Isaiah 58 – A Slightly Poetic Paraphrase
Let your voice be heard!
Don’t hold back!
Announce it with fanfare.
Tell my people they’ve left,
Veered right off the path.
Even so, they keep looking for me,
as though they really like my way.
They act like they’ve been righteous,
Coloring inside my established lines.
They want me to judge righteously,
as though they really want to obey.
“We’ve fasted. Why don’t you reward us?
We’ve humbled ourselves. Why don’t we get credit?”
Because you fast for your own reward,
and oppress those who serve you.
You fast to pick quarrels,
To strike with your wicked fist.
This kind of fasting
won’t get you heard where I live!
Do I like a day used to showcase humility?
Your head bowed down like a broken stem?
You lying around in rough cloth with ashes on you?
You call this a fast, a day I’ll accept?
No! Here’s the fast I choose —
Removing unjust bonds
Undoing burdensome yokes,
Letting the oppressed go free,
Even breaking the yokes!
Even more …
Sharing your bread with hungry people,
Bringing the homeless into your home,
Providing clothing to those who are naked,
Being there for your kin.
When you do these things …
Your light will burst like the dawn,
You will be healed quickly,
Your vindicator will lead,
God’s glory will be your rear guard.
Even more …
You will call, and God will answer;
You’ll ask for help, and God will say, “I’m right here!”
If you quit putting yokes on your people,
No more pointing your finger, speaking evil,
If you offer your food to the hungry
and satisfy the needs of those who are suffering,
Then your light will shine in darkness
even your gloom will seem like a sunny noon!
God will guide you continually,
satisfying your needs in the wilderness.
God will strengthen your bones.
You will be like a watered garden,
like a water spring,
one flowing year-round.
You’ll rebuild old, despairing ruins;
You’ll restore ancient, strong foundations.
You’ll be called the one who repairs broken walls
and restores streets lined with homes.
If you don’t trample on my day of rest,
not pursuing your own interests on my time;
If you call that rest day delightful
God’s holy time, worthy of special honor.
If you show by your actions that it’s special,
By not going your own way,
serving your own interests,
or doing your own stuff —
Then you’ll be delighted in your God,
and God will make you ride on the heights.
I, your God, will feed you as I fed your Ancestor.
God, your God, has spoken.
