Isaiah 58
58
Ritual and Ceremony Is Not Enough
1“Shout it loud and clear!
Don’t hold back!
Let your voice be like a trumpet blast!
Declare to my people their rebellion
and to Jacob’s tribes their sin!
2Yes, daily they seem to seek me,
pretending that they delight to know my ways,
as though they were a nation that does what is right
and had not rejected the law of their God.
They ask me to show them the right way,
acting as though they are eager to be close to me.
3They say, ‘Why is it that when we fasted,
you did not see it?
We starved ourselves, and you didn’t seem to notice.’
“Because on the day you fasted
you were seeking only your own desires,
and you continue to exploit your workers. # 58:3 See Lev. 16:29. It was clear that their fasting was an attempt to appear spiritual and manipulate God.
4During your fasts, you quarrel and fight with others
and strike them with an angry fist.
When you fast like that, your voice will not be heard on high.
5Do you think I’m impressed with that kind of fast?
Is it just a day to starve your bodies,
make others think you’re humble, # 58:5 Or “to bow your heads like [bent-over] reeds.”
and lie down in sackcloth and ashes?
Do you call that a fast?
Do you think I, Yahweh, will be pleased with that?” # 58:5 Or “that is a day acceptable to Yahweh?”
Worship God in Truth
6“This is the kind of fast that I desire:
Remove the heavy chains of oppression!
Stop exploiting your workers! # 58:6 Or “Loose the ropes of the yoke.”
Set free the crushed and mistreated!
Break off every yoke of bondage!
7Share your food with the hungry!
Provide for the homeless
and bring them into your home!
Clothe the naked!
Don’t turn your back on your own flesh and blood!
8Then my favor will bathe you in sunlight
until you are like the dawn bursting through a dark night. # 58:8 Showing justice will bring the light of a new day. This sunrise pictures God’s restored favor and blessing coming upon the people.
And then suddenly your healing # 58:8 Or “health” or “restoration.” This would include the body, soul, and spirit. will manifest. # 58:8 Or “sprout speedily” or “grow.”
You will see your righteousness march out before you,
and the glory of Yahweh will protect you from all harm! # 58:8 Or “will be your rear guard”; that is, God’s glory covers us from our past and protects us today and forever, with glory going before us and following after us as well.
9Then Yahweh will answer you when you pray.
When you cry out for help, he will say,
‘I am here.’
“If you banish every form of oppression, the scornful accusations, # 58:9 Or “extending the finger.”
and vicious slander,
10and if you offer yourselves in compassion # 58:10 Jesus offered himself for us, so we should offer ourselves in compassion for others. See Matt. 10:8; Acts 20:33–35; Gal. 1:4; Eph. 5:2, 25; 1 Tim. 2:6; Titus 2:14. for the hungry
and relieve those in misery, # 58:10 The five qualifications of last-days ministry are found in vv. 9–10: (1) Commit to banish every form of oppression in our lives, churches, and society. (2) Remove scornful accusation (criticism) of others and their ministries. (3) Forbid to spread malicious slander. (4) Have compassion for the poor and disenfranchised. (5) Comfort those enduring suffering and tragedy. Then God promises (vv. 10–12) that multiple blessings will come: (1) Our spiritual light (influence) will increase in our communities. (2) Discouragement and gloom will disappear from our lives. (3) God will give us specific guidance and counsel to know what to do and where to go. (4) He will fill us with renewing grace, even when we are surrounded by difficult situations. (5) Our spiritual lives will flourish like a lush garden with fruit and beauty. (6) We will not cease to be an ever-flowing source of blessing to others. (7) We will be given God’s grace to rebuild lives and institutions in our cities, churches, and nations. (8) We will take up the legacy of our spiritual fathers and build on their foundations. (9) We will have a testimony of healing cities. (10) We will restore well-being to our communities.
then your dawning light will rise in the darkness
and your gloom will turn into noonday splendor! # 58:10 Or “double light.”
11Yahweh will always guide you where to go and what to do.
He will fill you with refreshment
even when you are in a dry, difficult place.
He will continually restore strength to you,
so you will flourish like a well-watered garden
and like an ever-flowing, trustworthy spring of blessing.
12Your people will rebuild long-deserted ruins,
building anew on foundations laid long before you. # 58:12 Or “on foundations of many generations.”
You will be known as Repairers of the Cities # 58:12 Or “repairers of the gap.”
and Restorers of Communities. # 58:12 Or “restorers of paths that lead you home.” This is the Elijah ministry of restoration. See Neh. 1–4; Acts 3:21.
13“If you stop pursuing your own desires on my holy day,
and refrain from disregarding the Sabbath,
if you call the Sabbath a delightful pleasure
and Yahweh’s holy day honorable,
if you honor it properly by not chasing your own desires,
serving your own interests, and speaking empty words,
14then you will find the joyous bliss
that comes from serving Yahweh.
And I will cause you to prosper
and be carried triumphantly over the high places of the land. # 58:14 That is, God will raise you up and cause you to prosper greatly. See Deut. 32:13; Eph. 1:3; 2:6.
You will enjoy the heritage of Jacob, your ancestor.”
Certainly the mouth of Yahweh has spoken it!
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Isaiah 58: TPT
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Learn More About The Passion TranslationIsaiah 58
58
True Fasts and Sabbaths
1“Cry aloud, do not hold back!
Raise your voice like a ram’s horn.
Declare to My people their transgression
and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2For day after day they seek Me
and delight to know My ways,
like a nation that does what is right
and does not forsake the justice of their God.
They ask Me for righteous judgments;
they delight in the nearness of God.”
3“Why have we fasted,
and You have not seen?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and You have not noticed?”
“Behold, on the day of your fast, you do as you please,
and you oppress all your workers.
4You fast with contention and strife
to strike viciously with your fist.
You cannot fast as you do today
and have your voice be heard on high.
5Is this the fast I have chosen:
a day for a man to deny himself,
to bow his head like a reed,
and to spread out sackcloth and ashes?
Will you call this a fast
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
6Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen:
to break the chains of wickedness,
to untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and tear off every yoke?
7Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry,
to bring the poor and homeless into your home,
to clothe the naked when you see him,
and not to turn away
from your own flesh and blood?
8Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will come quickly.
Your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
9Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry out, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you remove the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger and malicious talk,
10and if you give yourself to the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted soul,
then your light will go forth in the darkness,
and your night will be like noonday.
11The Lord will always guide you;
He will satisfy you in a sun-scorched land
and strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
12Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins;
you will restore the age-old foundations;
you will be called Repairer of the Breach,
Restorer of the Streets of Dwelling.
13If you turn your foot from breaking the Sabbath,
from doing as you please on My holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delight,
and the Lord’s holy day honorable,
if you honor it by not going your own way
or seeking your own pleasure or speaking idle words,
14then you will delight yourself in the Lord,
and I will make you ride on the heights of the land
and feed you with the heritage of your father Jacob.”
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
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The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible, BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain.