Back to Isaiah 65

Isaiah 65:3-5

a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens, and burning incense on bricks;

who sit among the graves, and spend nights in secret places; who eat pig’s meat, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;

who say, ‘Stay by yourself, don’t come near to me, for I am holier than you.’ These are smoke in my nose, a fire that burns all day.

World English Bible · Public Domain

Read all of Isaiah 65 →

Parallel Translations

  • WEB World English Bible

    a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens, and burning incense on bricks;

    who sit among the graves, and spend nights in secret places; who eat pig’s meat, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;

    who say, ‘Stay by yourself, don’t come near to me, for I am holier than you.’ These are smoke in my nose, a fire that burns all day.

  • KJV King James Version

    A people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face; that sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick;

    Which remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine’s flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;

    Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day.

Show all 3 translations
  • JPS JPS Tanakh (1917)

    A people that provoke Me to My face continually, that sacrifice in gardens, and burn incense upon bricks;

    That sit among the graves, and lodge in the vaults; that eat swine's flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;

    That say: 'Stand by thyself, come not near to me, for I am holier than thou'; these are a smoke in My nose, a fire that burneth all the day.

View more translations →

Cross-references (50)

  • Luke 18:9-12 (v5) He spoke also this parable to certain people who were convinced of their own righteousness, and who despised all others. “Two men went up…
  • Luke 7:39 (v5) Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, “This man, if he were a prophet, would have perceived who and what…
  • Isaiah 66:17 (vv3–4) “Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves to go to the gardens, behind one in the middle, eating pig’s meat, abominable things,…
  • Isaiah 1:29 (v3) For they shall be ashamed of the oaks which you have desired, and you shall be confounded for the gardens that you have chosen.
  • Leviticus 11:7 (v4) The pig, because it has a split hoof, and is cloven-footed, but doesn’t chew the cud, is unclean to you.
Show all 49 cross-references
  • Deuteronomy 32:21 (v3) They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God. They have provoked me to anger with their vanities. I will move them to jealousy…
  • Proverbs 16:5 (v5) Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to Yahweh: they shall certainly not be unpunished.
  • Deuteronomy 32:16-19 (v3) They moved him to jealousy with strange gods. They provoked him to anger with abominations. They sacrificed to demons, not God, to gods…
  • 2 Kings 17:14-17 (v3) Notwithstanding, they would not listen, but hardened their neck, like the neck of their fathers, who didn’t believe in Yahweh their God.…
  • Job 1:11 (v3) But stretch out your hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will renounce you to your face.”
  • Isaiah 3:8 (v3) For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against Yahweh, to provoke the eyes of his glory.
  • Jeremiah 32:30-35 (v3) “For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have done only that which was evil in my sight from their youth; for the children of…
  • Luke 15:28-30 (v5) But he was angry, and would not go in. Therefore his father came out, and begged him. But he answered his father, ‘Behold, these many years…
  • Romans 2:17-29 (v5) Indeed you bear the name of a Jew, rest on the law, glory in God, know his will, and approve the things that are excellent, being…
  • Deuteronomy 14:8 (v4) The pig, because it has a split hoof but doesn’t chew the cud, is unclean to you. You shall not eat their meat. You shall not touch their…
  • Deuteronomy 29:20 (v5) Yahweh will not pardon him, but then Yahweh’s anger and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and all the curse that is written in this…
  • 2 Kings 22:17 (v3) Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense to other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the work of their hands,…
  • Job 2:5 (v3) But stretch out your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will renounce you to your face.”
  • Psalms 78:40 (v3) How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness, and grieved him in the desert!
  • Psalms 78:58 (v3) For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their engraved images.
  • Isaiah 66:3 (v4) He who kills an ox is as he who kills a man; he who sacrifices a lamb, as he who breaks a dog’s neck; he who offers an offering, as he who…
  • Jeremiah 3:6 (v3) Moreover, Yahweh said to me in the days of Josiah the king, “Have you seen that which backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every…
  • Ezekiel 8:17-18 (v3) Then he said to me, “Have you seen this, son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they…
  • Ezekiel 20:28 (v3) For when I had brought them into the land which I swore to give to them, then they saw every high hill, and every thick tree, and they…
  • Luke 5:30 (v5) Their scribes and the Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?”
  • Exodus 20:24-25 (v3) You shall make an altar of earth for me, and shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your…
  • Exodus 30:1-10 (v3) “You shall make an altar to burn incense on. You shall make it of acacia wood. Its length shall be a cubit, and its width a cubit. It shall…
  • Leviticus 17:5 (v3) This is to the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they sacrifice in the open field, that they may bring them…
  • Deuteronomy 14:3 (v4) You shall not eat any abominable thing.
  • Deuteronomy 18:11 (v4) or a charmer, or someone who consults with a familiar spirit, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
  • Deuteronomy 32:20-22 (v5) He said, “I will hide my face from them. I will see what their end will be; for they are a very perverse generation, children in whom is no…
  • Proverbs 6:16-17 (v5) There are six things which Yahweh hates; yes, seven which are an abomination to him: arrogant eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed…
  • Proverbs 10:26 (v5) As vinegar to the teeth, and as smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to those who send him.
  • Ezekiel 4:14 (v4) Then I said, “Ah Lord Yahweh! Behold, my soul has not been polluted; for from my youth up even until now I have not eaten of that which…
  • Matthew 8:28 (v4) When he came to the other side, into the country of the Gergesenes, two people possessed by demons met him there, coming out of the tombs,…
  • Matthew 9:11 (v5) When the Pharisees saw it, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
  • Matthew 23:32-36 (v3) Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. You serpents, you offspring of vipers, how will you escape the judgment of Gehenna? Therefore…
  • Mark 5:2-5 (v4) When he had come out of the boat, immediately a man with an unclean spirit met him out of the tombs. He lived in the tombs. Nobody could…
  • Luke 8:27 (v4) When Jesus stepped ashore, a certain man out of the city who had demons for a long time met him. He wore no clothes, and didn’t live in a…
  • Acts 22:21-22 (v5) “He said to me, ‘Depart, for I will send you out far from here to the Gentiles.’” They listened to him until he said that; then they lifted…
  • 1 Peter 5:5 (v5) Likewise, you younger ones, be subject to the elder. Yes, all of you clothe yourselves with humility, to subject yourselves to one another;…
  • Jude 1:19 (v5) These are those who cause divisions and are sensual, not having the Spirit.
  • Exodus 23:19 (v4) You shall bring the first of the first fruits of your ground into the house of Yahweh your God. “You shall not boil a young goat in its…
  • Exodus 34:26 (v4) “You shall bring the first of the first fruits of your ground to the house of Yahweh your God. “You shall not boil a young goat in its…
  • Numbers 19:11 (v4) “He who touches the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days.
  • Numbers 19:16-20 (v4) “Whoever in the open field touches one who is slain with a sword, or a dead body, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven…
  • Deuteronomy 14:21 (v4) You shall not eat of anything that dies of itself. You may give it to the foreigner living among you who is within your gates, that he may…
  • Luke 15:2 (v5) The Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, “This man welcomes sinners, and eats with them.”
  • James 4:6 (v5) But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

