The Meaning of Isaiah 59:1 Explained

Isaiah 59:1

KJV: Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:

YLT: Lo, the hand of Jehovah Hath not been shortened from saving, Nor heavy his ear from hearing.

Darby: Behold, Jehovah's hand is not shortened that it cannot save, neither his ear heavy that it cannot hear;

ASV: Behold, Jehovah's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Behold,  the LORD'S  hand  is not shortened,  that it cannot save;  neither his ear  heavy,  that it cannot hear: 

What does Isaiah 59:1 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The people were complaining that God was not answering their prayers (cf. Isaiah 58:1-3). Isaiah assured them that His silence was not due to His inability to help them (a shortened hand) or to His disinterest in them (an insensitive ear).

Context Summary

Isaiah 59:1-15 - Iniquities Separate From God
Israel's sins, Isaiah 59:1-8. Much of our suffering in life results from our sins, which cut off God's health and help. Let us not blame Providence, but set ourselves to discover the cause of controversy. When the law courts-the fountains of justice-are demoralized, the community is in a hopeless condition, Isaiah 59:3-4. Instead of stamping out evil in the egg, the sinful heart hatches it out, and it yields the poison of vipers, Isaiah 59:5. Ah, the hapless state of the ungodly! Their feet, and their thoughts, and their paths, are fatal to the peace of others and to their own. The way of peace can be entered only at the Cross, and maintained only by constant watchfulness. See Luke 1:79.
Israel's confession, Isaiah 59:9-15. Here the stricken people pour out their complaint before God, confessing, first, the bitterness of their sufferings and then the blackness of their sins. The roar of the hungry bear for food and the dove's mourning for her mate, Isaiah 59:11, are apt descriptions of the complaint of the penitent soul. It is a good sign when a man cannot lift up his eyes to heaven and beats upon his breast, Luke 18:13. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 59

1  Calamities are not due to lack of saving power in God, but to their own sins
16  Salvation is only of God
20  The covenant of the Redeemer

What do the individual words in Isaiah 59:1 mean?

Behold not is shortened hand of Yahweh that it cannot save nor heavy His ear that it cannot hear
הֵ֛ן לֹֽא־ קָצְרָ֥ה יַד־ יְהוָ֖ה מֵֽהוֹשִׁ֑יעַ וְלֹא־ כָבְדָ֥ה אָזְנ֖וֹ מִשְּׁמֽוֹעַ

הֵ֛ן  Behold 
Parse: Interjection
Root: הֵן  
Sense: behold, lo, though hypothetical part.
קָצְרָ֥ה  is  shortened 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: קָצוּר 
Sense: to be short, be impatient, be vexed, be grieved.
יַד־  hand 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
יְהוָ֖ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
מֵֽהוֹשִׁ֑יעַ  that  it  cannot  save 
Parse: Preposition-m, Verb, Hifil, Infinitive construct
Root: יָשַׁע 
Sense: to save, be saved, be delivered.
וְלֹא־  nor 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
כָבְדָ֥ה  heavy 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: כָּבֵד  
Sense: to be heavy, be weighty, be grievous, be hard, be rich, be honourable, be glorious, be burdensome, be honoured.
אָזְנ֖וֹ  His  ear 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אֹזֶן  
Sense: ear, as part of the body.
מִשְּׁמֽוֹעַ  that  it  cannot  hear 
Parse: Preposition-m, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: שָׁמַע 
Sense: to hear, listen to, obey.