I was enraged by his sinful greed, so I struck him and hid My face in anger; yet he kept turning back to the desires of his heart.
Parallel translations
- WEB I was angry because of the iniquity of his covetousness, and struck him; I hid myself and was angry; and he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.
- KJV For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart.
- NKJV For the iniquity of his covetousness I was angry and struck him; I hid and was angry, And he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.
- NASB “Because of the wrongful act of his unjust gain I was angry and struck him; I hid My face and was angry, And he went on turning away, in the way of his heart.
- NLT I was angry, so I punished these greedy people. I withdrew from them, but they kept going on their own stubborn way.
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 judged Israel for greedy iniquity by striking and hiding Himself, yet she kept backsliding. Sin persists even under chastening apart from grace.
Overview
The Lord recounts His righteous anger at the covetousness of His people, withdrawing His presence as discipline. Tragically, instead of repenting, Israel continued in the willful way of her own heart. The verse shows that judgment alone cannot heal a wayward heart; it sets the stage for the surprising grace announced in the following verses and fulfilled in the gospel.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 21
- 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:
- Jer 6:13“For from the least of them to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; from prophet to priest, all practice deceit.
- Col 3:5Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.
- Eph 5:3–5But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed.
- 2 Pet 2:14Their eyes are full of adultery; their desire for sin is never satisfied; they seduce the unstable. They are accursed children with hearts trained in greed.
- Isa 8:17I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob. I will put my trust in Him.
- Eccl 6:9Better what the eye can see than the wandering of desire. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.
- Isa 5:8–9Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field until no place is left and you live alone in the land.
- Isa 9:13But the people did not return to Him who struck them; they did not seek the LORD of Hosts.
- Jer 5:3O LORD, do not Your eyes look for truth? You struck them, but they felt no pain. You finished them off, but they refused to accept discipline. They have made their faces harder than stone and refused to repent.
- Luke 12:15And He said to them, “Watch out! Guard yourselves against every form of greed, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
- Jer 8:10Therefore I will give their wives to other men and their fields to new owners. For from the least of them to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; from prophet to priest, all practice deceit.
- 1 Tim 6:9Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction.
- Isa 1:4Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children of depravity! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on Him.
- Jer 22:17“But your eyes and heart are set on nothing except your own dishonest gain, on shedding innocent blood, on practicing extortion and oppression.”
- Ezek 33:31So My people come to you as usual, sit before you, and hear your words; but they do not put them into practice. Although they express love with their mouths, their hearts pursue dishonest gain.
- Isa 45:15Truly You are a God who hides Himself, O God of Israel, the Savior.
- Mic 2:2–3They covet fields and seize them; they take away houses. They deprive a man of his home, a fellow man of his inheritance.
- Jer 2:30“I have struck your sons in vain; they accepted no discipline. Your own sword has devoured your prophets like a voracious lion.”
- 2 Pet 2:3In their greed, these false teachers will exploit you with deceptive words. The longstanding verdict against them remains in force, and their destruction does not sleep.
- Luke 15:14–16After he had spent all he had, a severe famine swept through that country, and he began to be in need.
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 57:17 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.