Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Isaiah 58:13 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 13. 13If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
The prophetic poem or speech in Isaiah states or reports “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day” at Isaiah 58:13 as a specific part of “Sabbath Delight Redirects Self-Serving Speech.”
If you turn back your foot from the sabbath
This verse is one part of that explanation in Isaiah 58:13–14. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- Isaiah 58:13–14
Read Isaiah 58:13 with 58:13–14. By itself, “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day” can be detached from the speaker, addressee, historical horizon, poetic movement, or outcome that gives it force. The complete unit establishes: Honoring holy time by restraining self-directed business and speech leads to delight, elevated life, and Jacob's inheritance.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within the same chapter, this unit advances from “The Chosen Fast Frees, Feeds, Shelters, and Repairs” into “Sabbath Delight Redirects Self-Serving Speech.” Its non-interchangeable movement is: Honoring holy time by restraining self-directed business and speech leads to delight, elevated life, and Jacob's inheritance. This verse's placement is specific: The prophetic poem or speech in Isaiah states or reports “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day” at Isaiah 58:13 as a specific part of “Sabbath Delight Redirects Self-Serving Speech.”
Follow the Context
- The unit opens at 58:13 with the address, scene, poem, sign, question, or action named in its title.
- Honoring holy time by restraining self-directed business and speech leads to delight, elevated life, and Jacob's inheritance.
- By 58:14 the movement reaches its warning, promise, answer, response, or transition before the next unit begins.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
Sabbath delight does not authorize policing Jewish practice through Christian assumptions or shaming necessary care work.
What Remains True
Worship cannot manipulate the creator or compensate for violence, exploitation, and refusal to hear. In Isaiah 58:13, that bounded truth is carried through this verse's role: The prophetic poem or speech in Isaiah states or reports “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day” at Isaiah 58:13 as a specific part of “Sabbath Delight Redirects Self-Serving Speech.”
Teach It Back
Explain Isaiah 58:13's precise role in Isaiah 58:13–14. Include “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day,” state the unit's historical or literary limit, give one proportionate truth and action, and explicitly reject one harmful use.
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Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Isaiah 58:13–14 — Sabbath Delight Redirects Self-Serving SpeechSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Isaiah 58:13–14, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Isaiah
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology at the exact unit, without treating morphology as apparatus, lexicon, composition history, or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Isa.xml, OSIS 58:13–14 with Hebrew/KJV versification difference checked
Open the fixed Hebrew Isaiah file ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Notes: Isaiah
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2016; current official PDF
Supports: Verse-level controls for Hebrew, syntax, poetry, older KJV language, chronology, names, textual issues, and material translation alternatives.
Exact location: Official NET Isaiah PDF, translator, study, and textual notes attached to Isaiah 58:13–14 in the complete 205-page book PDF
Open the official NET Isaiah PDF ↗modern scholarly book course
Isaiah course: summary, outline, background, introductory issues, themes, and reception
Fred Gaiser; revised by Michael Chan
Enter the Bible, Luther Seminary, revised August 2024
Supports: Whole-book historical, literary, theological, ethical, and reception synthesis across Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, and postexilic horizons.
Exact location: Enter the Bible Isaiah course, Outline Book 3A and themes of justice, worship, and return; applied to Isaiah 58:13–14
Open the Enter the Bible Isaiah course ↗