Isaiah 1:17

Updated Bible Version

learn to do well; seek justice, correct oppression, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

Parallel Translations

Legacy Standard Bible
Learn to do good;Seek justice,Reprove the ruthless,Execute justice for the orphan,Plead for the widow.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Learne to do well, applie your selues to equitie, deliuer the oppressed, helpe the fatherlesse to his ryght, let the widdowes complaynt come before you:

Darby Translation
learn to do well: seek judgment, gladden the oppressed, do justice to the fatherless, plead for the widow.

New King James Version
Learn to do good;Seek justice,Rebuke the oppressor; [fn] Defend the fatherless,Plead for the widow.

Literal Translation
Learn to do good, seek justice, straighten the oppressor, judge the orphan, strive for the widow.

Easy-to-Read Version
Learn to do good. Treat people fairly. Punish those who hurt others. Speak up for the widows and orphans. Argue their cases for them in court.

World English Bible
Learn to do well. Seek justice, Relieve the oppressed, Judge the fatherless, Plead for the widow."

King James Version (1611)
Learne to doe well, seeke iudgement, relieue the oppressed, iudge the fatherlesse, plead for the widow.

King James Version
Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Lerne to do right, applie youre selues to equyte, delyuer the oppressed, helpe the fatherlesse to his right, let the wydowes complaynte come before you.

Amplified Bible
Learn to do good. Seek justice, Rebuke the ruthless, Defend the fatherless, Plead for the [rights of the] widow [in court].

American Standard Version
learn to do well; seek justice, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

Bible in Basic English
Take pleasure in well-doing; let your ways be upright, keep down the cruel, give a right decision for the child who has no father, see to the cause of the widow.

Webster's Bible Translation
Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

New English Translation
Learn to do what is right! Promote justice! Give the oppressed reason to celebrate! Take up the cause of the orphan! Defend the rights of the widow!

Contemporary English Version
and learn to live right. See that justice is done. Defend widows and orphans and help those in need."

Complete Jewish Bible
learn to do good! Seek justice, relieve the oppressed, defend orphans, plead for the widow.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Learne to doe well: seeke iudgement, relieue the oppressed: iudge the fatherlesse and defend the widowe.

George Lamsa Translation
Learn to do good; seek justice, do good to the oppressed, plead for the fatherless, plead for the widows.

Hebrew Names Version
Learn to do well. Seek justice, Relieve the oppressed, Judge the fatherless, Plead for the widow."

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Learn to do well; seek justice, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

New Living Translation
Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.

New Life Bible
Learn to do good. Look for what is right and fair. Speak strong words to those who make it hard for people. Stand up for the rights of those who have no parents. Help the woman whose husband has died.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
learn to do well; diligently seek judgement, deliver him that is suffering wrong, plead for the orphan, and obtain justice for the widow.

English Revised Version
learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

Berean Standard Bible
Learn to do right, seek justice, correct the oppressor, defend the fatherless, plead for the widow."

New Revised Standard
learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Learn to do well - Seek justice, Correct the oppressor, - Vindicate the fatherless, Plead the cause of the widow,

Douay-Rheims Bible
Learn to do well: seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge for the fatherless, defend the widow.

Lexham English Bible
Learn to do good! Seek justice! Rescue the oppressed! Defend the orphan! Plead for the widow!

English Standard Version
learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.

New American Standard Bible
Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor, Obtain justice for the orphan, Plead for the widow's case.

New Century Version
Learn to do good. Seek justice. Punish those who hurt others. Help the orphans. Stand up for the rights of widows."

Good News Translation
and learn to do right. See that justice is done—help those who are oppressed, give orphans their rights, and defend widows."

Christian Standard Bible®
Learn to do what is good. Seek justice. Correct the oppressor. Defend the rights of the fatherless. Plead the widow's cause.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Seke ye doom, helpe ye hym that is oppressid, deme ye to the fadirles and modirles child, defende ye a widewe.

Revised Standard Version
learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.

Young's Literal Translation
Seek judgment, make happy the oppressed, Judge the fatherless, strive [for] the widow.

Contextual Overview

¹⁶ Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil; ¹⁷ learn to do well; seek justice, correct oppression, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. ¹⁸ Come now, and let us reason together, says Yahweh: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. ¹⁹ If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land: ²⁰ but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured with the sword; for the mouth of Yahweh has spoken it.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

seek: Isaiah 1:23, Psalms 82:3, Psalms 82:4, Proverbs 31:9, Jeremiah 22:3, Jeremiah 22:15, Jeremiah 22:16, Daniel 4:27, Micah 6:8, Zephaniah 2:3, Zechariah 7:9, Zechariah 7:10, Zechariah 8:16

relieve: or, righten

Reciprocal: Exodus 22:22 - General Leviticus 25:14 - General Deuteronomy 10:18 - doth Deuteronomy 16:19 - wrest Deuteronomy 25:1 - General Job 22:9 - widows Psalms 34:14 - Depart Psalms 37:27 - Depart Proverbs 29:14 - king Isaiah 11:4 - reprove Isaiah 16:3 - execute Jeremiah 21:12 - Execute Ezekiel 18:7 - hath not Ezekiel 18:8 - hath executed Ezekiel 18:31 - Cast Ezekiel 45:9 - remove Amos 4:1 - which oppress Amos 5:14 - Seek Matthew 3:8 - forth Matthew 7:12 - for Luke 3:13 - Exact Luke 18:3 - a widow Acts 6:1 - their Acts 16:30 - brought Romans 13:4 - he is 1 Timothy 5:10 - if she have relieved James 1:27 - To visit 1 Peter 3:11 - eschew 3 John 1:11 - follow

Cross-References

Genesis 9:13
I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.

