Isaiah 57:20 · Bible study
Isaiah 57:20 Commentary: The Restless Sea
Hebrew · 9 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Isaiah 57:20 compares the wicked to a storm-tossed sea. An in-depth study of the Hebrew metaphor, its context, and its meaning for faith.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The wicked exist in a state of perpetual inner turmoil, unable to find rest, and their lives produce only corruption.
- Key words: Nigrash (troubled/tossed, passive, driven); hashket lo’ yukhal (to be quiet it is not able, absolute inability); rephesh (mire) and tit (mud).
- Main debate: Whether “the wicked” refers to all unredeemed humanity or specifically to unrepentant members of the covenant community (Keil vs. Barnes).
- Theological theme: Peace (shalom) is a gift from God; attempts to find it apart from Him produce only agitation and defilement.
- Best use: Evangelism (diagnosis of the human condition apart from grace) and pastoral self-examination (restlessness as a warning sign).
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
But the wicked are like the storm-tossed sea, for it cannot be still, and its waves churn up mire and muck.
WEB World English Bible 2000
But the wicked are like the troubled sea; for it can’t rest and its waters cast up mire and mud.
KJV King James Version 1769
But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
But the wicked are like the troubled sea; for it cannot rest, and its waters cast up mire and dirt.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
And the wicked are as the driven out sea, For to rest it is not able, And its waters cast out filth and mire.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
But the wicked are like the troubled sea, which cannot rest, and whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
But the wicked are like the raging sea, which cannot rest, and the waves thereof cast up dirt and mire.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Mas los impíos son como la mar en tempestad, que no puede estarse quieta, y sus aguas arrojan cieno y lodo.
Mas os perversos são como o mar bravo, que não pode se aquietar.
Mais les méchants sont comme la mer agitée,
Aber die Gottlosen sind wie ein ungestümes Meer, das nicht still sein kann, und dessen Wellen Kot und Unflat auswerfen.
Doch de goddelozen zijn als een voortgedreven zee, want die kan niet rusten, en haar wateren werpen slijk en modder op.
Ma gli empi sono come il mare agitato, quando non si può calmare e le sue acque caccian fuori fango e pantano.
Lecz niepobożni będą jako morze wzburzone, gdy się uspokoić nie może, a którego wody wymiatają kał i błoto.
А нечестивые - как море взволнованное, которое не может успокоиться и которого воды выбрасывают ил и грязь.
惟獨惡人，好像翻騰 的海， 不 得 平靜；其中的水 常湧出 污穢 和淤泥來。
But the evil-doers are like the troubled sea, for which there is no rest, and its waters send up earth and waste.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Isaiah 57:20
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
The commentators agree that this verse uses the image of the sea in constant motion to depict the actual condition of the wicked. Barnes notes the Hebrew verb nigrash (troubled, tossed) describes the sea as “ever-moving and restless.” The phrase that follows, “for it cannot rest,” is stronger than a mere description: Jamieson-Fausset-Brown point out that hashket lo’ yukhal means the sea has no capacity for stillness, its agitation is not occasional but perpetual. Keil and Delitzsch agree, calling it the sea “in its tossed and stormy state” which cannot cease its motion. The result, as Gill observes, is that “its waters cast up mire and dirt”, the wicked’s inner restlessness produces only filth: sinful thoughts, words, and deeds. Wesley concisely states that the wicked are “perpetually hurried with their own lusts and passions, and with guilt.” All these voices converge on one point: the restlessness is not a punishment sent from outside but the natural state of a heart alienated from God, a turmoil that inevitably overflows into sin.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Regardless of how the group is defined, the verse teaches that a life lived in willful separation from God necessarily produces inner turmoil and moral defilement, and cannot experience the shalom that only He gives.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Nature of the sea metaphor | All commentators see the restless sea as depicting the wicked's constant agitation and lack of peace. | Some (like Barnes, Gill) emphasize the internal turmoil of conscience and passions; others (like Keil) see it as describing the state of alienation from God that leads to sin. |
| Identity of 'the wicked' | All affirm that there is a category of people who have no peace because they persist in rebellion. | Barnes applies it universally to all who are unpardoned; Keil and Delitzsch limit it to those within Israel who reject God's healing. |
| Source of the mire and mud | The image means that the wicked produce evil thoughts, words, and deeds. | Gill focuses on outward acts like blasphemy and malice; Wesley and Barnes focus more on inner lusts and guilt that corrode the soul. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Isaiah 57:20 stands at the climax of a prophecy in which God shifts from rebuke (Isaiah 57:3, 13) to a promise of restoration for the repentant (verses 14, 19). The Cambridge Bible notes the striking contrast between the “menacing tone” earlier and “the gracious thoughts of Jehovah” toward those who are contrite. But not all respond. Keil and Delitzsch argue that the wicked in view here are not pagans outside the covenant but those within Israel who persist in ”alienation from God inherited from the fathers.”
