We all like sheep have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid upon Him the iniquity of us all.
Parallel translations
- WEB All we like sheep have gone astray. Everyone has turned to his own way; and Yahweh has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
- KJV All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
- NKJV All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
- NASB All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the wrongdoing of us all To fall on Him.
- NLT All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.
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
We have all strayed like sheep, each going his own way, and the LORD laid the iniquity of us all on the Servant. It matters because it names both our universal guilt and God's gracious provision.
Overview
This verse balances human sin ('all we like sheep have gone astray') with divine grace ('Yahweh has laid on him the iniquity of us all'). Our self-willed wandering is the universal human condition, yet God Himself transfers our guilt to His Servant. This is the gospel in miniature: Christ bears the sin of straying sinners so that they may be brought home.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- 1 Pet 2:25For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
- 1 Pet 3:18For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit,
- Ps 119:176I have strayed like a lost sheep; seek Your servant, for I have not forgotten Your commandments.
- Isa 55:7Let the wicked man forsake his own way and the unrighteous man his own thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that He may have compassion, and to our God, for He will freely pardon.
- Rom 4:25He was delivered over to death for our trespasses and was raised to life for our justification.
- Rom 3:10–19As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one.
- Jas 5:20consider this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover over a multitude of sins.
- Matt 18:12–14What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost?
- Luke 15:3–7Then Jesus told them this parable:
- Isa 53:10Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush Him and to cause Him to suffer; and when His soul is made a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.
- Isa 56:11Like ravenous dogs, they are never satisfied. They are shepherds with no discernment; they all turn to their own way, each one seeking his own gain:
- Ps 69:4Those who hate me without cause outnumber the hairs of my head; many are those who would destroy me—my enemies for no reason. Though I did not steal, I must repay.
- Ezek 3:18If I say to the wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ but you do not warn him or speak out to warn him from his wicked way to save his life, that wicked man will die in his iniquity, and I will hold you responsible for his blood.
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 53:6 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.