Isaiah 64 5

Isaiah 64:5 kjv

Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved.

Isaiah 64:5 nkjv

You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness, Who remembers You in Your ways. You are indeed angry, for we have sinned? In these ways we continue; And we need to be saved.

Isaiah 64:5 niv

You come to the help of those who gladly do right, who remember your ways. But when we continued to sin against them, you were angry. How then can we be saved?

Isaiah 64:5 esv

You meet him who joyfully works righteousness, those who remember you in your ways. Behold, you were angry, and we sinned; in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved?

Isaiah 64:5 nlt

You welcome those who gladly do good,
who follow godly ways.
But you have been very angry with us,
for we are not godly.
We are constant sinners;
how can people like us be saved?

Isaiah 64 verses

Isaiah 64 5 meaning

Isaiah 64:5 opens by acknowledging God's favor and engagement with those who genuinely delight in and practice righteousness, those who consciously align their lives with His established paths. It then pivots to a stark contrast, declaring the profound reality of God's righteous anger due to the nation's persistent and deep-seated sinfulness. The verse concludes with a rhetorical question, a desperate and poignant cry from a people who have long dwelt in disobedience, questioning whether salvation is even possible for them in their current state, given the duration and depth of their transgressions and God's just wrath.

Isaiah 64 5 Context

Isaiah chapter 64 is a powerful communal prayer of lament and confession, placed within a section of Isaiah (chapters 56-66) that deals with the restoration of Zion after the exile and addresses the lingering unrighteousness among the returning community. The people acknowledge their corporate sin and the severe consequences it has brought, prompting God to seemingly withdraw His presence (Is 64:1-3). They yearn for a renewal of His manifest power, reminiscing about His past wondrous acts. Verse 5 sharply articulates the people's dire condition and their understanding of the fundamental disconnect between God's nature and their current reality. It immediately follows the affirmation of God's unmatched work for those who wait for Him (Is 64:4), creating a profound contrast between what God does for the righteous and what He experiences with the sinful. Historically, this prayer reflects the deep spiritual struggle of the post-exilic community grappling with unfulfilled expectations and their own moral failures, prompting a desperate plea for divine intervention and salvation.

Isaiah 64 5 Word analysis

• You meet (תִּפְגַּע, tifga’): From the root פּגַע (paga’), meaning to encounter, strike, fall upon, or even intercede. Here, it signifies God actively engaging with or favorably encountering someone. It suggests more than a passive meeting; it implies intentional divine interaction and favor.
• him who joyfully (אֶת-שָׂשׂ, et-sas): שָׂשׂ (sas) means to rejoice or be glad. It denotes a deep, inner delight or pleasure. God doesn't just meet someone who performs rituals, but one whose heart genuinely delights in righteousness. This joy isn't superficial; it stems from a love for what is right.
• works righteousness (עֹשֵׂה צֶדֶק, oseh tzedek): עֹשֵׂה (oseh) means "doer" or "worker," emphasizing active engagement. צֶדֶק (tzedek) signifies righteousness, justice, conformity to God's standards. This phrase refers to someone whose life is characterized by practicing justice and ethical conduct according to God’s law. It's not just a thought or desire, but an active pursuit and performance.
• who remembers you (זֹכְרִים אֹתְךָ, zokh'rim ot'kha): זֹכְרִים (zokh'rim) means "those who remember." Remembering God here is not mere recollection but active obedience, loyalty, and recognition of His sovereignty and commands. It implies living consistently in awareness of His character and will.
• in your ways (בִּדְרָכֶיךָ, bidrakheikha): דְרָכֶיךָ (drakheikha) means "Your ways" or "Your paths." These are God’s established commandments, moral standards, and methods of interaction with humanity. Remembering God in His ways means internalizing and walking according to His revealed will.
• Behold, you were angry (הֵן אַתָּה קָצַפְתָּ, hen attah qatsafta): הֵן (hen) is an emphatic particle, often translated as "indeed" or "behold," highlighting the stark shift in focus. קָצַפְתָּ (qatsafta) means "you were enraged" or "you expressed indignation." This signifies God’s just and intense displeasure, an appropriate divine response to persistent sin, not an irrational outburst.
• and we sinned (וַנֶּחֱטָא, vanneḥeṭa'): נֶחֱטָא (neḥeṭa') from the root חָטָא (ḥaṭa’), "to sin," meaning to miss the mark, deviate from the right path, or incur guilt. The "we" highlights corporate responsibility and collective confession of failure to meet God's standards.
• in them (בָּהֶם, bahem): Refers either to the sins themselves or, more broadly, to "Your ways" (God's ways/commandments) as the context where they continued to fall short. Most commentators interpret it as "in these sins" or "in our sinful ways."
• continued long (עוֹלָם, olam): עוֹלָם (olam) denotes eternity, perpetuity, or a very long duration. Here, it implies an extended, unbroken period of sin. This underscores the deep-seated and persistent nature of their disobedience, not a momentary lapse. It highlights the weight of their generational and habitual transgressions.
• and shall we be saved? (וְנִוָּשֵׁעַ, vennivvašea'): נִוָּשֵׁעַ (nivvašea') from the root יָשַׁע (yasha’), meaning "to be saved, delivered, or rescued." This is a rhetorical question, born out of despair and an acute awareness of their own unworthiness. It reflects doubt about their eligibility for salvation given the depth of their sin, yet simultaneously functions as a plea, a desperate longing for God's redemptive power despite all odds.