49 distinct cross-references across this passage (50 total citations).

Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)

Explain this passage (18 sources)

Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.

Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv3–5 Which were dedicated to idols.

Which were dedicated to idols.

Meaning, their altars, which he thus named by contempt.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.

John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv3–5 Isa 65:3 A people that provoketh me to anger…
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv3–5 A people that provoketh me to anger: that the…
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv3–5 A people that provoketh me to anger continually to…
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv3–5 To my face - With the utmost impudence, not…
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv3–5 Verse 3. That sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense…
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv3, 5 Isa 65:3-4. A people that provoketh me to anger…
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv3–5 A people - This verse contains a specification of…
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv3–5 Gardens, to the impure Venus and Adonis. --- Bricks,…
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv3–5 continually--answering to "all the day" (Isa 65:2). God was…
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On v3 3-5. Sacrificeth in gardens — Entering on heathen worship…
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv3–5 3. that sacrificeth in the gardens] Cf. ch. Isa_66:17,…
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv3–5 (3) That sacriflceth in gardens.—It is not without significance,…
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv3–5 That sacrificeth in gardens. (comp. Isa_1:29 Isa_57:5 Isa_66:17) The…
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv3, 5 A people that provoked Me to anger
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v5 Isa_65:5. Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near…
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv3, 5 General Information:
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv3–5 65:3 Sacred gardens were a part of the fertility…
Share