Isaiah 5:18

Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of deceit and pull sin along with cart ropes,

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — Isaiah pronounces this warning to Judah amid national corruption, positioned between the description of wealthy estates becoming ruins (Isaiah 5:17) and the people's arrogant demand that God hasten His judgment (Isaiah 5:19).

The words — The Hebrew מֹשְׁכֵי (mo.shə.khe) literally means "those who draw along," paired with עָוֹן ('a.von) for iniquity and חַטָּאָה (cha.tta.'ah) for sin, depicting guilt as a heavy load deliberately dragged forward.

The thread — This pattern of normalized, prolonged guilt appears in Jeremiah 23:14, where leaders walk in lies, and Psalm 36:2, where self-deception prevents the recognition of personal sin.

Why it lands — The passage requires readers to identify any personal or cultural habits that actively prolong wrongdoing rather than confront it, demanding immediate cessation before judgment arrives.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

ה֛וֹיHowoe to!מֹשְׁכֵ֥יmo.she.Khei[those who] draw along הֶֽעָוֹ֖ןhe./'a.Von<of the>/ iniquity בְּחַבְלֵ֣יbe./chav.Leiwith/ [the] cords of הַשָּׁ֑וְאha./Shav'<the>/ emptiness וְכַעֲב֥וֹתve./kha./'a.Votand/ like/ [the] rope of הָעֲגָלָ֖הha./'a.ga.Lah<the>/ cart חַטָּאָֽה׃cha.ta.'Ahsin

King James Version

Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope:

Cross-references

Jeremiah 23:14 And among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing: They commit adultery and walk in lies. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns his back on wickedness. They are all like Sodom to Me; the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”
Psalms 36:2 For his eyes are too full of conceit to detect or hate his own sin.
Jeremiah 5:31 The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own authority. My people love it so, but what will you do in the end?
Jeremiah 23:10 For the land is full of adulterers—because of the curse, the land mourns and the pastures of the wilderness have dried up—their course is evil and their power is misused.
Ezekiel 13:22 Because you have disheartened the righteous with your lies, even though I have caused them no grief, and because you have encouraged the wicked not to turn from their evil ways to save their lives,
Judges 17:5 Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some household idols, and ordained one of his sons as his priest.
Judges 17:13 Then Micah said, “Now I know that the LORD will be good to me, because a Levite has become my priest.”
2 Samuel 16:20 Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give me counsel. What should we do?”
Psalms 10:11 He says to himself, “God has forgotten; He hides His face and never sees.”
Psalms 14:1 For the choirmaster. Of David. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their acts are vile. There is no one who does good.