Words-group by words-group analysis

• You meet him who joyfully works righteousness, who remembers you in your ways: This segment paints a picture of the ideal covenant partner and God's interaction with them. It describes a profound spiritual state where genuine delight (joyfully) drives consistent action (works righteousness) and is sustained by a continuous, obedient remembrance of God's laws (in your ways). This ideal serves as a stark foil to the later confession of the community’s own failure. God's intervention is always for the good of those whose hearts align with His character.
• Behold, you were angry, and we sinned; in them we have continued long: This segment is the corporate confession. "Behold" marks a solemn transition to the lament. It admits to God's just and appropriate wrath ("you were angry") and the undeniable reality of their culpability ("we sinned"). The phrase "in them we have continued long" highlights the prolonged, persistent, and entrenched nature of their transgression, suggesting that sin was not an occasional stumble but a deeply rooted pattern within the community.
• and shall we be saved?: This is the culmination of the lament and confession, expressed as a deeply emotional, rhetorical question. It's a cry that acknowledges the severity of their condition ("continued long in sin") and God's righteous anger, yet implicitly yearns for divine intervention. It signifies a point of desperation where human effort is clearly insufficient, and only a miraculous act of God's grace can bring salvation.

Isaiah 64 5 Bonus section

The rhetorical question "and shall we be saved?" highlights a crucial theological dilemma often faced in scripture: how can a holy God forgive deeply entrenched sin? This very tension ultimately points to the necessity of a new covenant and a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26-27), foreshadowing the redemptive work of Christ. It underscores that human effort or a continuation of past patterns would not lead to salvation, but only further condemnation. The lament's focus on God's "ways" and "anger" reflects a covenantal understanding: blessings for obedience, curses for disobedience (Deut 28). Their extended sin essentially placed them under these covenant curses, prompting the despair of salvation without extraordinary divine intervention. The question itself, while rhetorical and despairing, simultaneously serves as a profound prayer of desperate hope, turning their seemingly hopeless condition back to the only one who can save.

Isaiah 64 5 Commentary

Isaiah 64:5 serves as a crucial theological pivot in the collective prayer of lament, starkly contrasting divine character with human fallenness. It presents God as actively seeking out and delighting in those whose righteousness stems from genuine joy and active obedience to His commands. This positive divine disposition towards the righteous, however, is immediately followed by a profound confession: God's righteous anger is a direct response to Israel's corporate and enduring sin. The "long continuance" in their transgression underscores the deep-seated nature of their disobedience, challenging any simple expectation of forgiveness. The concluding rhetorical question, "and shall we be saved?", is a raw expression of despair, recognizing the seemingly insurmountable chasm between their pervasive sin and God's holy standard. It’s a desperate appeal to God's mercy despite their own unworthiness, implying that if salvation is to come, it must be purely by divine grace, beyond any human merit. This verse powerfully captures the tension between God’s just character, humanity’s ingrained sinfulness, and the profound need for a divine savior.