Job 38:12
Have you commanded the morning since your days [began], [And] caused the sunrise to know its place;

Psalms 8:1
For the Chief Musician; set to the Gittith. A Psalm of David. O Yahweh, our Lord, How excellent is your name in all the earth, Who has set your glory on the heavens!

Psalms 8:3
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, The moon and the stars, which you have appointed;

Acts 13:47
For so has the Lord commanded us, [saying], "I have set you for a light of the Gentiles, That you should be for salvation to the uttermost part of the earth."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Learn to do well,.... Which men are naturally ignorant of; to do good they have no knowledge; nor can they that are accustomed to do evil learn to do well of themselves; but the Lord can teach them to profit, and of him they should ask wisdom, and desire, under the influence of his grace, to learn to maintain good works for necessary uses, and particularly to do acts of beneficence to all men, and especially to the household of faith; and also, the following ones,

seek judgment; seek to do justice between man and man in any cause depending, without respect of persons:

relieve the oppressed; the poor that are oppressed by their neighbours that are richer and mightier than they, right their wrongs, and deliver them out of the hands of their oppressors i:

judge the fatherless; do justice to them who have none to take care of them, and defend them:

plead for the widow; that is desolate, and has none to plead her cause.

i Misn. Sabbat, c. 9. sect. 3. T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 67. 1,

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Learn to do well - , To learn here is to become accustomed to, to practice it. To do well stands opposed to all kinds of evil. “Seek judgment.” The word “judgment” - משׁפט mishpâṭ - here means justice. The direction refers particularly to magistrates, and it is evident that the prophet had them particularly in his view in all this discourse. Execute justice between man and man with impartiality. The word “seek” - דרשׁוּ dı̂r^eshû - means to pursue, to search for, as an object to be gained; to regard, or care for it, as the main thing. Instead of seeking gain, and bribes, and public favor, they were to make it an object of intense interest to do justice.

Relieve - - אשׁרוּ 'ash^erû - literally, make straight, Or right (margin, righten). The root - אשׁר 'âshar - means to proceed, to walk forward in a direct line; and bears a relation to ישׁר yâshar, to be straight. Hence, it often means to be successful or prosperous - to go straight forward to success. In Piel, which is the form used here, it means to cause to go straight; and hence, applied to leaders, judges, and guides, to conduct those under their care in a straight path, anal not in the devices and crooked Ways of sin; Proverbs 23:19 :

Hear thou, my son, and he wise,

And guide אשׁר 'asher, “make straight”) thine heart in the way.

The oppressed - Him to whom injustice has been done in regard to his character, person, or property; compare the notes at Isaiah 58:6.

Judge the fatherless - Do justice to him - vindicate his cause. Take not advantage of his weak and helpless, condition - his ignorance and want of experience. This charge was particularly necessary on account of the facilities which the guardians of orphans have to defraud or oppress, without danger of detection or punishment. Orphans have no experience. Parents are their natural protectors; and therefore God especially charged on their guardians to befriend and do justice to them; Deuteronomy 24:17 : ‘Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, nor the fatherless, nor take the widow’s raiment to pledge.’

Plead for - Contend for her rights. Aid her by vindicating her cause. She is unable to defend herself; she is liable to oppression; and her rights may be taken away by the crafty and designing. It is remarkable that God so often insists on this in the Scriptures, and makes it no small part of religion; Deuteronomy 14:29; Deuteronomy 24:17; Exodus 22:22 : ‘Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child.’ The ancient views of piety on this subject are expressed in the language, and in the conduct of Job. Thus, impiety was said to consist in oppressing the fatherless and widow.

They drive away the donkey of the fatherless,

They take the widow’s ox for a pledge.

Job 24:3.

He evil-entreateth the barren that beareth not,

And doeth not good to the widow.

Job 24:21.

Job’s own conduct was an illustration of the elevated and pure views of ancient piety:

When the ear heard me, then it blessed me;

And when the eye saw me, it gave witness to me;

Because I delivered the poor that cried,

And the fatherless,

And him that had none to help him.

The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me;

And I caused the widow’s heart to leap for joy.

Job 29:11-13.

See also Jeremiah 7:6; Malachi 3:5; James 1:27. Hence, God is himself represented as the vindicator of the rights of the widow and orphan:

A father of the fatherless,

And a judge of the widows,

Is God in his holy habitation.

Psalms 68:5.

Leave thy fatherless children, I will preserve them alive;

And let thy widows trust in me.

Jeremiah 49:11.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Isaiah 1:17. Relieve the oppressed - "Amend that which is corrupted"] אשרו חמוץ asheru chamots. In rendering this obscure phrase I follow Bochart, (Hieroz. Part i., lib. ii., cap. 7.,) though I am not perfectly satisfied with this explication of it.