Isaiah 59: The Redeemer Comes to Zion
Sin separates the people from God, and when no one intercedes, God's own arm brings salvation and a Redeemer comes to Zion.
Isaiah 59 (WEB)
1 Behold, Yahweh’s hand is not shortened, that it can’t save; neither his ear heavy, that it can’t hear:
2 but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue mutters wickedness.
4 No one sues in righteousness, and no one pleads in truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and give birth to iniquity.
5 They hatch adders’ eggs, and weave the spider’s web: he who eats of their eggs dies; and that which is crushed breaks out into a viper.
6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; desolation and destruction are in their paths.
8 The way of peace they don’t know; and there is no justice in their goings: they have made them crooked paths; whoever goes therein does not know peace.
9 Therefore is justice far from us, neither does righteousness overtake us: we look for light, but, behold, darkness; for brightness, but we walk in obscurity.
10 We grope for the wall like the blind; yes, we grope as those who have no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the twilight; among those who are lusty we are as dead men.
11 We roar all like bears, and moan bitterly like doves: we look for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and as for our iniquities, we know them:
13 transgressing and denying Yahweh, and turning away from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 Justice is turned away backward, and righteousness stands afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and uprightness can’t enter.
15 Yes, truth is lacking; and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. Yahweh saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice.
16 He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his own arm brought salvation to him; and his righteousness, it upheld him.
17 He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head; and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a mantle.
18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense.
19 So shall they fear Yahweh’s name from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come as a rushing stream, which the breath of Yahweh drives.
20 “A Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from disobedience in Jacob,” says Yahweh.
21 “As for me, this is my covenant with them,” says Yahweh. “My Spirit who is on you, and my words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, nor out of the mouth of your seed, nor out of the mouth of your seed’s seed,” says Yahweh, “from henceforth and forever.”
Isaiah 59 (KJV)
1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.
4 None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
5 They hatch cockatrice’ eggs, and weave the spider’s web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.
6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.
8 The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.
9 Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness.
10 We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.
11 We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them;
13 In transgressing and lying against the Lord, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.
15 Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.
16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.
17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.
18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence.
19 So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him.
20 And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord.
21 As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed’s seed, saith the Lord, from henceforth and for ever.
Isaiah 59 (ASV)
1 Behold, Jehovah’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
2 but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, so that he will not hear.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue muttereth wickedness.
4 None sueth in righteousness, and none pleadeth in truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
5 They hatch adders’ eggs, and weave the spider’s web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth; and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.
6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; desolation and destruction are in their paths.
8 The way of peace they know not; and there is no justice in their goings: they have made them crooked paths; whosoever goeth therein doth not know peace.
9 Therefore is justice far from us, neither doth righteousness overtake us: we look for light, but, behold, darkness; for brightness, but we walk in obscurity.
10 We grope for the wall like the blind; yea, we grope as they that have no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the twilight; among them that are lusty we are as dead men.
11 We roar all like bears, and moan sore like doves: we look for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.
12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and as for our iniquities, we know them:
13 transgressing and denying Jehovah, and turning away from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14 And justice is turned away backward, and righteousness standeth afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and uprightness cannot enter.
15 Yea, truth is lacking; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey. And Jehovah saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice.
16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his own arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it upheld him.
17 And he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a mantle.
18 According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense.
19 So shall they fear the name of Jehovah from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come as a rushing stream, which the breath of Jehovah driveth.
20 And a Redeemer will come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith Jehovah.
21 And as for me, this is my covenant with them, saith Jehovah: my Spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed’s seed, saith Jehovah, from henceforth and for ever.
Summary
The chapter answers a haunting question: if God is mighty to save, why does deliverance seem distant? The problem is not God's weakness—his hand is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. The problem is sin. The people's iniquities have separated them from God, hiding his face so he will not hear. Isaiah catalogs their corruption: hands defiled with blood, lips speaking lies, feet running to evil, paths without justice or peace. They grope like the blind at noonday, roaring like bears and moaning like doves, looking for justice and salvation that never come. They confess their transgressions honestly, acknowledging that truth has fallen in the street and justice stands far off. Then the scene shifts to God himself. He sees that there is no justice and is appalled that there is no one to intercede; so his own arm brings salvation, and his righteousness sustains him. He puts on righteousness as a breastplate, salvation as a helmet, and zeal as a cloak, coming to repay his adversaries and to make his name feared from west to east. The climax is the promise of a Redeemer who will come to Zion, to those who turn from rebellion in Jacob, accompanied by God's covenant—his Spirit and his words placed in their mouths forever.
Voices
- Yahweh (the LORD) — The God whose hand is not too short to save, who is appalled that no one intercedes, and who clothes himself in righteousness to bring salvation by his own arm.
- The people — Those whose sins have separated them from God, who grope in darkness for justice, and who honestly confess their transgressions.
- The Redeemer — The promised deliverer who comes to Zion and to those who turn from rebellion, bringing God's everlasting covenant of Spirit and word.
Key Verse
Isaiah 59:2 (WEB)
but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
Lessons Learned
- It is our sin, not God's inability, that separates us from him.
- Sin distorts every part of life, leaving us groping in darkness for a justice we cannot produce.
- When no human intercessor can be found, God himself steps in to bring salvation.
- God's answer to our hopeless condition is a Redeemer who comes to those who turn to him.
- Sin, not divine weakness, blocks our fellowship with God. “Your iniquities have separated between you and your God” (Isaiah 59:2, WEB); his hand is not shortened.
- Sin leaves us in darkness and without justice. “We grope for the wall like the blind… we stumble at noonday as in the twilight” (Isaiah 59:10, WEB).
- God acts when no one else can. Seeing no intercessor, “his own arm brought salvation to him; and his righteousness, it upheld him” (Isaiah 59:16, WEB).
- A Redeemer comes to those who turn. “A Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from disobedience in Jacob” (Isaiah 59:20, WEB).
- How does the chapter answer the question of why God seems far off (verses 1-2)?
- What does Isaiah's catalog of sins in verses 3-8 reveal about how sin affects every part of life?
- Why is it significant that God “wondered that there was no intercessor” (59:16)?
- What hope is held out in the promise of a Redeemer coming to Zion (59:20-21)?
- Where do you sense a barrier between you and God, and how does this chapter point you toward the One who removes it?
- The chapter insists the fault lies not with God but with us: his hand is not too short and his ear is not dull, but “your iniquities have separated between you and your God” (59:1-2). Our sense of distance from God traces back to sin, not to any failure in him.
- Sin corrupts hands, fingers, lips, tongue, feet, thoughts, and paths (59:3-8); it touches everything. The honest confession that follows shows a people aware they cannot fix themselves—setting the stage for God's intervention.
- It shows the complete absence of anyone able to bridge the gap between God and humanity (59:16). Because no human intercessor exists, God himself acts—pointing forward to Christ, the one Mediator who would come to do what no one else could.
- The Redeemer comes to Zion and to those who turn from rebellion, bringing an everlasting covenant of Spirit and word (59:20-21). After the darkness of sin, God's final word is rescue—a deliverer the New Testament identifies with Jesus.
- This is a personal-application question. Invite members to name honestly any barrier of sin, and to look to the Redeemer who comes to those who turn. As leader, balance honest conviction with the hope of verse 20.