“Washyourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil,
Parallel translations
- WEB Wash yourselves, make yourself clean. Put away the evil of your doings from before my eyes. Cease to do evil.
- KJV Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;
- BSB Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil!
- NASB ¶“Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil,
- NLT Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God commands them to wash, become clean, and cease doing evil. He calls for genuine repentance, not mere ritual.
Overview
The 'washing' is moral and spiritual, a turning away from wickedness God can see. This is the negative side of repentance, abandoning evil, paired with the positive call that follows. Ultimately such cleansing is granted by God Himself through the Spirit and the work of Christ (Ezekiel 36:25-26).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 21
- 1 Pet 3:11Let him turn away from evil, and do good. Let him seek peace, and pursue it.
- Isa 55:6–7Seek Yahweh while he may be found. Call on him while he is near.
- 1 Pet 2:1Putting away therefore all wickedness, all deceit, hypocrisies, envies, and all evil speaking,
- 2 Cor 7:1Having therefore these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
- Jas 4:8Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
- Ezek 18:30–31“Therefore I will judge you, house of Israel, everyone according to his ways,” says the Lord Yahweh. “Return, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin.
- Titus 2:11–14For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men,
- Rev 7:14I told him, “My lord, you know.” He said to me, “These are those who came out of the great tribulation. They washed their robes, and made them white in the Lamb’s blood.
- Matt 3:8Therefore produce fruit worthy of repentance!
- Zech 1:3–4Therefore tell them: Yahweh of Armies says: ‘Return to me,’ says Yahweh of Armies, ‘and I will return to you,’ says Yahweh of Armies.
- Jer 4:14Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, that you may be saved. How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you?
- Isa 52:11Depart, depart, go out from there; touch no unclean thing! Go out from among her! Cleanse yourselves, you who carry Yahweh’s vessels.
- Amos 5:15Hate evil, love good, and establish justice in the courts. It may be that Yahweh, the God of Armies, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.”
- Eph 4:22–29that you put away, as concerning your former way of life, the old man, that grows corrupt after the lusts of deceit;
- Acts 22:16Now why do you wait? Arise, be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’
- Ps 26:6I will wash my hands in innocence, so I will go about your altar, Yahweh;
- Rom 12:9Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor that which is evil. Cling to that which is good.
- Jer 25:5saying, “Return now everyone from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that Yahweh has given to you and to your fathers, from of old and even forever more.
- Ps 37:27Depart from evil, and do good. Live securely forever.
- Job 11:13–14“If you set your heart aright, stretch out your hands toward him.
- Ps 34:14Depart from evil, and do good. seek peace, and pursue it.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Isaiah sees him most clearly: the virgin's son Immanuel, the child on David's throne, the shoot from Jesse, the light to the nations, and above all the Suffering Servant pierced for our transgressions (ch. 53).
How Isaiah 1:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.