From the sole of the foot even to the head there is no soundness in it: wounds, welts, and open sores. They haven’t been closed, neither bandaged, neither soothed with oil.
Parallel translations
- KJV From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.
- BSB From the sole of your foot to the top of your head, there is no soundness—only wounds and welts and festering sores neither cleansed nor bandaged nor soothed with oil.
- NKJV From the sole of the foot even to the head, There is no soundness in it, But wounds and bruises and putrefying sores; They have not been closed or bound up, Or soothed with ointment.
- NASB From the sole of the foot even to the head There is nothing healthy in it, Only bruises, slashes, and raw wounds; Not pressed out nor bandaged, Nor softened with oil.
- NLT You are battered from head to foot— covered with bruises, welts, and infected wounds— without any soothing ointments or bandages.
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
The nation is portrayed as a body covered with untreated wounds from head to foot. It dramatizes how comprehensive and unhealed their corruption is.
Overview
The vivid medical imagery extends verse 5: there is no soundness anywhere, and the wounds have received no care. This pictures a people whose condition is desperate and beyond self-repair. The image of unbound wounds foreshadows the Servant by whose stripes God's people are healed (Isaiah 53:5).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Jer 6:14They have healed also the hurt of my people superficially, saying, ‘Peace, peace!’ when there is no peace.
- Matt 9:12When Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do.
- Jer 33:6‘Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them; and I will reveal to them abundance of peace and truth.
- Ps 38:3–5There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation, neither is there any health in my bones because of my sin.
- Jer 8:21–22For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt: I mourn; dismay has taken hold on me.
- Luke 10:34came to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. He set him on his own animal, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
- Job 5:18For he wounds, and binds up. He injures, and his hands make whole.
- Mal 4:2But to you who fear my name shall the sun of righteousness arise with healing in its wings. You will go out, and leap like calves of the stall.
- Ps 77:2In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. My hand was stretched out in the night, and didn’t get tired. My soul refused to be comforted.
- Nah 3:19There is no healing your wound, for your injury is fatal. All who hear the report of you clap their hands over you; for who hasn’t felt your endless cruelty?
- 2 Chr 6:28–29“If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, locust or caterpillar; if their enemies besiege them in the land of their cities; whatever plague or whatever sickness there is;
- Job 2:7–8So Satan went out from the presence of Yahweh, and struck Job with painful sores from the sole of his foot to his head.
- Luke 16:20–21A certain beggar, named Lazarus, was laid at his gate, full of sores,
- Hos 5:12–13Therefore I am to Ephraim like a moth, and to the house of Judah like rottenness.
- Jer 30:12For Yahweh says, “Your hurt is incurable, and your wound grievous.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 1:6 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.