Isaiah 57:9 kjv
And thou wentest to the king with ointment, and didst increase thy perfumes, and didst send thy messengers far off, and didst debase thyself even unto hell.
Isaiah 57:9 nkjv
You went to the king with ointment, And increased your perfumes; You sent your messengers far off, And even descended to Sheol.
Isaiah 57:9 niv
You went to Molek with olive oil and increased your perfumes. You sent your ambassadors far away; you descended to the very realm of the dead!
Isaiah 57:9 esv
You journeyed to the king with oil and multiplied your perfumes; you sent your envoys far off, and sent down even to Sheol.
Isaiah 57:9 nlt
You have gone to Molech
with olive oil and many perfumes,
sending your agents far and wide,
even to the world of the dead.
Isaiah 57 9 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Isaiah 1:11 | "What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?" | Rebuke of empty sacrifices |
| Isaiah 29:13 | "This people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me" | Hypocritical worship |
| Jeremiah 7:4 | "Do not trust in deceptive words, saying, 'This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord'" | False security in location |
| Micah 6:6-7 | "With what shall I come before the Lord...?" | God desires justice over ritual |
| Matthew 6:1-6 | Jesus teaches about prayer and giving with sincerity, not for public recognition. | Sincerity in religious acts |
| Romans 10:2-3 | "For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to the righteousness of God." | Zeal without true understanding |
| Hosea 5:11 | "Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment, because he willingly walked after the commandment of the king of Assyria." | Succumbing to foreign influence |
| Amos 5:25-27 | "Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness for forty years, O house of Israel, and did you carryensão? "Suffer" | God never received sacrifices in wilderness |
| 1 Samuel 15:22 | "To obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams." | Obedience valued above ritual |
| Psalms 51:16-17 | "For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not have pleasure in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise." | True worship involves brokenness |
| Ezekiel 20:32-33 | God will judge Israel for their idolatry and seeking the gods of the nations. | Judgment for idolatry |
| John 4:24 | "God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth." | True worship in spirit |
| Isaiah 6:9-10 | God's hardening of Israel's heart to prevent their turning. | Spiritual blindness |
| Isaiah 30:1-3 | Israel seeking help from Egypt instead of God. | Trust in earthly powers |
| Isaiah 59:1-2 | "Surely the Lord's hand is not so short that it cannot save, nor his ear so dull that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God" | Iniquity as a barrier |
| Jeremiah 3:13 | God calling Israel back, emphasizing unfaithfulness. | Israel's unfaithfulness |
| Luke 11:42 | Jesus rebuking the Pharisees for tithes but neglecting justice and love for God. | Neglecting the weightier matters |
| Hebrews 10:4 | "For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins." | Limited efficacy of animal sacrifices |
| 1 Corinthians 10:14 | "Flee from idolatry." | Warning against idolatry |
| 2 Kings 17:7-23 | The history of Israel's sin leading to their exile. | Historical context of disobedience |
Isaiah 57 verses
Isaiah 57 9 Meaning
This verse describes the intense spiritual degradation and futile attempts at seeking divine favor by Israel, characterized by their outward rituals performed in various sacred places, which were ultimately meaningless due to their ingrained sinfulness and spiritual corruption. It highlights the deceptive nature of their worship and the rejection they faced from God because of their unfaithfulness.
Isaiah 57 9 Context
Isaiah 57:9 presents a critical assessment of Israel’s spiritual state. The preceding verses detail the nation’s unfaithfulness, apostasy, and pursuit of idolatrous practices. Chapter 57 begins with the death of the righteous (v. 1-2) and then pivots to condemn the sins of the people, including their whoring and adultery with foreign gods and nations (v. 3-5). They have strayed far from God, engaging in superficial worship at pagan altars and under trees, while their hearts are filled with worldly desires and corrupt alliances. This verse serves as a pointed accusation of their gross hypocrisy and the vanity of their religious pursuits. The prophet is addressing the people of Judah during a period when they were prone to adopting the practices of surrounding pagan nations, despite their covenant relationship with Yahweh.
Isaiah 57 9 Word Analysis
- "Thou": Refers to Israel as a collective entity or individual unfaithful Israelites.
