Isaiah 5:23
in Isaiah 5who acquit the guilty for a bribe and deprive the innocent of justice.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
that justify the wicked for a bribe, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!
KJV
Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!
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This verse in Isaiah 5
Commentary
8 notes on this verse(Verse 23.) You justify the wicked for bribes, and take away the justice of the righteous from them. And this is a part of the vices of the vineyard, which has produced sour grapes instead of grapes, and while the Lord waits to bring judgment, it commits iniquity by justifying the wicked for bribes and not considering the causes but the gifts, which even blind the eyes of the wise.
This site's exposition
Woe to those who are heroes
on Isaiah 5:22-24
The sixth woe returns to drink, paired with a courtroom sin, as the "heroes in drinking wine" also "acquit the guilty for a bribe." Verse 24 gathers the six woes into one verdict. The reason closes the series: they "have rejected the instruction of the LORD of Hosts."
This site's exposition
who acquit the guilty for a bribe
The drinkers of verse 22 sit as judges, and Barnes reads the verse as a charge against the magistrates. Jerome counts it among the sour grapes of the vineyard in verse 4. Exodus 23:8 had forbidden the bribe that blinds the clear-sighted.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
193. Third, as to authority: that justify, that is, you say that you have such authority that at your will you are able to justify the wicked, so that whatever pleases you may have the force of law, below: woe to them that make wicked …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
They justify the wicked for reward, and find some pretence or other to clear him from his guilt and shelter him from punishment; and they condemn the innocent, and take away their righteousness from them, that is, overrule their pleas, deprive them of the means of clearing up their innocency, and give judgment against them.
Which justify the wicked for reward,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Which justify - This refers, doubtless, to magistrates. They gave unjust decisions. For reward - For bribes. And take away the righteousness - That is, they do not decide the cause in favor of those who have just claims, but are determined by a bribe; see the note at Isa 1:23. It is remarkable, that this is introduced in immediate connection with their being mighty to mingle strong drink.
The righteous - צדיק tsaddik, singular, Sept. Vulg., and two editions.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| מַצְדִּיקֵ֥י | matzdikei | [those who] justify | H6663 → | 41 times |
| רָשָׁ֖ע | rasha' | <of> a wicked [person] | H7563 → | 263 times |
| עֵ֣קֶב | ʾekev | [the] consequence of | H6118 → | |
| שֹׁ֑חַד | shochad | a bribe | H7810 → | 23 times |
| וְצִדְקַ֥ת | vetzidkat | and [the] righteousness of | H6666 → | 157 times |
| צַדִּיקִ֖ים | tzadikim | righteous [people] | H6662 → | 206 times |
| יָסִ֥ירוּ | yasiru | they take away | H5493 → | 299 times |
| מִמֶּֽנּוּ׃ ס | mimenu | from him | H4480 → | 1188 times |
מַצְדִּיקֵ֥י[those who] justify
matzdikeiH6663 →41 times
רָשָׁ֖ע<of> a wicked [person]
rasha'H7563 →263 times
עֵ֣קֶב[the] consequence of
ʾekevH6118 →
שֹׁ֑חַדa bribe
shochadH7810 →23 times
וְצִדְקַ֥תand [the] righteousness of
vetzidkatH6666 →157 times
צַדִּיקִ֖יםrighteous [people]
tzadikimH6662 →206 times
יָסִ֥ירוּthey take away
yasiruH5493 →299 times
מִמֶּֽנּוּ׃ סfrom him
mimenuH4480 →1188 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Proverbs 17:15Acquitting the guilty and condemning the righteous—both are detestable to the LORD.
it leads to
- Exodus 23:7
Stay far away from a false accusation. Do not kill the innocent or the just, for I will not acquit the guilty.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Proverbs 18:5
Showing partiality to the wicked is not good, nor is depriving the innocent of justice.
- Proverbs 24:23–24
These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judgment is not good.
- Amos 6:12
“Do horses gallop on the cliffs? Does one plow the sea with oxen? But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood—
- Exodus 23:7
Through
James 5:6You have condemned and murdered the righteous, who did not resist you.
it leads to
- 1 Peter 2:22–23
“He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth.”
- 1 Peter 2:22–23
Through
Psalms 94:21They band together against the righteous and condemn the innocent to death.
it leads to
- Psalms 59:3
See how they lie in wait for me. Fierce men conspire against me for no transgression or sin of my own, O LORD.
- Matthew 27:1
When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people conspired against Jesus to put Him to death.
- Proverbs 17:15
Acquitting the guilty and condemning the righteous—both are detestable to the LORD.
- Psalms 59:3
Where this verse is studied
About Isaiah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Isaiah; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.