Table Of ContentRIGHTEOUSNESS. This entry consists of four articles surveying the concept of righteousness in the OT,
in early Judaism, in the non-Jewish Greco-Roman world, and in the NT
OLD TESTAMENT
The RSV renders the Hebrew ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ by a variety of words: acquittal, deliverance, honest evidence
(Prov 12:17), integrity (Job 31:6), judgment, justice, prosperity, right, righteousness (most common), righteous
deeds, righteous help, salvation, saving help, victory, vindication. The JB often translates the Hebrew as
“integrity,” especially in Isaiah 40–66 and the Psalms. These various renderings endeavor to compass the
constellation of nuances that the Hebrew conveys, particularly when in parallelism with other words or when in
the context of different word groups.
The meaning of words that derive from the root ṣdq cannot be determined a priori. There is no basic ṣdq
notion that must always be present with the three radicals ṣ-d-q. The OT texts must not be read through the eyes
of the Reformation controversies about “righteousness” and “justification,” or even through Paul’s letters to the
Romans and Galatians. The OT writers were not aware of the problems of the Church of the 1st or 16th
centuries. The words and phrases, “righteousness,” “justification,” “he … whose sin is covered … to whom the
Lord imputes no iniquity” (RSV Ps 32:1–2; cf. JB, NEB, NIV, AB), evoke theological associations which must
be laid aside when dealing with the Heb terms ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ.
A. Cognate Background of ṣdq
B. Range and Meaning of Terms
C. Legal Uses and Nuances
1. The Verb
2. Nouns in the Pentateuch
3. Other Uses
D. Proper Order, Proper Comportment
1. 8th-Century Prophecy
2. 7th-Century Prophecy
3. Psalms
4. Isaiah 40–66
5. Ezekial, Malachi, Joel
6. Joshua–2 Kings
7. Job, Proverbs, Qoheleth
8. Daniel
9. s\edeq-s\eádāqaÆ + mišpāt
E. God’s ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ: Saving Action
1. Psalms
2. Isaiah 40–55
3. Isaiah 56–66
4. Hosea, Micah, Isaiah 1–39
5. Jeremiah, Zechariah, Malachi
F. Plural of ṣĕdāqâ
G. Parallels and Word-fields
H. The Just or Righteous One (Heb ṣadd q)
I. Current Research
J. Summary and Conclusion
A. Cognate Background of ṣdq
The root ṣdq is West Semitic in origin and is well attested in this language group:
1. Akkadian. The CAD has only one entry for ṣaduq and describes the word as an adjective meaning
“right,” “just.” Abdu-hepa of Jerusalem (14th century B.C.) writes to the king of Egypt, “See, my Lord, I am
right (ṣa-du-uq) about the people of GN” Abdu-hepa is acting as he should in the king’s interest.
2. Amorite. The word ṣaduq occurs as a component of a number of Amorite names in which it is probably
a theophorous element; ṣidq is rendered “justice,” “rightness” by Huffmon (APNM, 256–57), who notes that the
root is common Semitic, except Akkadian.
3. Old South Arabic. The verb ṣdq means “to grant, concede, fulfill an obligation, keep faith with (?)”; the
noun means “right, due, truth, reality (?)”; the adjective means “proper, appropriate,” with the nuances of
“happy and fortunate” (Meyer 1966: 229; DOSA, 416–18).
4. Ugaritic. The word ṣdq is found in a number of proper names in the Ras Shamra texts (UT, 472–73). In
the KRT text ṣdqh is an abstract noun in parallelism with yšrh (Fisher 1972: 320); Gray (1965: 132, n. 7)
renders the words as “legitimate wife” (wife of ṣdqh), as does Gordon (1949: 67). The king of Ugarit is
described as bʿl ṣdq (Gray 1966: 175–76), which may mean “legitimate king” or perhaps “lord of order,” i.e.,
the one who brings right order or prosperity into life by giving the rain. Further information is found in Fisher
(1981: 132, 203, 406–10).
