The LORD was pleased, for his righteousness’ sake, to magnify his law and make it glorious.
English Standard Version (ESV)
What's often missed is that God's "pleasure" isn't about us earning it, but about His own integrity – He delights in upholding His promises and making His Word shine, even when we fail. This means He magnifies His law not to condemn us further, but to reveal its glorious worth and His steadfast commitment to it through His actions.
The LORD was pleased, for his righteousness’ sake, to magnify his law and make it glorious.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This verse appears after a description of Israel's blindness and deafness to God's message, highlighting their failures despite all God has done. It then pivots to declare God's desire to uphold His law and make it honored, even amidst Israel's unfaithfulness. The following verses will explain how this divine purpose is hindered by Israel's continued sin and the resulting judgment they face.
Why would God be 'well pleased' with a people who are described as 'robbed and plundered'?
The verse starts with a surprising statement: 'The LORD was pleased...'. But why was God pleased? The text clarifies: 'for his righteousness’ sake.' This isn't about humanity's merit or achievement. It points to God's own character, His faithfulness to His promises, and His commitment to His covenant.
What does it mean for God to 'magnify the law' and make it 'glorious'?
God's 'pleasure' is directly linked to His action: 'to magnify his law and make it glorious.' This wasn't just about giving the law at Mount Sinai; it's a continuous process of upholding its importance and honor.
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Understand the original words
YHWH · Hebrew Proper Noun
The personal, covenant name of God in the Old Testament, representing His self-existence, faithfulness, and holiness. It is the name by which God revealed Himself to Moses at the burning bush.
tsedaqah · Hebrew Noun
A state of moral conformity to God’s nature and standards. It refers to God's character as just, upright, and faithful to His covenant promises.
torah · Hebrew Noun
The instruction, direction, or revealed will of God given to His people. It encompasses the entirety of God's moral and ceremonial requirements for holiness.
This verse speaks to God's unwavering commitment to His own character and His Law, even in the face of Israel's repeated disobedience. It foreshadows a future fulfillment, ultimately realized in Christ, where God's righteousness would be displayed by exalting His Law through perfect obedience and atoning sacrifice.
c. 1446 BC
Giving of the Law at Sinai
God gives the Ten Commandments and the covenant laws to the Israelites through Moses, establishing a foundational legal and religious framework for the nation.
c. 740 BC
Prophecy of Isaiah Begins
Isaiah begins his prophetic ministry in Judah during a time of political instability and spiritual decline, calling the nation to repentance and foretelling future judgment and restoration.
c. 701 BC
Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem
The Assyrian Empire under Sennacherib lays siege to Jerusalem. Though the city is miraculously spared, the event highlights Judah's precarious political situation and its reliance on God.
c. 605-586 BC
Babylonian Exile Begins
The first wave of Judeans, including Daniel, are deported to Babylon. Jerusalem and the Temple are eventually destroyed in 586 BC, marking a period of national devastation and spiritual crisis.
Isaiah 42:21— this verse
God's Pleasure in Magnifying His Law
Despite Israel's repeated failures and impending judgment, the Lord declares His pleasure in His own righteousness and His intention to exalt His Law, making it glorious through His faithfulness and future redemptive work.
c. 538 BC
Return from Exile
Cyrus the Great allows the Judeans to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple, marking the end of the Babylonian exile and a restoration of national and religious life.
c. AD 30-33
Ministry of Jesus
Jesus, the Servant of the Lord prophesied by Isaiah, perfectly fulfills God's Law through His life, teachings, death, and resurrection, thereby magnifying and glorifying it in a way Israel could not.
This passage powerfully explains how God magnifies His law and makes it honorable through Jesus' sacrifice. It shows that humanity's failure to keep the law actually highlights God's righteousness and justice when He justifies those who believe in Christ.
Matthew 5:17-20Jesus directly addresses His mission to 'magnify the law and make it honorable.' He declares that He did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it, thereby upholding its divine authority and making its righteousness visible.
John 1:14This verse speaks to the glory of God's Word becoming flesh. It connects to Isaiah's theme by showing how God's law and purpose were not just magnified in decree, but ultimately glorified and made tangible in the person of Jesus Christ.
Deuteronomy 4:5-8This passage shows God giving Israel a law that was meant to make them stand out and be seen as wise by other nations. It parallels Isaiah's idea of God magnifying His law, intending it to bring honor and recognition to His name through His people.
barnesIsaiah 42:21: "The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness' sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable."
The Lord is well pleased for his righteousness' sake - There is great variety in the translation and interpretation of this verse. Lowth renders it: Yet Yahweh was gracious unto him for his truth's sake; He hath exalted his own praise, and made it glorious. Noyes renders it: It pleased Yahweh for his goodness' sake To give him a law great and glorious; And yet it is a robbed an…
bensonIsaiah 42:21: "The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness' sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable."
Isaiah 42:21 . The Lord is well pleased, &c. — Although thou art a wicked people, that rebellest against the clearest light, and therefore God might justly destroy thee suddenly, yet he will patiently wait for thy repentance, that he may be gracious; and that not for thy sake, but for the glory of his own faithfulness, in fulfilling that covenant which he made with thy pious pr…
What's often missed is that God's "pleasure" isn't about us earning it, but about His own integrity – He delights in upholding His promises and making His Word shine, even when we fail. This means He magnifies His law not to condemn us further, but to reveal its glorious worth and His steadfast commitment to it through His actions.
This verse appears after a description of Israel's blindness and deafness to God's message, highlighting their failures despite all God has done. It then pivots to declare God's desire to uphold His law and make it honored, even amidst Israel's unfaithfulness. The following verses will explain how this divine purpose is hindered by Israel's continued sin and the resulting judgment they face.
This verse appears after a description of Israel's blindness and deafness to God's message, highlighting their failures despite all God has done. It then pivots to declare God's desire to uphold His law and make it honored, even amidst Israel's unfaithfulness. The following verses will explain how this divine purpose is hindered by Israel's continued sin and the resulting judgment they face.
"The LORD was pleased, for his righteousness’ sake, to magnify his law and make it glorious." — What's often missed is that God's "pleasure" isn't about us earning it, but about His own integrity – He delights in upholding His promises and making His Word shine, even when we fail. This means He…
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Last reviewed October 2026