Isaiah 57:12
New International Version
I will expose your righteousness and your works, and they will not benefit you.

New Living Translation
Now I will expose your so-called good deeds. None of them will help you.

English Standard Version
I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, but they will not profit you.

Berean Standard Bible
I will expose your righteousness and your works, and they will not profit you.

King James Bible
I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee.

New King James Version
I will declare your righteousness And your works, For they will not profit you.

New American Standard Bible
“I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, And they will not benefit you.

NASB 1995
“I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, But they will not profit you.

NASB 1977
“I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, But they will not profit you.

Legacy Standard Bible
I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, But they will not profit you.

Amplified Bible
“I will declare your [hypocritical] righteousness and your deeds, But they will not benefit you.

Christian Standard Bible
I will announce your righteousness, and your works—they will not profit you.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
I will expose your righteousness, and your works—they will not profit you.

American Standard Version
I will declare thy righteousness; and as for thy works, they shall not profit thee.

Contemporary English Version
You think you're so good, but I'll point out the truth.

English Revised Version
I will declare thy righteousness; and as for thy works, they shall not profit thee.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
I'll tell you about your righteous ways and what you have done, but they won't help you.

Good News Translation
You think that what you do is right, but I will expose your conduct, and your idols will not be able to help you.

International Standard Version
"I will denounce your righteousness and your works, for your collections of idols will not benefit you.

Majority Standard Bible
I will expose your righteousness and your works, and they will not profit you.

NET Bible
I will denounce your so-called righteousness and your deeds, but they will not help you.

New Heart English Bible
I will declare your righteousness; and as for your works, they shall not profit you.

Webster's Bible Translation
I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee.

World English Bible
I will declare your righteousness; and as for your works, they will not benefit you.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
I declare your righteousness, and your works, "" And they do not profit you.

Young's Literal Translation
I declare thy righteousness, and thy works, And they do not profit thee.

Smith's Literal Translation
I will announce thy justice and thy works, and they shall not profit thee.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
I will declare thy justice, and thy works shall not profit thee.

Catholic Public Domain Version
I will announce your justice, and your works will not benefit you.

New American Bible
I will proclaim your justice and your works; but they shall not help you.

New Revised Standard Version
I will concede your righteousness and your works, but they will not help you.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
I will declare my righteousness, and your works shall not profit you.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
I shall show my righteousness and your works shall not benefit you
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
I will declare thy righteousness; thy works also--they shall not profit thee.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And I will declare thy righteousness, and thy sins, which shall not profit thee.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
God Condemns Idolatry
11Whom have you dreaded and feared, so that you lied and failed to remember Me or take this to heart? Is it not because I have long been silent that you do not fear Me? 12I will expose your righteousness and your works, and they will not profit you. 13When you cry out, let your companies of idols deliver you! Yet the wind will carry off all of them, a breath will take them away. But he who seeks refuge in Me will inherit the land and possess My holy mountain.”…

Cross References
Romans 3:20
Therefore no one will be justified in His sight by works of the law. For the law merely brings awareness of sin.

Galatians 2:16
know that a man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

Philippians 3:9
and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God on the basis of faith.

Romans 10:3
Because they were ignorant of God’s righteousness and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.

Ephesians 2:8-9
For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, / not by works, so that no one can boast.

Titus 3:5
He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

Matthew 7:22-23
Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ / Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’

Luke 18:9-14
To some who trusted in their own righteousness and viewed others with contempt, He also told this parable: / “Two men went up to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. / The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—swindlers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. ...

Romans 4:2-5
If Abraham was indeed justified by works, he had something to boast about, but not before God. / For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” / Now the wages of the worker are not credited as a gift, but as an obligation. ...

James 2:10
Whoever keeps the whole law but stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.

Isaiah 64:6
Each of us has become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.

Jeremiah 2:22
Although you wash with lye and use an abundance of soap, the stain of your guilt is still before Me,” declares the Lord GOD.

Ezekiel 33:13
If I tell the righteous man that he will surely live, but he then trusts in his righteousness and commits iniquity, then none of his righteous works will be remembered; he will die because of the iniquity he has committed.

Micah 6:6-8
With what shall I come before the LORD when I bow before the God on high? Should I come to Him with burnt offerings, with year-old calves? / Would the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? / He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?

