This verse reveals that sin spans generations, but God still offers hope to those who forsake idolatry and return to Him.
“Both their own iniquities and the iniquities of their fathers together,” says the LORD. “Because they have burned incense on the mountains and scorned Me on the hills, Therefore I will measure their former work into their bosom.” (v.7)
In this verse, the prophet Isaiah, who ministered in the 8th century BC, records the LORD’s pronouncement of judgment on His people for their continued rebellion. Even the sins of previous generations compound with their own because of their unwillingness to repent and seek the LORD. Their rituals of burning incense on the mountains echo Canaanite worship practices, where mountaintops and high places often became sites of idolatry and immorality, causing the people to “scorn” the LORD (see the example of pagan rites on hills in Hosea). By adopting these practices handed down from their ancestors, they failed to walk faithfully before their covenant God.
God declares that He will “measure their former work into their bosom.” This phrase indicates that there is accountability for all wrongdoing, both past and present. The LORD, as a just Suzerain (Ruler) over His covenant people, does not overlook iniquity inherited or taught by one generation to another. Instead, He confronts the accumulated sin that results when His people turn to false worship and scorn Him on the very heights He alone should rule (compare the role of the covenant and judgment in Amos). In His righteousness, God ensures that deviant worship practices cannot persist without consequence, reflecting His holiness and desire for genuine devotion.
Even in this warning, there remains a thread of hope that calls for turning back to the LORD. Though He measures sin against His people, Scripture consistently shows that He welcomes true repentance, and He longs for a restored relationship. Isaiah’s prophecy thus reminds us that God’s judgment of sin is a serious matter, yet it can become an occasion for renewed commitment and obedience—both for that generation and for the ones to come.
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Isaiah 65:7 meaning
“Both their own iniquities and the iniquities of their fathers together,” says the LORD. “Because they have burned incense on the mountains and scorned Me on the hills, Therefore I will measure their former work into their bosom.” (v.7)
In this verse, the prophet Isaiah, who ministered in the 8th century BC, records the LORD’s pronouncement of judgment on His people for their continued rebellion. Even the sins of previous generations compound with their own because of their unwillingness to repent and seek the LORD. Their rituals of burning incense on the mountains echo Canaanite worship practices, where mountaintops and high places often became sites of idolatry and immorality, causing the people to “scorn” the LORD (see the example of pagan rites on hills in Hosea). By adopting these practices handed down from their ancestors, they failed to walk faithfully before their covenant God.
God declares that He will “measure their former work into their bosom.” This phrase indicates that there is accountability for all wrongdoing, both past and present. The LORD, as a just Suzerain (Ruler) over His covenant people, does not overlook iniquity inherited or taught by one generation to another. Instead, He confronts the accumulated sin that results when His people turn to false worship and scorn Him on the very heights He alone should rule (compare the role of the covenant and judgment in Amos). In His righteousness, God ensures that deviant worship practices cannot persist without consequence, reflecting His holiness and desire for genuine devotion.
Even in this warning, there remains a thread of hope that calls for turning back to the LORD. Though He measures sin against His people, Scripture consistently shows that He welcomes true repentance, and He longs for a restored relationship. Isaiah’s prophecy thus reminds us that God’s judgment of sin is a serious matter, yet it can become an occasion for renewed commitment and obedience—both for that generation and for the ones to come.