5. Northwest Semitic Inscriptions. The word ṣdq occurs in a number of Aramaic and Phoenician
inscriptions the text of which, with German translation and comments, may be found in the three Donner-Röllig
(KAI) volumes; there is an English translation of some of these in ANET (499–505, 653–62). The words ṣdq and
yšr occur together in the 10th-century Yeḥimilk inscription from Byblos describing “a righteous king and an
upright king” (ANET, 499; KAI 1: 1; 2: 6); Swetnam (1965: 32) argues for “legitimate” instead of “righteous,”
Herrmann (1958: 22) for “lawful” referring to Jer 23:5, smḥ ṣdq, “a righteous, lawful branch.” The Jeremiah
phrase is found in the Phoenician Lapēthos inscription (KAI 1: 10; 2: 60–61) from Cyprus, 3d century B.C.
Cooke (1903: 82) proposes “legitimate offspring”; Swetnam (1965: 29–31) “rightful scion”; KAI “legitimer
Spross.” In a bilingual inscription from Karatepe (8th century B.C.), Azitwadda narrates his good deeds and says
that “every king considered me his father because of my righteousness (bṣdqy) and my wisdom and the
kindness of my heart” (ANET, 499–500); likewise KAI (1: 5; 2: 36); Swetnam (1965: 34) renders “because of
my rightfulness” (i.e., legitimacy).
The substantive ṣdq occurs five times in the Zinçirli inscriptions (8th century), preceded each time by the
preposition b, twice without suffix, twice with the suffix of 1st sing., once with the suffix of 3d masc. sing. KAI
(1: 40–41; 2: 224, 233, 237) renders it as “loyalty,” i.e., to the Assyrian overlord. Swetnam (1965: 34–36),
following Euler (1938: 278–79), disagrees with the rendering “loyalty” in the Panammuwa and Barrākib
inscriptions (Zinçirli) and argues strongly for “legitimate succession,” as it is a question of legitimate succession
from father to son. In the Barrākib inscription the incumbent says that he was seated on the throne “because of
the righteousness of my father (bṣdq ʾby) and my own righteousness (bṣdqy) …” (ANET, 501).
On a 7th-century B.C. Aramaic tomb inscription from Nērāb, 7 km E of Aleppo, Agbar, priest of Sahr, has
had inscribed “because of my righteousness (bṣdqty) before him, he gave me a good name and prolonged my
days” (ANET, 505; KAI 1: 45; 2: 276). The word ṣdqh appears with the definite article, ṣdqtʾ, in a 5th–4th-
century inscription from Tēmā in Arabia. KAI renders it “present of allegiance,” “Loyalitätsgeschenk” (1: 46; 2:
79–80), Cooke (1903: 196) by “a grant,” Jean and Hoftijzer (DISO, 243) list as meanings “merit or desert.” A
5th-century Phoenician inscription commemorating the foundation of a temple near Sidon records that the king
BDʿŠTRT and bn ṣdq were its founders; KAI (1: 3; 2: 25) renders the latter by “heir,” “son, who is legitimate
heir,” referring to Jer 23:5; 33:15. There is also attestation of a West-Semitic god, ṣedeq (Rosenberg 1965).
Thus, ṣdq, in West Semitic apart from Hebrew, covers a range of meanings: proper conduct, order,
righteousness, legitimacy of succession, loyalty, favor, concession, grant.
B. Range and Meaning of Terms
Words deriving from the root ṣdq occur 523 times in the OT: verbal forms 41 times, the nouns ṣedeq 119
times, and ṣĕdāqâ 157 times, the adjective-substantive ṣadd q 206 times. Well over half of the occurrences of
the nouns are in the Psalms, the poetic sections of the Prophets, and the regular verse of Proverbs. Some
scholars make a distinction between ṣedeq and ṣĕdāqâ. Jepsen (1965: 79, 81), for example, maintains that ṣedeq
means right order; it is concerned “with a situation that in fact is as it ought or must be”; ṣedeq is “an action
directed toward the right order of the community and accordingly to its well-being”; ṣĕdāqâ is used of human
well-being or right behavior; it is that which puts one in order before God. God’s ṣĕdāqâ is aimed at order in his
creation and at leading his community to its goal; it is his salvific will in action. Schmid (1968: 67, 179) follows
Jepsen: “ṣdq and ṣdqh are to be distinguished: ṣdq concerns proper order, ṣdqh means the proper order of the
world, willed by Yahweh, which brings prosperity, ṣdqh its appropriate, proper, prosperous state.” Others, like
Fahlgren (1932), see no essential difference between the two and treat them without distinction. The latter view
is favored here. The note of Watson (1980: 335) is pertinent in this context: “I would like to point out that it is
not always advisable to draw theological conclusions on the basis of a particular word, differentiating, for
example, between ṣedeq and ṣĕdēqâ [sic], both basically meaning ‘justice.’ They can have different
connotations, but there are texts (e.g., Ps 72:3) where choice has been dictated by poetic convention.”