Hosea 8:13
Though they offer sacrifices as gifts to Me, and though they eat the meat, the LORD does not accept them. Now He will remember their iniquity and punish their sins: They will return to Egypt.


Treasury of Scripture

I will declare your righteousness, and your works; for they shall not profit you.

Isaiah 1:11-15
To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats…

Isaiah 58:2-6
Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God…

Isaiah 59:6-8
Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands…

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Isaiah 57
1. The blessed death of the righteous
3. God reproves the People for their idolatry
13. He gives promises of mercy to the penitent














I will expose
The Hebrew root for "expose" is "נָגַד" (nagad), which means to declare, make known, or announce. In the context of Isaiah, God is speaking through the prophet to reveal the true nature of the people's actions. This exposure is not merely a revelation but a divine unveiling of what is hidden. Historically, this reflects God's consistent call for transparency and truth, as seen throughout the prophetic books where God uncovers the hidden sins of Israel. The exposure is a call to repentance, urging the people to turn back to genuine faithfulness.

your righteousness
The term "righteousness" in Hebrew is "צְדָקָה" (tsedaqah), which often refers to justice, rightness, or moral virtue. However, in this context, it is a sarcastic reference to the self-righteousness of the people. They believed their actions were righteous, but God is highlighting that their so-called righteousness is superficial and self-serving. This aligns with the broader biblical narrative where true righteousness is not about outward appearances but about a heart aligned with God's will, as emphasized in the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament.

and your works
The Hebrew word for "works" is "מַעֲשֶׂה" (ma'aseh), which refers to deeds or actions. In the biblical context, works are often seen as the fruit of one's faith. However, here, God is critiquing the works of the people, indicating that their actions, though perhaps religious in nature, are not rooted in genuine faith or obedience. This echoes the New Testament teaching in James 2:26, where faith without works is dead, but works without genuine faith are equally unprofitable.

and they will not profit you
The phrase "will not profit" comes from the Hebrew "יֹועִילוּ" (yo'ilu), meaning to be of benefit or advantage. God is declaring that the people's self-righteousness and works, devoid of true faith and repentance, will not bring them the favor or salvation they expect. This is a sobering reminder that external religious observance without a heart transformed by God is ultimately futile. The historical context of Israel's repeated cycles of disobedience and superficial worship underscores this message, calling believers to seek a deep, authentic relationship with God that goes beyond mere ritual.

(12) I will declare thy righteousness . . .--Accepting the Hebrew text, we must look on the word as used ironically, the righteousness which is no righteousness. Comp. Isaiah 64:6. A slight alteration, adopted by many critics, gives "my righteousness."

Verse 12. - I will declare thy righteousness, etc. The Syriac Version has "my righteousness," which gives a much better sense, and is adopted by Bishop Lowth, Dr. Weir, and Mr. Cheyne. God will be silent no longer. He will" declare," or show forth, "his righteousness," by visiting Judah with some righteous punishment. Then it will be seen of what value are those things in which Judah has hitherto trusted. Her works - whether her "idols" are meant (Cheyne, Delitzsch), or her "deeds of iniquity" (Kay) - what will they profit? She will "cry" out under the rod of chastisement - cry to her false gods to save her.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
I
אֲנִ֥י (’ă·nî)
Pronoun - first person common singular
Strong's 589: I

will expose
אַגִּ֖יד (’ag·gîḏ)
Verb - Hifil - Imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 5046: To be conspicuous

your righteousness
צִדְקָתֵ֑ךְ (ṣiḏ·qā·ṯêḵ)
Noun - feminine singular construct | second person feminine singular
Strong's 6666: Rightness, subjectively, objectively

and your works,
מַעֲשַׂ֖יִךְ (ma·‘ă·śa·yiḵ)
Noun - masculine plural construct | second person feminine singular
Strong's 4639: An action, a transaction, activity, a product, property

and they will not
וְלֹ֥א (wə·lō)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

profit you.
יוֹעִילֽוּךְ׃ (yō·w·‘î·lūḵ)
Verb - Hifil - Imperfect - third person masculine plural | second person feminine singular
Strong's 3276: To confer or gain profit or benefit


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OT Prophets: Isaiah 57:12 I will declare your righteousness (Isa Isi Is)
Isaiah 57:11
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