Isaiah 59:10-21
New King James Version
10 (A)We grope for the wall like the blind,
And we grope as if we had no eyes;
We stumble at noonday as at twilight;
We are as dead men in desolate places.
11 We all growl like bears,
And (B)moan sadly like doves;
We look for justice, but there is none;
For salvation, but it is far from us.
12 For our (C)transgressions are multiplied before You,
And our sins testify against us;
For our transgressions are with us,
And as for our iniquities, we know them:
13 In transgressing and lying against the Lord,
And departing from our God,
Speaking oppression and revolt,
Conceiving and uttering (D)from the heart words of falsehood.
14 Justice is turned back,
And righteousness stands afar off;
For truth is fallen in the street,
And equity cannot enter.
15 So truth fails,
And he who departs from evil makes himself a (E)prey.
The Redeemer of Zion
Then the Lord saw it, and [a]it displeased Him
That there was no justice.
16 (F)He saw that there was no man,
And (G)wondered that there was no intercessor;
(H)Therefore His own arm brought salvation for Him;
And His own righteousness, it sustained Him.
17 (I)For He put on righteousness as a breastplate,
And a helmet of salvation on His head;
He put on the garments of vengeance for clothing,
And was clad with zeal as a cloak.
18 (J)According to their deeds, accordingly He will repay,
Fury to His adversaries,
Recompense to His enemies;
The coastlands He will fully repay.
19 (K)So shall they fear
The name of the Lord from the west,
And His glory from the rising of the sun;
When the enemy comes in (L)like a flood,
The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.
20 “The(M) Redeemer will come to Zion,
And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,”
Says the Lord.
21 “As(N) for Me,” says the Lord, “this is My covenant with them: My Spirit who is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your descendants, nor from the mouth of your descendants’ descendants,” says the Lord, “from this time and forevermore.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Isaiah 59:15 Lit. it was evil in His eyes
Isaiah 59:10-21
English Standard Version
10 (A)We grope for the wall like the blind;
we grope like those who have no eyes;
we stumble at noon as in the twilight,
(B)among those in full vigor we are like dead men.
11 We all growl like bears;
(C)we moan and moan like doves;
(D)we hope for justice, but there is none;
for salvation, but it is far from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before you,
and our sins testify against us;
for our transgressions are with us,
and we know our iniquities:
13 transgressing, and denying the Lord,
and turning back from following our God,
(E)speaking oppression and revolt,
conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.
Judgment and Redemption
14 (F)Justice is turned back,
and righteousness stands far away;
for truth has stumbled in the public squares,
and uprightness cannot enter.
15 Truth is lacking,
and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.
The Lord saw it, and it displeased him[a]
that there was no justice.
16 (G)He saw that there was no man,
and wondered that there was no one to intercede;
then his own arm brought him salvation,
and his righteousness upheld him.
17 (H)He put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and a helmet of salvation on his head;
he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,
and wrapped himself in (I)zeal as a cloak.
18 (J)According to their deeds, so will he repay,
wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies;
(K)to the coastlands he will render repayment.
19 (L)So they shall fear the name of the Lord from the west,
and his glory from the rising of the sun;
(M)for he will come like a rushing stream,[b]
which the wind of the Lord drives.
20 (N)“And (O)a Redeemer will come to Zion,
to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the Lord.
21 “And as for me, (P)this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My Spirit that is upon you, (Q)and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children's offspring,” says the Lord, “from this time forth and forevermore.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Isaiah 59:15 Hebrew and it was evil in his eyes
- Isaiah 59:19 Hebrew a narrow river
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