Scholars discern a wide range of meanings, emphases, and directions in biblical ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ: health of
soul, links in a covenant, loyal activity (Pedersen 1926: 336–77); community loyalty (Fahlgren 1932); order,
fitting into order, salvific order (Procksch 1950: 568–77); prosperity, saving gift (Cazelles 1951); community
loyalty (Koch 1953; 1961; THAT 2: 507–30); Yahweh’s acts, his loyalty to the covenant, relationship (ROTT,
370–83, 392–95); justice (Dünner 1963); a judicial and soteriological process of judging, acquitting, and saving
(Justesen 1964); world order (Schmid 1968; 1984); order put into effect by Yahweh, Yahweh’s saving action
that puts this order into effect (Reventlow 1971); divine covenant activity and conduct that befits the covenant
(Ziesler 1972); Yahweh’s action toward Israel, toward the individual in distress, his saving action in the future
(Crüsemann 1976); legal order, proper order in the community, saving and liberating order (TRE 12: 404–11).
Many of these scholars underscore the notion of saving action toward the people of Israel and the helpless
individual—the poor, the oppressed, the widow, the orphan.
C. Legal Uses and Nuances
1. The Verb. The verb is used predominantly in a forensic sense. The discussion here considers the various
Heb verbal stems.
a. Qal. The stative verb expresses how someone stands before the law or God. Judah says of Tamar: “She
is more righteous than I” (Gen 38:26); i.e., the law is on Tamar’s side (cf. Ezek 36:2–5). Eliphaz asks Job: “Can
a mortal be righteous before (OR more than) God?” (4:17; cf. 9:2, 15, 20; 10:15; 15:14; 25:4; 34:5); Elihu uses
the verb in the same sense (33:12; 35:7); and a psalmist declares: “for no one living is righteous before you”
(143:2). God challenges Job: “Will you then quash my judgment? condemn me that you may be right?” (40:8).
One may render the two passages in the exchange between Job and Zophar: “Shall the glib one be acquitted?”
(11:2) and “See now, I set forth my case, I know I shall be acquitted” (13:18), and the objection of Eliphaz:
“What good to Shaddai if you are just?” (22:3; Pope Job AB, 80, 93, 148).
One psalmist declares that “the ordinances of Yahweh are true, and righteous altogether” (Ps 19:10—Eng v
9); another acknowledges that he has sinned against God, and him alone, “so that you are justified in your
sentence” (Ps 51:6—Eng v 4). The forensic sense is clear in the rîb-passages in Deutero-Isaiah (43:9, 26), and
in the summary verse: “In Yahweh all the offspring of Israel shall triumph (be justified) and glory” (45:25).
b. Hipʿil. The Hipʿil, causative, is used primarily in the sense of acquit, justify, declare right, vindicate.
Those who judge in Israel acquit and vindicate (Exod 23:7; Deut 25:1; 2 Sam 15:4). The one who does the
reverse of this, who “justifies the wicked and condemns the righteous,” is an abomination to the Lord (Prov
17:15 = Isa 5:23). Solomon calls on God to vindicate the just (1 Kgs 8:32 = 2 Chr 6:23), and the psalmist asks
God to “give justice to the weak and fatherless, maintain the right of the afflicted and destitute” (Ps 82:3). The
Lord “who vindicates me is near” (Isa 50:8). There are three passages where the forensic sense is weak, if not
absent: Job says to Bildad: “Far be it from me to declare you right” (Job 27:5); “my servant, righteous, will
bring righteousness to many” (Isa 53:11); “those who turn many to righteousness” (Dan 12:3). There is another
possible use of the verb in the Hipʿil: “to defend (lit., and the meekness of) right” (Ps 45:5—Eng v 4)
corresponds to MT, wĕ ʿanwah ṣedeq; with no emendations but with a redistribution of the consonants, one may
read wĕ ʿānāw haṣdēq, “defend the poor,” with a Hipʿil imperative of the verb (Dahood Psalms 1 AB, 272).
