Isaiah 59 3

Isaiah 59:3 kjv

For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.

Isaiah 59:3 nkjv

For your hands are defiled with blood, And your fingers with iniquity; Your lips have spoken lies, Your tongue has muttered perversity.

Isaiah 59:3 niv

For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken falsely, and your tongue mutters wicked things.

Isaiah 59:3 esv

For your hands are defiled with blood and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies; your tongue mutters wickedness.

Isaiah 59:3 nlt

Your hands are the hands of murderers,
and your fingers are filthy with sin.
Your lips are full of lies,
and your mouth spews corruption.

Isaiah 59 verses

Isaiah 59 3 Meaning

Your iniquities have separated you from your God. Your sins have caused Him to turn His face away from you, so He will not hear.

Isaiah 59 3 Context

Isaiah chapter 59 vividly describes the sinfulness of Israel and its consequences. The prophet portrays Israel's pervasive iniquity and its impact on their relationship with God. In verse 3, the emphasis is on how their wrongdoings create a barrier between them and the Lord, leading to His silence and refusal to hear their pleas. This passage follows verses detailing various sins like injustice, corruption, and bloodshed. The historical context is likely a time when Israel had strayed significantly from God's covenant, experiencing hardship or anticipating divine judgment due to their unfaithfulness. This verse serves as a direct consequence of the preceding enumeration of their sins.

Isaiah 59 3 Word Analysis

• “For” (Ki - כִּי): Introduces a reason or explanation for what has been stated or implied. It signals causality.

• “your iniquities” (avotaychem - עֲוֺנֹתֵיכֶם):

  • avot (עֲוֺנֹת) - Plural of avon (עָוֺן), meaning "iniquity," "guilt," "error," or "perversity." It implies a crookedness or twistedness in action, a deviation from the right path. It often refers to the moral wrong itself and its consequences.
  • -aychem (ـיכֶם) - Possessive suffix, "your" (plural). This emphasizes personal responsibility for these iniquities.
  • Significance: This refers to deliberate wrongdoing and moral corruption. It's not just accidental error but a state of being bent towards sin.

• “have made” (pa’alu - פָּעֲלוּ):

  • Verb pa’al (פָּעַל) - Means "to do," "to act," "to work," "to effect," or "to cause."
  • Perfect tense, 3rd person plural masculine. This denotes a completed action with a resulting state. Their iniquities have done the work of separating them.

• “a separation” (bain - בֵּין):

  • bain (בֵּין) - A preposition meaning "between," "among," or "separation."
  • Significance: This word highlights the creating of a gulf or chasm, emphasizing a distinct and impassable divide.

• “between you” (lacham - לָכֶם):

  • lachem (לָכֶם) - Preposition "to" or "for" plus the 2nd person plural masculine pronoun "you." Here, it is used idiomatically with bain to mean "between you."

• “and your God” (ve’loheychem - וֵאלֹהֵיכֶם):

  • ve’ (וְ) - Conjunction, "and."
  • elohey (אֱלֹהֵי) - Plural construct state of Eloah (אֱלֹהַּ), meaning "God." The plural often signifies majesty, intensity, or encompassing nature of God.
  • -chem (כֶם) - Possessive suffix, "your" (plural).
  • Significance: Refers to their covenant God, YHWH, the specific relationship established between them.

• “and your sins” (v’chattoteychem - וְחַטּוֹתֵיכֶם):

  • ve’ (וְ) - Conjunction, "and."
  • chattot (חַטּוֹת) - Plural of chattat (חַטָּאת), meaning "sin," "sin offering," or "error." This word focuses on missing the mark, the transgression itself.
  • -eychem (ـיכֶם) - Possessive suffix, "your" (plural).
  • Significance: Reinforces the idea of transgression and moral failure as the cause of the separation. It broadens the concept beyond mere iniquity to the act of sin itself.

