The Meaning of Isaiah 9:17 Explained

Isaiah 9:17

KJV: Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows: for every one is an hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

YLT: Therefore, over its young men the Lord rejoiceth not, And its orphans, and its widows He pitieth not, For every one is profane, and an evil doer, And every mouth is speaking folly. With all this not turned back hath His anger, And still His hand is stretched out.

Darby: Therefore the Lord will not rejoice in their young men, neither will he have mercy on their fatherless and on their widows; for every one is a hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.

ASV: Therefore the Lord will not rejoice over their young men, neither will he have compassion on their fatherless and widows; for every one is profane and an evil-doer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Therefore the Lord  shall have no joy  in their young men,  neither shall have mercy  on their fatherless  and widows:  for every one [is] an hypocrite  and an evildoer,  and every mouth  speaketh  folly.  For all this his anger  is not turned away,  but his hand  [is] stretched out still. 

What does Isaiah 9:17 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Therefore the Lord would not give the young men success in battle, nor would He take care of the defenseless at home. The people"s corruption had descended to disregarding God, doing evil, and saying right is wrong and wrong is right. Consequently judgment would proceed.
"What is the wrath of God? His wrath is his active, resolute opposition to all evil. His delight is spontaneous and intrinsic to his being, but his wrath is provoked by the defiance of his creatures. His love will never make peace with our evil. What we must understand is that God"s wrath is perfect, no less perfect than "the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience" ( Romans 2:4). His wrath is not moody vindictiveness; it is the solemn determination of a doctor cutting away the cancer that"s killing his patient. And for God, the anger is personal, not detached and clinical. This Doctor hates the cancer, because he loves the carriers of the disease and he will rid the universe of all their afflictions. He has already scheduled "the day of wrath when God"s righteous judgment will be revealed" ( Romans 2:5)." [1]

Context Summary

Isaiah 9:8-17 - False Leadership Brings Ruin
The grievous sins of the Chosen People are again enumerated. They defied God, Isaiah 8:9-10. They refused to repent; they were blind and deaf and profane, Isaiah 8:13. Their religious and political leaders led them astray, Isaiah 8:16. What could they expect but the letting loose of the judgments of the Almighty!
Isaiah's protests were disregarded, and 2 Kings 15:1-38 tells the sequel. It seems very terrible. But what would the forest-glades become if there were not a perfect machinery for the instant removal of all traces of disease, decay, and death! What is true in the physical is true also in the moral sphere. When a nation has ceased to help, and has commenced to impede the progress of humanity, it must be put out of the way. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 9

1  What joy shall be in the midst of afflictions, by the birth and kingdom of Christ
8  The judgments upon Israel for their pride
13  For their hypocrisy
18  And for their unrepentance

What do the individual words in Isaiah 9:17 mean?

In therefore their young men no will have joy Yahweh and on their fatherless widows nor have mercy for everyone [is] a hypocrite and an evildoer and every mouth speaks folly For all this not is turned away His anger but still His hand [is] stretched out
עַל־ כֵּ֨ן בַּחוּרָ֜יו לֹֽא־ יִשְׂמַ֣ח ׀ אֲדֹנָ֗י וְאֶת־ יְתֹמָ֤יו אַלְמְנֹתָיו֙ לֹ֣א יְרַחֵ֔ם כִּ֤י כֻלּוֹ֙ חָנֵ֣ף וּמֵרַ֔ע וְכָל־ פֶּ֖ה דֹּבֵ֣ר נְבָלָ֑ה בְּכָל־ זֹאת֙ לֹא־ שָׁ֣ב אַפּ֔וֹ וְע֖וֹד יָד֥וֹ נְטוּיָֽה

בַּחוּרָ֜יו  their  young  men 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: בָּחוּר 
Sense: youth, young man.
לֹֽא־  no 
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
יִשְׂמַ֣ח ׀  will  have  joy 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שָׂמַח  
Sense: to rejoice, be glad.
אֲדֹנָ֗י  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֲדֹנָי  
Sense: my lord, lord.
יְתֹמָ֤יו  on  their  fatherless 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: יָתֹום  
Sense: an orphan, fatherless.
אַלְמְנֹתָיו֙  widows 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אַלְמָנָה  
Sense: widow.
לֹ֣א  nor 
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
יְרַחֵ֔ם  have  mercy 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: רָחַם  
Sense: to love, love deeply, have mercy, be compassionate, have tender affection, have compassion.
כֻלּוֹ֙  everyone  [is] 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
חָנֵ֣ף  a  hypocrite 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: חָנֵף 
Sense: hypocritical, godless, profane, hypocrite, irreligious.
וּמֵרַ֔ע  and  an  evildoer 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Participle, masculine singular
Root: מֵרֵעַ 
Sense: to be bad, be evil.
וְכָל־  and  every 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
פֶּ֖ה  mouth 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: פֶּה  
Sense: mouth.
דֹּבֵ֣ר  speaks 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: דָּבַר 
Sense: to speak, declare, converse, command, promise, warn, threaten, sing.
נְבָלָ֑ה  folly 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: נְבָלָה  
Sense: senselessness, folly.
בְּכָל־  For  all 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
זֹאת֙  this 
Parse: Pronoun, feminine singular
Root: זׄאת  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, such.
שָׁ֣ב  is  turned  away 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שׁוּב  
Sense: to return, turn back.
אַפּ֔וֹ  His  anger 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אַף 
Sense: nostril, nose, face.
וְע֖וֹד  but  still 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: עֹוד  
Sense: a going round, continuance adv.
יָד֥וֹ  His  hand 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
נְטוּיָֽה  [is]  stretched  out 
Parse: Verb, Qal, QalPassParticiple, feminine singular
Root: נָטָה 
Sense: to stretch out, extend, spread out, pitch, turn, pervert, incline, bend, bow.