c. Piʿel. The Piʿel inf. occurs twice in Job, once when Elihu is angry with Job because he “held himself
righteous rather (more righteous) than God,” (32:2), and again when he calls on Job “to show off your
righteousness” (33:32). Ezekiel says that Jerusalem has committed so many abominations that “you have made
your sisters appear righteous” (16:51, 52). The Lord said to Jeremiah: “The nepeš (life) of faithless Israel is
more righteous than false Judah” (3:11).
d. Nipʿal. Daniel speaks of the sanctuary that shall be restored to its rightful place, wĕniṣdāq qōdeš (8:14);
i.e., proper liturgical order will be restored.
e. Hitpaʿel. When the brothers of Joseph are discovered to have the money they paid for the corn in their
sacks, Judah replies on their behalf: “How shall we justify ourselves?” (Gen 44:16).
2. Nouns in the Pentateuch. The comparatively few uses of ṣedeq and ṣĕdēqâ are predominantly legal.
The word ṣedeq occurs 7 times in Leviticus and Deuteronomy in a juridical sense. The judge shall be impartial
in giving judgment; he shall judge bĕṣedeq (Lev 19:15), according to what is laid down, without regard to
persons (cf. Deut 1:16; 16:18, 20; for remaining uses of ṣedeq, see below).
The word ṣĕdāqâ is found only in Deuteronomy and Genesis. In the short confession of faith (Deut 6:20–
25), the children ask their father about “the testimonies and the statutes and the ordinances which the Lord our
God has commanded you” (v 20). The father replies that Yahweh, who led his people from Egypt, gave the
commands “for our good” (v 24); i.e., by such ordered conduct, we will be doing what is proper, ṣĕdāqâ. In
Deuteronomy 9, the people are addressed as having already taken possession of the land. But the possession is
the result of Yahweh’s action, not theirs; it is not because of their own ṣĕdāqâ (vv 4, 5, 6) that they are there,
but because of Yahweh’s action.
In Gen 18:18–19, Yahweh reflects whether he should reveal to Abraham what he is to do to Sodom and
Gomorrah: “I have chosen (known) him, that he may charge his children and his household after him to keep
the way of the Lord by doing ṣĕdāqâ and mišpāṭ.” The way of the Lord is the following of his ordinances and
commands, and this is ṣĕdāqâ and mišpāṭ.In the episode of the spotted sheep and goats, Jacob says to Laban:
“My ṣĕdāqâ will answer for me later” (Gen 30:33). Jacob’s honesty or proper conduct will be his vindication.
The accepted interpretation of Gen 15:6 is that Abraham believed in Yahweh and he (Yahweh) attributed it
(the act of believing) to him (Abraham) [as] ṣĕdāqâ. Following von Rad’s important essay (PHOE, 130–35),
many have seen the background to this famous verse in the liturgy of the temple. The priest declares the
worshipper righteous “who conducts himself properly with reference to an existing communal relationship,
who, therefore, does justice to the claims which the communal relationship makes on him … Man is righteous
so long as he affirms the regulations of this communal relationship established by God, say, the covenant and
the commandments.” The Abraham episode is, of course, not within the realm of cult; “it is transferred to the
realm of God’s free and personal relationship to Abraham” (von Rad Genesis OTL, 185). According to von
Rad, the author of Gen 15:6 has Yahweh, not a temple official, priest or Levite, make the pronouncement. And
Yahweh pronounces Abraham to have fulfilled righteousness, to share righteousness, ṣĕdāqâ, not by an act or a
work, ritual or otherwise, but by faith. Von Rad understands the verse less as a polemic than as a revolutionary
statement. Faith sets one right with God, and it is God who reckons this internal act to Abraham as ṣĕdāqâ.