• “He has hidden His face” (mistir panav - מִסְתֵּר פָּנָיו):

  • mistir (מִסְתֵּר) - Noun derived from the verb mastar (מַסְתֵּר), meaning "hiding place," or in this context, acting as an adverbial accusative or gerund, signifying the action of hiding or that which is hidden. Can also be read as a verb Hophal or Hiphil construction meaning "He has caused to be hidden."
  • panav (פָּנָיו) - "His face" (panim - פָּנִים, "face," plus the 3rd person masculine singular suffix v).
  • Significance: To hide one's face is a strong anthropomorphic expression for displeasure, rejection, or withdrawal of favor and protection. It implies no intention to see or acknowledge.

• “from you” (mim – מִכֶּם):

  • mi (מִ) - Preposition, "from."
  • kem (כֶּם) - 2nd person plural masculine pronoun "you."

• “so that He will not hear” (u’shema lo – וְשָׁמַע לֹא):

  • u’ (וְ) - Conjunction, "and" or "so." Here it indicates consequence.
  • shama (שָׁמַע) - Verb, "to hear."
  • lo (לֹא) - Negation, "not."
  • Significance: The divine refusal to listen to prayer, communication, or cries for help is the direct result of the hidden face, itself caused by iniquity and sin.

• Words-group analysis:

  • "your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God": This entire phrase powerfully links action (iniquities) to consequence (separation) and identifies the parties involved (you and your God). It's a covenantal concept – sin breaks the relationship.
  • "your sins have caused Him to hide His face from you, so that He will not hear": This shows a progression. Hiding the face is an active withdrawal of God's presence and attention, resulting in the practical absence of answered prayer. The emphasis is on God's deliberate response to sin.

Isaiah 59 3 Bonus Section

The Hebrew terms avon (עָוֺן) and chattat (חַטָּאת) are used together, highlighting different aspects of sin. Avon often carries a sense of bentness or perversion, the inner corruption and resultant guilt, while chattat is more about missing the mark, the specific transgression itself. This dual description emphasizes that it is both the state of internal deviation and the external acts of disobedience that erect the barrier.

The phrase "hidden His face" is a common idiom in the Old Testament to express divine displeasure or abandonment (Deut. 31:18; Psalm 27:9). It suggests a God who is not aloof by nature but actively chooses to withhold His presence due to the people's sin.

The New Testament fulfillment offers a critical perspective. While sin separates, Jesus Christ, the Suffering Servant prophesied in Isaiah, makes it possible for God not to hide His face. Through Christ's ultimate sacrifice, the veil in the temple was torn, symbolizing direct access to God for all who believe (Matt. 27:51). Therefore, for believers, sins have been dealt with at the cross, allowing prayers to be heard based on Christ's righteousness, not our own, though continued willful sin can still grieve the Spirit and hinder fellowship.

Isaiah 59 3 Commentary

Isaiah 59:3 states a fundamental truth about the consequences of sin. Sin is not a minor offense but a radical divider that severs the essential communion between humanity and a holy God. The prophet uses potent imagery to convey this alienation. Israel's accumulated wrongdoings—their "iniquities" and "sins"—create a tangible gulf between them and their God, described as a "separation." This is not merely a spatial distance but a rupture in the relationship itself.

Furthermore, this separation is actively manifested by God turning away. "He has hidden His face from you" signifies a withdrawal of favor, protection, and any acknowledgment of their pleas. The result is direct and severe: "so that He will not hear." This means prayers are not heard, cries go unanswered, and there is no communion or response from the divine presence.

This truth resonates throughout Scripture. From Adam and Eve hiding from God in the Garden after sinning (Gen. 3:8), to the psalmist recognizing that God turns away from those who persist in iniquity (Ps. 66:18), the principle remains constant. Jesus Himself spoke of the Father not hearing those who don't keep His commandments (John 9:31), although through His sacrifice, a new way of access is provided.

For believers, this verse serves as a solemn reminder of the constant threat sin poses to intimacy with God. It underscores the need for confession, repentance, and reliance on the atonement of Christ, who bridged the gap sin created, allowing the faithful to draw near with confidence (Heb. 10:19-22). Even after salvation, unconfessed sin can create distance and hinder our experience of God's presence and answered prayer, illustrating why a life of ongoing holiness is vital.