Limitless Word
But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.
Isaiah 11:4 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB but with righteousness he will judge the poor, and decide with equity for the humble of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; and with the breath of his lips he will kill the wicked.
  • BSB but with righteousness He will judge the poor, and with equity He will decide for the lowly of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and slay the wicked with the breath of His lips.
  • NKJV But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, And decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
  • NASB But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the humble of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
  • NLT He will give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited. The earth will shake at the force of his word, and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked.

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

With righteousness the Messiah defends the poor and humble and destroys the wicked by the word of his mouth. He brings justice the world cannot.

Overview

The Messiah champions the powerless and slays the wicked 'with the breath of his lips' — by his authoritative word rather than mere force. Paul applies this to Christ's final overthrow of the lawless one (2 Thess. 2:8), and Revelation pictures the sword from his mouth (Rev. 19:15). Christ's rule combines tender mercy for the lowly with decisive judgment on evil.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 37

  • 2 Th 2:8And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
  • Rev 19:15And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
  • Prov 31:8–9Open thy mouth for the dumb in the cause of all such as are appointed to destruction.
  • Mal 4:6And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
  • Job 4:9By the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils are they consumed.
  • Isa 61:1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
  • Ps 72:12–14For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper.
  • Matt 5:5Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
  • Jas 3:13Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.
  • Gal 5:23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
  • Rev 1:16And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.
  • Isa 30:33For Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; he hath made it deep and large: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.
  • Ps 2:9Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.
  • Rev 2:16Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
  • Isa 9:7Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
  • Jer 33:15In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.
  • Ps 72:1–4Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king’s son.
  • Titus 3:2To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.
  • Isa 16:5And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.
  • Isa 29:19The meek also shall increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
  • Ps 45:6–7Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre.
  • Isa 32:1Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment.
  • Jer 23:5–6Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
  • Jer 5:28They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked: they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper; and the right of the needy do they not judge.
  • Ps 82:2–4How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.
  • Ps 110:2The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.
  • Rev 19:11And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
  • Matt 11:5The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.
  • Isa 3:14The LORD will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people, and the princes thereof: for ye have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses.
  • Ps 18:8There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.
  • Isa 1:17Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
  • 2 Sam 23:2–4The Spirit of the LORD spake by me, and his word was in my tongue.
  • 2 Cor 10:1Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am base among you, but being absent am bold toward you:
  • Acts 9:1And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest,
  • Zeph 2:3Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD’s anger.
  • 1 Kgs 10:8–9Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom.
  • 2 Sam 8:15And David reigned over all Israel; and David executed judgment and justice unto all his people.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Isaiah videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Isaiah 11:4YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on IsaiahMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 11:4 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.