8 Heb “meet [with kindness].”
9 Heb “the one who rejoices and does righteousness.”
10 Heb “in your ways they remember you.”
11 The Hebrew text reads literally, “look, you were angry and we sinned against them continually [or perhaps, “in ancient times”] and we were delivered.” The statement makes little sense as it stands. The first vav [ו] consecutive (“and we sinned”) must introduce an explanatory clause here (see Num 1:48 and Isa 39:1 for other examples of this relatively rare use of the vav [ו] consecutive). The final verb (if rendered positively) makes no sense in this context—God’s anger at their sin resulted in judgment, not deliverance. One of the alternatives involves an emendation to וַנִּרְשָׁע (vannirsha’, “and we were evil”; , , ). The and the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa support the reading. One can either accept an emendation or cast the statement as a question (as above).
12 Heb “and like a garment of menstruation [are] all our righteous acts”; , “filthy rags”; “a polluted garment.”
13 Or “calls out in”; , , “calls on.”
14 Or “rouses himself”; “arouses himself.”
15 Heb “for you have hidden your face from us.”
16 The Hebrew text reads literally, “and you caused us to melt in the hand of our sin.” The verb וַתְּמוּגֵנוּ (vattémugenu) is a Qal preterite 2nd person masculine singular with a 1st person common plural suffix from the root מוּג (mug, “melt”). However, elsewhere the Qal of this verb is intransitive. If the verbal root מוּג (mug) is retained here, the form should be emended to a Polel pattern (וַתְּמֹגְגֵנוּ, vattémogégenu). The translation assumes an emendation to וַתְּמַגְּנֵנוּ (vattémaggénenu, “and you handed us over”). This form is a Piel preterite 2nd person masculine singular with a 1st person common plural suffix from the verbal root מִגֵּן (miggen, “hand over, surrender”; see מגן and 171 מָגָן). The point is that God has abandoned them to their sinful ways and no longer seeks reconciliation.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

You meet him who joyfully works righteousness,

those who remember you in your ways.

Behold, you were angry, and we sinned;

in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved?

We have all become like one who is unclean,

and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.

We all fade like a leaf,

and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

There is no one who calls upon your name,

who rouses himself to take hold of you;

for you have hidden your face from us,

and have made us melt in the hand of our iniquities.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

You come to the help of those who gladly do right,

who remember your ways.

But when we continued to sin against them,

you were angry.

How then can we be saved?

All of us have become like one who is unclean,

and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;

we all shrivel up like a leaf,

and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

No one calls on your name

or strives to lay hold of you;

for you have hidden your face from us

and have given us over to our sins.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

You welcome the one who joyfully does what is right;

they remember you in your ways.

But we have sinned, and you were angry.

How can we be saved if we remain in our sins?

All of us have become like something unclean,

and all our righteous acts are like a polluted garment;

all of us wither like a leaf,

and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.

No one calls on your name,

striving to take hold of you.

For you have hidden your face from us

and made us melt because of our iniquity.

NLTNew Living Translation

You welcome those who gladly do good,

who follow godly ways.

But you have been very angry with us,

for we are not godly.

We are constant sinners;

how can people like us be saved?

We are all infected and impure with sin.

When we display our righteous deeds,

they are nothing but filthy rags.

Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall,

and our sins sweep us away like the wind.

Yet no one calls on your name

or pleads with you for mercy.

Therefore, you have turned away from us

and turned us over to our sins.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

You meet with the one who rejoices,

one who does righteousness.

In your ways they remember you.

Look! You were angry and we sinned against them in ancient times and we were saved.

And we all have become like the unclean,

and all our deeds of justice like a menstrual cloth,

And we all wither like a leaf,

and our iniquities take us away like the wind.

And there is no one who calls on your name,

who pulls himself up to keep hold of you,

for you have hidden your face from us,

and melted us into the hand of our iniquity.

KJV 1900King James Version

Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness,

Those that remember thee in thy ways:

Behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned:

In those is continuance, and we shall be saved.

But we are all as an unclean thing,

And all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags;

And we all do fade as a leaf;

And our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

And there is none that calleth upon thy name,

That stirreth up himself to take hold of thee:

For thou hast hid thy face from us,

And hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.

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