The MT of Gen 15:6 reads: “And Abraham went on believing (GKC, 112e, [a][A]) in Yahweh and he
[who?] reckoned it [what?] to him [to whom?] ṣĕdāqâ.” The LXX reads: “And Abraham believed in God, and it
was reckoned (elogisthē, aor. pass.) to him unto righteousness (eis dikaiosynēn). Paul (Rom 4:3; Gal 3:6) and
James (2:23) repeat this rendering. However, the text is readily patient of another interpretation: “Abraham
went on believing in Yahweh, and he (Abraham) reckoned it (the promise of son and descendants) to him
(Yahweh) (as: no prep. in MT) fidelity (ṣĕdāqâ),” i.e., Yahweh, who had promised myriads of descendants to
Abraham (12:1–3), has, despite appearances to the contrary (15:2–3), remained faithful to himself (15:4–5)
(Gaston 1980; Oeming 1983). When Phinehas rose up and interposed and the plague was stayed (Ps 106:30–
31), this action was reckoned (Nipʿal, pass.) to him liṣdāqâ. Phinehas was considered to have done the proper
thing.
3. Other Uses. Isa 5:23 heaps “woe” on judges who “acquit (maṣd q , lit., acquitters of) the guilty for a
bribe and reject the right of the just (ṣidqat ṣadd q m; the case of, the just cause of, the just).” For ṣĕdāqâ as
claim or right, cf. 2 Sam 19:28–29—Eng 19:27–28; Neh 2:20; see below.
The word ṣedeq is used adjectivally, governed by a noun in the construct state, and often in the sense of
legitimate. Priests are to offer zibḥê ṣedeq, legitimate sacrifices, i.e., sacrifices according to the liturgical order
(Ps 4:6[5]; 51:21[19]; cf. Deut 33:19). The tradesman must have just balances, moʾzn ṣedeq, i.e., scales that do
not cheat, but weigh as they ought (Lev 19:36; Deut 25:15). In fact, everything dealing with weights and
measures must be ṣedeq (Lev 19:36; Ezek 45:10). Yahweh’s ordinances for one’s life are mišpāṭê ṣedeq, proper,
legitimate ordinances (Ps 119:7, 62, 75). In a royal psalm of thanksgiving the king praises God for his ḥesed
(loyalty, steadfast love, Ps 118:15). Yahweh, who has stood by him in his distress, is his yĕšuʿâ (saving action,
v 14); the ṣadd q m (the just) extoll Yahweh’s yĕšuʿâ. The king cries out: “Open to me the šaʿăr ṣedeq” (the
gates of righteousness, v 19) “for this is the gate of Yahweh” (v 20). The king will enter the city, or temple, to
the place where Yahweh’s order is found. The psalm is framed by Yahweh’s ḥesed (vv 1, 29), which leads to
his yĕšuʿâ; his steadfast love embraces his saving action and order. (Could malk ṣedeq, Melchizedek of Ps
110:5, mean “legitimate king,” rather than be a proper name? [Dahood Psalms III AB, 117]; cf. the Aramaic
inscriptions above.) Yahweh leads the psalmist along maʿgĕl ṣedeq, paths of proper, legitimate, order (Ps
23:3[2]). In the blessings of Moses, Gad is said to have executed the ṣidqat Yahweh and his mišpāṭ m (Deut
33:21), i.e., Yahweh’s prescribed order (some understand this in a martial context, Yahweh’s prescriptions for
war). Other uses of ṣedeq governed by the construct noun, ʿ r haṣṣedeq (a city where order dwells, Isa 1:26),
yoʿd ṣedeq (those who experience Yahweh’s saving action, Isa 51:7), ʾêlê ṣedeq (oaks of righteousness, Isa
61:3), are considered below.
D. Proper Order, Proper Comportment
The word ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ is used frequently in coordination with or in parallelism with mišpāṭ (order,
ordinance, judgment, a regular way of doing something). The combination ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ and mišpāṭ is in
essence a hendiadys describing that proper order in the life of the people that is put there and willed by God.
1. 8th-Century Prophecy. In Isaiah 1–39 ṣedeq occurs 9 times, 3 times in conjunction with or parallel to
mišpāṭ (1:21; 16:5; 32:1). Zion was once a faithful city, full of mišpāṭ and the dwelling place of ṣedeq (1:21);
now murderers lodge there; i.e., there was a time when proper order, Yahweh’s order, reigned; but no more.