In ancient Israel, the sea was a familiar symbol of chaos and danger. The people of the region saw the Mediterranean as a restless, unpredictable force, never still, always churning. Righteous Job compares the wicked to “the troubled sea” in his own laments (Job 15:20; 18:5, 14). By using this image, the prophet draws on a shared cultural sense of the sea as something that cannot be tamed or trusted. The “mire and mud” churned up from the bottom would have been vivid to anyone who watched waves batter a shoreline: hidden filth dragged into the open. The verse is thus both a diagnosis of the wicked’s present state, perpetual disquiet, and a vivid picture of its foul output.
Literary context reinforces this. Verse 19 announces peace “to him who is far off and to him who is near.” Verse 21 abruptly closes: “There is no peace… for the wicked.” The two peace pronouncements frame the image of the sea, making clear that the only alternative to God’s gift of shalom is this unending, self-generated storm.
Textual Notes
The supplied sources note no significant textual variants for Isaiah 57:20. The Masoretic Text is stable across manuscripts. The Septuagint paraphrases the verse rather than translating it word-for-word, using κλυδωνισθήσονται (“they will be tossed like waves”), but this does not reflect a different Hebrew Vorlage. The Greek text in Codex Vaticanus and Codex Sinaiticus agrees with the LXX wording. No other variants are mentioned in the consulted commentaries.
Reception History
This verse has been widely used in Christian tradition to depict the restless misery of a life apart from God. Patristic writers such as Cyril of Alexandria read it as an image of the fallen soul’s constant disturbance by disordered passions. Medieval preachers often cited it alongside Isaiah 48:22 to warn that there is no peace for the wicked, a refrain that appears in countless sermons and hymn texts. The metaphor of the sea as a picture of the unquiet human heart also appears in the works of Augustine and Thomas à Kempis. In the Reformation era, both Catholic and Protestant commentators (e.g., Cornelius à Lapide and John Calvin) emphasized the contrast with God’s gift of peace to the penitent. Modern pastoral use often connects the verse to the inner restlessness that only God can still, and it is frequently quoted in contexts of counseling and evangelism.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- Restlessness is the mark of a life without God. The sea is “troubled” (nigrash), passive, driven by forces beyond itself. So the wicked: their inner life is not their own choosing but a turmoil they cannot stop. Barnes compares it to the ocean that “never can be at rest.”
- What churns up comes from within. The sea’s waves toss up “mire and mud.” Gill says this pictures how the hearts of the wicked have nothing but sin and “cast out nothing else but the froth and foam of their own shame.” Their words and actions are simply what is already inside (cf. Proverbs 4:16, 17).
- Only God’s peace can still the storm. Verse 21 announces the verdict: no peace. But the surrounding passage also offers healing to those who turn (vv.18, 19). The restless sea of the wicked is not the final word for those who repent.
Five-point outline
- The wicked as the restless sea, the picture of inner chaos (v.20a)
- Unable to be still, the loss of composure and peace (v.20b)
- Mire and mud, the inevitable output of sin (v.20c)
- The divine verdict, “no peace” for the wicked (v.21)
- The alternative, God’s peace for the repentant (vv.18, 19)
Illustration hooks
- Stand at the ocean shore during a storm: the waves never stop pounding, the water is brown with stirred-up sand and debris. That relentless, chaotic motion is a picture of a soul without rest.
- Recall a time when you could not “turn off” your mind, worry, guilt, or anger kept churning. This is the inner world the verse describes, but it is not meant to be permanent for those who come to Christ.
