Isaiah 64 7

Isaiah 64:7 kjv

And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.

Isaiah 64:7 nkjv

And there is no one who calls on Your name, Who stirs himself up to take hold of You; For You have hidden Your face from us, And have consumed us because of our iniquities.

Isaiah 64:7 niv

No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and have given us over to our sins.

Isaiah 64:7 esv

There is no one who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have made us melt in the hand of our iniquities.

Isaiah 64:7 nlt

Yet no one calls on your name
or pleads with you for mercy.
Therefore, you have turned away from us
and turned us over to our sins.

Isaiah 64 verses

Isaiah 64 7 meaning

Isaiah 64:7 is a deep lament, a confession by the community acknowledging their spiritual apathy and its dire consequences. It declares that no one among them is actively calling upon God's name or rousing themselves to grasp hold of Him. This profound lack of spiritual initiative is presented as the reason why God has withdrawn His presence and blessing from them ("hid His face"), leading to their weakening and distress ("consumed us"), all of which is understood to be a direct result of their collective iniquities.

Isaiah 64 7 Context

Isaiah 64:7 is a pivotal verse within a larger communal prayer of lament, beginning in chapter 63, verse 7, and extending through the end of chapter 64. Following a powerful recollection of God's mighty acts of salvation in the past, the prophet, speaking for the disheartened people, transitions to a plea for divine intervention in their present dire circumstances.

This particular verse shifts the focus from an external cry for help to an internal confession of national sin and spiritual failure. The "we" represents the post-exilic community of Israel, who found themselves in a state of spiritual stagnation, still under judgment, facing desolation in their land and the ruin of their temple. Despite their lament for God's hiddenness, they honestly confront their own responsibility: their lack of active pursuit of God. This forms the basis of their suffering and the perceived withdrawal of God's presence, indicating a profound spiritual ailment rather than just external persecution.

Isaiah 64 7 Word analysis

• And there is none that calleth upon thy name:
  • None (אֵין - ein): Emphasizes a complete absence, a stark reality of spiritual desertion.
  • Calleth upon (קוֹרֵא - qorēʼ): From the root qara', meaning to call, to cry out, to proclaim. In this context, it implies more than mere utterance; it means to invoke, to appeal to, to rely deeply upon God's character and power as revealed in His name. It signifies a covenant relationship where one fully depends on God.
  • Thy name (בְשִׁמְךָ - bə-shimkā): The "name" of God in Hebrew thought embodies His entire character, attributes, and revealed nature. To call upon His name is to call upon who He is, His promises, His power, and His faithfulness.
• that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee:
  • Stirreth up himself (מִתְעוֹרֵר - mit`ōrēr): A reflexive form of ʿur, meaning to awaken, rouse, stir. The reflexive aspect highlights that this is an active, self-initiated effort. It suggests that the people are not merely sleeping but are refusing to awaken themselves spiritually. It conveys spiritual lethargy and unwillingness.
  • To take hold of (לַחֲזִיק - laḥazîq): From the root ḥazaq, meaning to be strong, seize, grasp, take hold firmly, strengthen. It describes a determined, persistent clinging or seizing. Spiritually, it implies an earnest, desperate pursuit of God's presence, intervention, and favor. It is not a passive waiting but an active, determined engagement with God.
• for thou hast hid thy face from us:
  • For (כִּי - kī): Introduces the reason or consequence. The preceding spiritual apathy is tied directly to God's action.
  • Hid (הִסְתַּרְתָּ - histartā): From the root sātar, meaning to hide, conceal. The Hiphil perfect form signifies a completed action, often with lasting results.
  • Thy face (פָּנִים - pānîm): Metaphor for God's presence, favor, attention, and blessing. To hide His face means to withdraw His favorable presence, protection, and responsiveness, often indicating divine judgment or abandonment.
• and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.
  • Consumed us (וַתְּמֹגְגֵנוּ - wāttəmoḡəḡênû): From the root māgaḡ, meaning to melt, waste away, dissolve. It conveys a sense of weakness, languishing, deterioration, or complete dissolution. It depicts the effect of divine judgment: not necessarily immediate annihilation, but a debilitating decline and spiritual, even physical, enfeeblement.
  • Because of (בַּעֲוֹנוֹתֵינוּ - ba`ăvōnôtênû): Introduces the ultimate cause. The beth prefix signifies "because of" or "on account of."
  • Our iniquities (עֲוֹנוֹתֵינוּ - `ăvōnôtênû): From the root `āvāh, meaning to bend, twist, to be perverse. Iniquity (`āwōn) denotes perversity, guilt, or the moral distortion that leads to sin. It includes the concept of punishment resulting from such wrongdoing. The plural emphasizes the multitude and collective nature of their sins.

Words-Group Analysis:

• "And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee": This entire phrase describes the deep spiritual torpor and disinterest of the people. It portrays a community lacking both external religious action (calling on the name) and internal spiritual drive (stirring up to take hold). This spiritual paralysis is a key component of their national crisis. It highlights the absence of a proactive seeking of God, which is a necessary response to God's covenant.
• "for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us": This links God's perceived withdrawal and the people's suffering directly to their own lack of spiritual vitality. It signifies divine judgment—not arbitrary, but a consequence of their relational breach. God's hiding of His face is directly proportional to their disengagement from Him, leading to their collective debilitation.
• "because of our iniquities": This concluding phrase serves as the confession of ultimate responsibility. The people fully acknowledge that their spiritual apathy, God's hiddenness, and their resultant "consumption" are all direct outworkings of their own accumulated, collective moral failures and perverse actions. It closes the loop, stating the underlying cause for the lamentable condition.

Isaiah 64 7 Bonus section

• The prayer in Isaiah 64 paradoxically begins with a plea for God to act and reveal Himself (Is 64:1-3) but then deeply introspects to find the source of the problem within themselves (Is 64:5-7). This reflects a profound shift from demanding God's action to confessing human responsibility.
• The absence of someone "stirring up himself" to take hold of God indicates not just individual failure but a corporate spiritual deadness, affecting the entire community's spiritual temperature and ability to relate to God.
• This verse, in its depiction of spiritual apathy and its consequences, highlights the indispensable role of the Holy Spirit in initiating and sustaining spiritual awakening. Without divine enablement, the people were incapable of rousing themselves effectively (cf. Phil 2:13).
• The phrase "consumed us" can be understood not only in terms of physical or national decline but also spiritual internal wasting away, losing vitality, joy, and hope, which are all symptoms of a life disconnected from God's presence.

Isaiah 64 7 Commentary

Isaiah 64:7 powerfully articulates a community's confession of their spiritual failure and its resulting divine judgment. It underscores a crucial theological principle: human spiritual initiative (or the lack thereof) directly impacts divine responsiveness. The people lament not just that God has hidden His face and consumed them, but critically, they admit why: because they failed to seek Him. There was no one who, through earnest prayer and dedicated pursuit, sought to maintain a firm grip on their covenant God. This spiritual sloth, born from accumulated "iniquities," created a chasm between God and His people, leading to His just withdrawal and their subsequent decline. It's a sobering recognition that the divine hiddenness is a consequence, not a cause, of their own spiritual malady, serving as a call to re-awaken themselves and earnestly seek God, recognizing that such seeking itself is often a gift of God's grace enabling them to do so. The verse challenges any notion that God’s apparent absence is unprovoked, laying the responsibility firmly at the feet of apathetic humanity.