- "anointest": (Hebrew: tashechi) – literally means "you make strong" or "you adorn." Here it signifies preparing oneself, beautifying oneself, or consecrating oneself. This highlights the outward preparation for their sinful spiritual practices.
- "thee": Pronoun referring to the entity addressed.
- "with": Indicates the means or manner.
- "oil": Often symbolic of consecration, blessing, or kingship. In this context, it represents their use of external means and alliances for spiritual purposes.
- "and": Connects phrases.
- "thy": Possessive pronoun.
- "perfumes": (Hebrew: besamim) – sweet spices or fragrant ointments. Implies making oneself attractive or offering enticing things, reminiscent of sensual and forbidden allurements.
- "sendest": (Hebrew: teshallahi) – meaning to send, dispatch, or lengthen. Implies sending emissaries or offering gifts.
- "thy": Possessive.
- "messengers": (Hebrew: malakayikh) – those sent, agents, or ambassadors. Refers to the priests, prophets, or even their physical journeys to foreign lands and their religious rites.
- "unto": Indicates destination.
- "them": Refers to the foreign gods or powers they are seeking.
- "far": Indicates distance.
- "off": Implies a great distance.
- "and": Connects.
- "art": State of being.
- "more": Comparative.
- "base": (Hebrew: baash) – This word carries a strong connotation of being rotten, fetid, stinking, or despised. It speaks to the morally degraded state. It can also imply bringing low or humbling.
- "in": Locational.
- "thy": Possessive.
- "visiting": (Hebrew: paniyk) – can mean to visit, to look upon, or to favor. It suggests their seeking favor or divine attention.
- "thy": Possessive.
- "journeys": (Hebrew: massa'ayik) – journeys, burdens, or acts of lifting up. Implies the undertakings and expenses involved in their pursuit of these illicit spiritual connections.
Words-Group by Words-Group Analysis:
- "anointest thyself with oil, and finest thy perfumes": This phrase paints a picture of self-beautification and preparation for illicit intimacy or worship. It’s a metaphor for outwardly making oneself appealing, not to God in truth, but to the idolatrous systems they were embracing. It speaks of outward ritualism detached from inward devotion.
- "sendest thy messengers unto them afar off": This describes the active pursuit of forbidden alliances, whether religious or political, with distant nations and their gods. They dispatched envoys and performed rituals, essentially extending their corrupt spiritual reach.
- "and hast more base in thy visiting thy journeys": This is the core indictment. Their actions of "visiting" other gods and their "journeys" for these purposes have made them not more esteemed, but utterly "base" or degraded in God’s eyes. The deeper they delved into these apostate practices, the more they corrupted themselves and lowered their spiritual standing before the Lord. Their religious endeavors, when misdirected, lead to further degradation.
Isaiah 57 9 Bonus Section
The imagery of "anointing" and "perfumes" connects to sensual allurements found in pagan worship. Many ancient Near Eastern cults incorporated sensuality and ritual prostitution, which Isaiah uses here to highlight Israel's defilement. The phrase "sendest thy messengers unto them afar off" also reflects Israel's pattern of seeking political alliances with foreign powers (like Egypt or Assyria) rather than relying on God’s protection, often intertwining these political entanglements with spiritual syncretism. The intensification of their "baseness" through these very attempts underscores the truth that compromise with sin and false worship leads to a deeper fall.
Isaiah 57 9 Commentary
This verse powerfully condemns the spiritual prostitution of ancient Israel. Their efforts to seek favor, symbolized by anointing and perfumes, were directed towards false deities and human alliances rather than God. The sending of messengers and the undertaking of "journeys" to these foreign entities signifies active participation in idolatry and worldly security. Crucially, these actions did not elevate them but rather "made them more base," indicating a deepening of corruption and a greater estrangement from divine favor. This serves as a timeless warning that misplaced devotion and seeking wisdom or strength from sources other than God leads to spiritual and moral decay, rather than blessing. True worship and seeking divine presence must be rooted in sincerity of heart and a commitment to God’s ways, not in superficial rituals or ungodly alliances.