When Yahweh acts in the future, it will be the faithful city once more and an ʿ r haṣṣedeq, “city of
righteousness” (1:26), where Yahweh’s order reigns (1:26), with the social disorders of vv 21–23 abolished.
When Yahweh’s reign finally prevails in Zion, chap. 16, and its oppressors are no more,
then a throne will be established in ḥesed (steadfast love),
and on it will sit in ʾemet (fidelity) in the tent of David
one who judges and seeks mišpāṭ,
who is quick to do ṣedeq (16:5).
Proper order will reign through Yahweh’s ideal king. In this ideal time
Behold, a king will reign lĕṣedeq,
and princes will rule lĕmišpāṭ (32:1).
The preposition l is rendered “by,” as often in Ugaritic and Hebrew. The king rules by a ṣedeq-mišpāṭ which
is not his own, but Yahweh’s (cf. Ps 72:1–3). The shoot from the stump of Jesse, upon whom the Spirit shall
rest (11:1–2), shall judge the poor bĕṣedeq and decide bĕm š r (by equity) on the oppressed of the land (11:4).
Proper order will be restored, and each will have his due. Ṣedeq shall be the girdle of his waist, ʾĕmûnâ
(fidelity) the girdle of his loins (11:4).
In the late Apocalypse of Isaiah (chap. 26), the righteous nation, goy ṣadd q, which keeps faith, is to enter
through the gates. When Yahweh’s judgments, mišpāṭ m, are upon the earth, the inhabitants learn ṣedeq from
his gracious action, but the wicked never learn ṣedeq (vv 9–10).
The word ṣĕdāqâ occurs 12 times in Isaiah 1–39, 8 times in conjunction with or parallel to mišpāṭ (1:27;
5:7, 16; 9:6[7]; 28:17; 32:16, 17; 33:5). Zion shall be an ʿ r haṣṣedeq (1:26, see above) because of Yahweh’s
action. She shall be redeemed by mišpāṭ, and those who repent in her by ṣĕdāqâ, i.e., by proper order and
conduct resulting from God’s action (1:27). In the song of the vineyard (5:1–7) Yahweh looked for mišpaṭ and
ṣĕdāqâ, loyal and proper conduct, but found only miśpāḥ, bloodshed (?), and ṣĕʿāqâ, a cry (v 7). There was
disorder, not order. The glory of God is found in mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ, in proper order (5:16). The ideal king will
rule and administer his kingdom with mišpaṭ and ṣĕdāqâ (9:6[7]), i.e., according to God’s proper order. The
foundations of Zion are to be laid with mišpāṭ as the line and ṣĕdāqâ as the plummet (28:17). Zion is to be
founded on proper order.
When the Spirit is poured from on high, then mišpāṭ will dwell in the wilderness and ṣĕdāqâ in the fruitful
field (32:15); God’s proper order comes with the Spirit. The effects of Yahweh’s action, ṣĕdāqâ will be šāl m,
prosperity, everlasting security, and trust (vv 16b–17a). All will find security (v 18). Yahweh on high answers
his people’s prayer (33:2); from his throne he will fill Zion with mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ (v 5), his blessed order;
and he will be the stability of your times,
abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is his treasure (33:6).
(Several passages in Isaiah 1–39 in which ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ occur are regarded by many scholars as coming
from hands later than the 8th century [1:27; 5:16; 10:22; 26:9, 10; 32:1, 16, 19; 33:5]. However, they are
considered here with the other Isaian passages. Chaps. 32–33 are very close in time, spirit, and language to
Deutero-Isaiah, and other sections [26:9, 10] reflect much later expectations.)
In Hosea, Yahweh takes the initiative so as to bring Israel back to him. He will remove the Baals, i.e., false
worship (2:19[17]), make a covenant (v 20[18]), and abolish disorder. “I will betrothe you to me bĕṣedeq û-
bĕmišpāṭ û-bĕḥesed û-bĕraḥăm m -bĕʾĕm nâ” (vv 21–22[19–20]). Yahweh will act toward Israel according
to his proper, loyal, merciful, and constant way of acting, and Israel, experiencing his steadfast love, will
respond with ṣedeq and mišpāṭ. Later, Yahweh calls on his people to “sow for yourselves liṣdāqâ (l- means “by
means of”), reap the fruit of ḥesed,” i.e., conduct yourselves toward Yahweh as he conducts himself toward
you, “that he may come and rain ṣedeq upon you” (Hos 10:12).
