Therefore I say, “Look away from me, Let me weep bitterly, Do not try to comfort me concerning the destruction of the daughter of my people.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Therefore I said, “Look away from me. I will weep bitterly. Don’t labor to comfort me for the destruction of the daughter of my people.
- KJV Therefore said I, Look away from me; I will weep bitterly, labour not to comfort me, because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people.
- BSB Therefore I said, “Turn away from me, let me weep bitterly! Do not try to console me over the destruction of the daughter of my people.”
- NKJV Therefore I said, “Look away from me, I will weep bitterly; Do not labor to comfort me Because of the plundering of the daughter of my people.”
- NLT That’s why I said, “Leave me alone to weep; do not try to comfort me. Let me cry for my people as I watch them being destroyed.”
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
Isaiah weeps bitterly over the destruction of his people and refuses comfort. It matters because it shows the prophet's deep grief over God's judgment on Jerusalem.
Overview
Overwhelmed by the coming ruin of 'the daughter of my people,' Isaiah turns away and weeps, asking not to be comforted. His tears reveal the heartbreak of a prophet who loves the people he must warn. The grief shows that judgment on God's own city is no occasion for indifference. It models the godly sorrow that ought to accompany the announcement of judgment.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Jer 9:1Oh that my head were waters, and my eyes a spring of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!
- Matt 2:18“A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; she wouldn’t be comforted, because they are no more.”
- 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.
- Jer 31:15Yahweh says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.”
- Mic 1:8For this I will lament and wail; I will go stripped and naked; I will howl like the jackals, and moan like the daughters of owls.
- Jer 13:17But if you will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret for your pride; and my eye shall weep bitterly, and run down with tears, because Yahweh’s flock is taken captive.
- Isa 15:3In their streets, they clothe themselves in sackcloth. In their streets and on their housetops, everyone wails, weeping abundantly.
- Matt 26:75Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” He went out and wept bitterly.
- Jer 6:26Daughter of my people, clothe yourself with sackcloth, and wallow in ashes! Mourn, as for an only son, most bitter lamentation; for the destroyer shall suddenly come on us.
- Isa 33:7Behold, their valiant ones cry outside; the ambassadors of peace weep bitterly.
- Luke 1:2even as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word delivered them to us,
- Ruth 1:20–21She said to them, “Don’t call me Naomi. Call me Mara; for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.
- Jer 8:18Oh that I could comfort myself against sorrow! My heart is faint within me.
- Luke 19:41When he came near, he saw the city and wept over it,
- Jer 4:19My anguish, my anguish! I am pained at my very heart; my heart is disquieted in me; I can’t hold my peace; because you have heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 22:4 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.