Isaiah 59:14

"transgressing and denying the LORD, and turning away from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood."

Key Reflection

Isaiah 59:14 paints a vivid picture of societal corruption and spiritual rebellion, highlighting how people have strayed from their relationship with God. By "transgressing and denying the LORD," the text describes a willful rejection of divine commandments. The phrase "turning away from following our God" underscores this deliberate departure from faith. Furthermore, the verse reveals the extent to which falsehood has infiltrated society, as people speak words of oppression and revolt, even conceiving and expressing such lies from their hearts. This cultural context reveals a deep moral decay where truth is abandoned in favor of deceit, reflecting a broader spiritual crisis that Isaiah aims to address through his prophecy.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

And judgment is turned away backward -The word ‘judgment’ is not used, as inIsaiah 59:9, to denote the divine interposition to avenge and deliver them, but it is used in the sense of justice, or lust decisions between man and man. The verse contains a further confession of the evil of their course of life; and, among other things, they acknowledged that they had been unjust in their legal decisions. They had been influenced by partiality and by bribes; they had condemned the innocent, they had acquitted the guilty. Judgment had thus been lumped back by their sins when it seemed to be approaching and entering the city. And justice standeth afar off -This is a beautiful figure.

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