Isaiah 58:8-10

58:8 Then your light will shine like the sunrise;

your restoration will quickly arrive;

your godly behavior will go before you,

and the Lord’s splendor will be your rear guard.

58:9 Then you will call out, and the Lord will respond;

you will cry out, and he will reply, ‘Here I am.’

You must remove the burdensome yoke from among you

and stop pointing fingers and speaking sinfully.

58:10 You must actively help the hungry

and feed the oppressed.

Then your light will dispel the darkness,

and your darkness will be transformed into noonday.


tn Heb “will burst out like the dawn.”

sn Light here symbolizes God’s favor and restored blessing, as the immediately following context makes clear.

tn Heb “prosper”; KJV “spring forth speedily.”

tn Or “righteousness.” Their godly behavior will be on display for all to see.

sn The nation will experience God’s protective presence.

tn Heb “if you.” In the Hebrew text vv. 9b-10 are one long conditional sentence. The protasis (“if” clauses appear in vv. 9b-10a), with the apodosis (“then” clause) appearing in v. 10b.

tn Heb “if you.” See the note on “you must” in v. 9b.

tn Heb “If you furnish for the hungry [with] your being, and the appetite of the oppressed you satisfy.”

tn Heb “will rise in the darkness.”

tn Heb “and your darkness [will be] like noonday.”