, and the Lord will answer;
You will cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you ^(Y)remove the yoke from your midst,
The ^[d](Z)pointing of the finger and ^(AA)speaking wickedness,
¹⁰ And if you ^[e](AB)give yourself to the hungry
And satisfy the ^[f]desire of the afflicted,
Then your ^(AC)light will rise in darkness
And your gloom will become like midday.