We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.

ISAIAH 59:11KJV
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Isaiah 59:11 (KJV)

What does Isaiah 59:11 mean?

Isaiah 59:11 describes people expressing deep distress and frustration, comparing their loud cries to bears roaring and their sorrowful sounds to doves mourning. The verse says they are desperately hoping for justice and rescue, but these things seem completely out of reach.

The prophet Isaiah is speaking on behalf of the people of Israel, describing their experience during a time when they feel abandoned and overwhelmed by injustice. The vivid animal imagery highlights how intense and public their suffering is, while their longing for "judgment" (fairness or justice) and "salvation" (deliverance or rescue) shows how hopeless their situation feels.

The Hebrew behind Isaiah 59:11

  • "Roar" (הָמָה, hāmāh): This word often describes a loud, unsettling noise, like the growl or roar of a wild animal. Here, it emphasizes the intensity and rawness of the people's cries.
  • "Mourn" (הָגָה, hāgāh): While this word can mean to meditate or mutter, in this context it refers to the low, sorrowful sounds doves make, painting a picture of quiet, ongoing grief.
  • "Judgment" (מִשְׁפָּט, mishpāṭ): This word means justice or a fair decision. The people are longing for things to be set right, but feel there is no justice to be found.
  • "Salvation" (יְשׁוּעָה, yeshu‘āh): This word means deliverance or rescue. The verse stresses how far away any hope of being saved feels to them.

Why Isaiah 59:11 matters

  • Isaiah 59:11 clears up that the people's suffering is not just private or inward; it is loud, visible, and desperate, using animal sounds to show how deeply troubled they are.
  • The verse emphasizes that the real problem is the absence of justice and deliverance, not just personal sadness, tying their emotional pain to the brokenness of their society.
  • Isaiah 59:11 connects to the wider chapter, which explains that these conditions are the result of the people's own wrongdoing and separation from God, setting up the hope for restoration later in the passage.

Where else these words appear

“bears” Hebrew H1677 · used in 12 verses

  • 1 Samuel 17:34 And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:
  • 2 Samuel 17:8 For, said Hushai, thou knowest thy father and his men, that they be mighty men, and they be chafed in their minds, as a bear robbed of her whelps in the field: and thy father is a man of war, and will not lodge with the people.
  • Isaiah 11:7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

“mourn” Hebrew H1897 · used in 24 verses

  • Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
  • Psalms 63:6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.
  • Isaiah 8:19 And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?

“roar” Hebrew H1993 · used in 32 verses

  • 1 Kings 1:41 And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, Wherefore is this noise of the city being in an uproar?
  • Psalms 77:3 I remembered God, and was troubled: I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah.
  • Isaiah 51:15 But I am the LORD thy God, that divided the sea, whose waves roared: The LORD of hosts is his name.

“doves” Hebrew H3123 · used in 32 verses

  • Genesis 8:8 Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground;
  • Leviticus 14:22 And two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, such as he is able to get; and the one shall be a sin offering, and the other a burnt offering.
  • Song of Solomon 4:1 Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes within thy locks: thy hair is as a flock of goats, that appear from mount Gilead.