- A friend who keeps seeking satisfaction in new purchases, relationships, or achievements, always restless, never content. The “sea” never quiets because it cannot produce its own peace.
Questions your congregation is asking
- “If I am a Christian, why do I still feel restless and guilty?”
- “Does this verse mean that any non-Christian is completely without moments of peace?”
- “How can I tell if my restlessness is from sin or from something else (like anxiety or grief)?”
Leading a Discussion
This verse is a mirror. It shows what life looks like when we push God away: not freedom, but endless churning. The good news is that two verses earlier, God promises to heal and bring peace to those who turn back to Him. As you discuss, hold both truths together, the honest diagnosis and the open door.
Discussion questions
- Read Isaiah 57:18, 21 as a group. What is the contrast between the “peace” in verse 19 and the “no peace” in verse 21?
- The Hebrew word for “troubled” (nigrash) means “tossed, driven.” Why does the grammar describe the sea as passive, being thrown around, rather than actively churning? How does that picture the wicked?
- Barnes says the sea’s restlessness is “not occasionally agitated” but is a permanent state. What does that suggest about a life lived apart from God, even when things look calm on the surface?
- The verse says the sea “cannot rest.” What kinds of “rest” do people try to find apart from God (money, relationships, achievements)? Why don’t they work?
- Mire and mud come from the bottom of the sea, hidden things brought to light. What might the “mire and mud” represent in a person’s life (words, thoughts, actions)?
- Keil and Delitzsch identify the wicked as those within Israel who persist in rebellion, not outsiders. How might Christians avoid the same trap, being part of the church but still living like the restless sea?
- How does Jesus offer to still the “sea” of our inner turmoil? Share one step your group could take this week to receive His peace rather than trying to manufacture it.
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Job 15:20 | the wicked man writhes in pain all his days, even the number of years that are laid up for the oppressor. |
| Job 15:24 | Distress and anguish make him afraid. They prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle. |
| Job 18:5 | “Yes, the light of the wicked will be put out. The spark of his fire won’t shine. |
| Job 18:14 | He will be rooted out of the security of his tent. He will be brought to the king of terrors. |
| Job 20:11 | His bones are full of his youth, but youth will lie down with him in the dust. |
| Job 20:29 | This is the portion of a wicked man from God, the heritage appointed to him by God.” |
| Psalms 73:18 | Surely you set them in slippery places. You throw them down to destruction. |
| Psalms 73:20 | As a dream when one wakes up, so, Lord, when you awake, you will despise their fantasies. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
8 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes argues that the wicked are like the sea not because they are occasionally stormy, but because they can never be still. He sees a permanent restlessness in the sinner’s soul—no peace from raging passions, a guilty conscience, or fear of judgment. This contrasts entirely with the calm of the righteous.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The Cambridge Bible School notes the striking shift from the harsh tone of earlier verses to the elevated language describing God's gracious thoughts toward repentant people. The commentator emphasizes that the peace promised to the penitent stands in sharp contrast to the eternal unrest of the wicked, for whom there is no peace.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note highlights the image of the restless sea as a picture of the wicked: constantly agitated, never at peace. What they churn up is not life-giving water but mire and dirt, emphasizing that their inner turmoil produces only impurity, not righteousness.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill compares the wicked to a storm-tossed sea that cannot settle, churning up mire and dirt. Their minds are agitated by guilt, envy, and God’s judgments, producing nothing but blasphemy, malice, and shameful words against God and His people.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB argues that the Hebrew text describes a condition of permanent unrest, not just occasional agitation. The English Version suggests the sea is sometimes stirred up, but the original language conveys that it can have no rest at all.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
God's work of redemption brings lasting peace to His people scattered far and near, but that peace is only for those who respond with praise. The wicked within Israel remain like a restless sea, unable to find rest and continually producing what is unclean. They have no peace.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Matthew Henry notes that God's anger against Israel was provoked specifically by their covetousness, which he calls a spiritual idolatry worthy of divine smiting. Yet God sees the ways of the penitent and promises healing, leading, and restoring comforts to them. The wicked, in contrast, are like the restless sea, which has no peace.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley observes that the restless turmoil these people experience comes from being constantly driven by their own uncontrolled desires and passions, compounded by guilt and the terrifying fear of God's coming judgment. Their agitation is internal, not external.