What does Isaiah 1:16 mean?
The Lord turns the corner from telling the people of Judah how they are failing to telling them how to begin to change. The sinful state of their hearts, minds, and actions are so extreme that all their offerings and religious observances have become meaningless (Isaiah 1:11–15). In fact, they are worse than meaningless because God receives them as a burden.(Isaiah 1:14)To make their relationship with Yahweh meaningful again, the people must make real changes. The Lord tells them to wash and make themselves clean. He is not talking about ceremonial washing or more offerings and sacrifices. The way God intends for His people to become clean is for them to stop doing evil. He sees their evil deeds. The only way to keep Him from seeing them is to stop doing them. This was the first step toward changing how God views them and returning to a close relationship with Him.
