The Meaning of Isaiah 58:3 Explained

Isaiah 58:3

KJV: Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.

YLT: 'Why have we fasted, and Thou hast not seen? We have afflicted our soul, and Thou knowest not.' Lo, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, And all your labours ye exact.

Darby: Wherefore have we fasted, and thou seest not; have afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find what pleaseth you, and exact all your labours.

ASV: Wherefore have we fasted,'say they , and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find your own pleasure, and exact all your labors.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Wherefore have we fasted,  [say they], and thou seest  not? [wherefore] have we afflicted  our soul,  and thou takest no knowledge?  Behold, in the day  of your fast  ye find  pleasure,  and exact  all your labours. 

What does Isaiah 58:3 Mean?

Verse Meaning

They could not understand why God had not blessed them-because they had fasted and humbled themselves (cf. Malachi 3:13-15). The only fast that the Mosaic Law commanded was on the Day of Atonement ( Leviticus 23:26-32). But the Israelites also fasted voluntarily, even in Isaiah"s day. [1] The reason God had not blessed them was that when they fasted, they did not demonstrate the attitudes and activities that fasting represented. They did not really sacrifice their own desires, and they continued to treat other people inconsiderately. They pursued their personal interests and worked when they fasted, and they insisted that their employees keep on working. They were practicing religious ritual to try to manipulate God into blessing them.
"But repentance is not for the purpose of getting God to do anything; it is an expression of the conviction that my ways are wrong and God"s ways are right, whether he does anything for me or not." [2]

Context Summary

Isaiah 58:1-14 - The Fast That God Has Chosen
The divorce between outward rites and inward piety has been the curse of every age. When the Pharisees were plotting our Lord's death, they refused to enter Pilate's hall. Not the bowed head, but the broken heart; not the sackcloth and ashes of the flesh, but the contrition of the soul!
Notice the three paragraphs descriptive of the experiences of the devout and consecrated soul: (1.) The conditions of blessedness, Isaiah 58:6-7. (2.) The successive items which go to make a blessed life, Isaiah 58:8-12. (3.) The true Sabbath-keeping, Isaiah 58:13-14. Primarily, it is inward, not outward. Let us be on our watch against the entrance into our hearts of all thoughts that would break the holy inward calm. Remember to imitate Nehemiah's instructions: Nehemiah 13:16-22. Let the divine peace rule within and be as a sentinel keeping the outward gate, Colossians 3:15; Philippians 4:7. Cease to follow your own ways, or find your own pleasures, or speak your own words. Delight yourself in God; so shall you sit with Christ in heavenly places and feed at the heavenly table. [source]

Chapter Summary: Isaiah 58

1  The prophet, being sent to reprove hypocrisy,
3  shows the difference between a counterfeit fast and a true
8  He declares what promises are due unto godliness
13  And to the keeping of the Sabbath

What do the individual words in Isaiah 58:3 mean?

Why have we fasted [they say] and not You have seen [Why] have we afflicted our souls and no You take notice in fact in the day of your fast you find pleasure and all your laborers exploit
לָ֤מָּה צַּ֙מְנוּ֙ ؟ וְלֹ֣א רָאִ֔יתָ עִנִּ֥ינוּ נַפְשֵׁ֖נוּ וְלֹ֣א ؟ תֵדָ֑ע הֵ֣ן בְּי֤וֹם צֹֽמְכֶם֙ תִּמְצְאוּ־ חֵ֔פֶץ וְכָל־ עַצְּבֵיכֶ֖ם תִּנְגֹּֽשׂוּ

לָ֤מָּה  Why 
Parse: Interrogative
Root: לָמָּה 
Sense: what, how, of what kind.
צַּ֙מְנוּ֙  have  we  fasted  [they  say] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common plural
Root: צוּם  
Sense: (Qal) to abstain from food, fast.
؟ וְלֹ֣א  and  not 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
רָאִ֔יתָ  You  have  seen 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.
עִנִּ֥ינוּ  [Why]  have  we  afflicted 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, first person common plural
Root: עָנָה 
Sense: (Qal) to be occupied, be busied with.
נַפְשֵׁ֖נוּ  our  souls 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common plural
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
וְלֹ֣א  and  no 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
؟ תֵדָ֑ע  You  take  notice 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.
הֵ֣ן  in  fact 
Parse: Interjection
Root: הֵן  
Sense: behold, lo, though hypothetical part.
בְּי֤וֹם  in  the  day 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
צֹֽמְכֶם֙  of  your  fast 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine plural
Root: צֹום  
Sense: fast, fasting.
תִּמְצְאוּ־  you  find 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine plural
Root: מָצָא  
Sense: to find, attain to.
חֵ֔פֶץ  pleasure 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֵפֶץ  
Sense: delight, pleasure.
וְכָל־  and  all 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
עַצְּבֵיכֶ֖ם  your  laborers 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person masculine plural
Root: עַצָּב  
Sense: labourer, toiler, labour.
תִּנְגֹּֽשׂוּ  exploit 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine plural
Root: נָגַשׂ  
Sense: to press, drive, oppress, exact, exert demanding pressure.