Isaiah 1:23 (DRB)

Passage

Thy princes are faithless, companions of thieves: they all love bribes, they run after rewards. They judge not for the fatherless: and the widow's cause cometh not in to them.

Nearby Context

Isaiah 1:21 How is the faithful city, that was full of judgment, become a harlot? justice dwelt in it, but now murderers.

Isaiah 1:22 Thy silver is turned into dross: thy wine is mingled with water.

Isaiah 1:23 Thy princes are faithless, companions of thieves: they all love bribes, they run after rewards. They judge not for the fatherless: and the widow's cause cometh not in to them.

Isaiah 1:24 Therefore saith the Lord the God of hosts, the mighty one of Israel: Ah! I will comfort myself over my adversaries: and I will be revenged of my enemies.

Isaiah 1:25 And I will turn my hand to thee, and I will clean purge away thy dross, and I will take away all thy tin.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "faith", "princes", "faithless", "companions", "thieves", "love", "bribes", and "after". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "faith" and "princes", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 22's "Thy silver is turned into dross thy..." into verse 24's "Therefore saith the Lord the God of...", so "faith" and "princes" belong inside that flow. In Isaiah context, the local focus is the Holy One of Israel, judgment and restoration, the servant of the LORD, and Zion's hope.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "faith" and "princes" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.