Isaiah 11:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear,

NIV: and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears;

NASB: And He will delight in the fear of the Lord, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make decisions by what His ears hear;

CSB: His delight will be in the fear of the Lord. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, he will not execute justice by what he hears with his ears,

NLT: He will delight in obeying the Lord. He will not judge by appearance nor make a decision based on hearsay.

KJV: And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:

NKJV: His delight is in the fear of the Lord, And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, Nor decide by the hearing of His ears;

The prophet is discussing Israel's great future king. This Promised One will not only restore the line of David to glory, but He will also rule over the earth in perfect peace, righteousness, and justice (Isaiah 11:1–2).

This king will stand apart from Israel's earlier kings, especially those of Isaiah's time. The Messiah will delight in the "fear of the Lord." This "fear" does not describe a life of living in terror. This is not panic or groveling at the feet of an angry deity. "The fear of the Lord" (Proverbs 1:7) describes living with proper respect for the power and authority of God. This respect is in your actions and attitude acknowledging who God is.

Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of this prophecy and He lived in this flawless understanding of the fear of the Lord. As the Son of God, He knew God, and wasted no time pursuing any other agenda beside serving the Lord. And He did this with both power and perfect humility. Mysteriously, Jesus is also the Lord. This is combining both perfect servanthood during His time on earth and perfect rule over the earth when He returns.

The Messiah will not judge between disputes between those He rules only by what natural senses can see and hear. Human leaders can be deceived by appearances and biases. Because He will be empowered by the Holy Spirit with wisdom and understanding, the Messiah will perfectly understand what is true, no matter how hidden. This is one of the qualities Jesus demonstrated during His earthly life (John 2:24–25).

Isaiah 11:1–16 once more returns to a description of a glorious kingdom to come. This passage was written when Israel's earthly kingdom hung by a thread. That future kingdom will be lead by a descendant of Jesse, David's father. He will rule the earth in the Spirit of the Lord, and restore righteousness, justice, and peace to the earth. All will live in harmony. All the non-Jewish nations will gather under the banner of the Messiah. The Lord will reassemble His Israelite people to their land from the four corners of the earth.

Isaiah describes a future leader who will be raised up from line of Jesse and King David. The leader will be a man and yet more than just a man. He will be powered by the Spirit of the Lord to lead with wisdom, might, and knowledge. He will restore justice and bring peace to the world, ending all conflict. The non-Jewish nations of the earth will come to Him. He will reassemble the scattered Israelites. The reunited nation will have final victory over their enemies under His rule.

Isaiah 11 follows the previous chapter's promise of the Lord's defeat of the Assyrian Empire. Along with the promise that a descendant of King David will one day rule Israel and the world. He will rule in the power of the Spirit of the Lord with wisdom, justice, and righteousness. Conflict will cease, even among the animals. All the non-Jewish nations will gather to the Messiah. The Lord will reassemble His Israelite people to the land from the four corners of the world. Reunited as one nation, they will defeat their enemies and live under the rule of the Lord. Chapter 12 continues this description.

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).