Amos attacks those who oppress the just one, ṣadd q (2:6; 5:12). The house of Israel is perverse; it has
turned the process of justice, proper order, upside down: “it turns mišpāṭ to wormwood, throws ṣĕdāqâ to earth”
(5:7; cf. 6:12). Yahweh does not want a mere formalized ritual (5:21–23); he wants proper order in every area
of life; and so
let mišpāṭ roll on like the waves, ṣĕdāqâ like an everlasting stream (5:24; cf. Isa 48:18).
Micah calls on the people to look back and experience Yahweh’s saving acts in history, ṣĕdāq t (6:5).
Yahweh’s demand on Israel in response is simple—to do mišpāṭ, i.e., to observe proper order, to be constant in
ḥesed, and to comport oneself humbly (6:8).
2. 7th-Century Prophecy. Zephaniah calls the people to hold an assembly: “Seek Yahweh, all you humble
of the land, who do his mišpāṭ, seek ṣedeq, seek ʿănāwâ (humility)” (2:3). The people are to do what is proper
in lowly submission before Yahweh.
Jeremiah calls all who enter at the gates of the city, from the king down, to do mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ (22:3),
i.e., to right the wrong done to the oppressed and to give justice to the alien, the fatherless, and the widow. The
builder, for example, must not misuse his workmen; he must dispense justice (22:13–17). If he does not act with
ṣedeq and mišpāṭ, then what profit to him? (v 13). His father(s) did act properly and took care of the poor and
the needy (v 15b).
Yahweh will raise up a ṣemaḥ ṣadd q (a legitimate branch; cf. above), a ṣemaḥ ṣĕdāqâ (33:15, same
meaning), who will execute mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ. This legitimate branch will be the instrument of Yahweh’s
order in such a way that Jerusalem will be called ṣidqēn (our righteousness, 33:16), the place where Yahweh’s
proper order is established. Where Yahweh is, there is proper, world order (Schmid 1968: 87–88).
The people must put aside false gods and idols (4:1); they must take their oath, beʾĕmet, bĕmišpāṭ, biṣdāqâ,
in such a way that their conduct really conforms to proper order. Then the nations shall glory in Yahweh. The
wise, the mighty, and the rich are not to glory in what they have, but rather in this, that they know and
experience that “I am Yahweh, doing ḥesed, mišpāṭ, ṣĕdāqâ” (9:23[24]). Yahweh is a God who acts true to
himself and preserves proper order in the world. When Yahweh restores the fortunes of his people, they shall
sing: “the Lord bless you, abode of ṣedeq, holy mountain” (31:33). The holy mountain is the place where
Yahweh’s ṣedeq (saving order) dwells. The enemies of Israel say that they are not guilty of the destruction of
Jerusalem (50:7); it is the people who are guilty; they have sinned against Yahweh, their abode of ṣedeq (cf. Job
8:6).
3. Psalms. The words ṣedeq and ṣĕdāqâ occur 49 and 34 times respectively in the Psalms, for the most part
in the context of God’s saving action, though often enough compassing proper order and comportment. The
psalmist asks God to judge him according to his (the psalmist’s) ṣedeq and tōm (innocence, integrity, freedom
from fault), i.e., according to the way in which he has acted (Ps 7:9[8]). Yahweh is a just judge (v 10[9]) who
gives judgment in favor of the psalmist, who in turn thanks Yahweh for acting according to his (Yahweh’s)
ṣedeq. God loves mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ (Pss 33:5; 99:4), i.e., proper order among his people. Those who do mišpāṭ
and ṣĕdāqâ are blessed (Ps 106:3). Psalm 72 is a prayer for blessing on the king. Yahweh is asked to endow the
king with his (Yahweh’s) mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ so that he (the king) may be able to judge the people with ṣedeq
and mišpāṭ; i.e., proper order comes from Yahweh through the king (cf. Isa 32:1). As a consequence, the
mountains will bring forth šāl m (prosperity) and the hills ṣĕdāqâ (cf. Isa 32:16–17). Yahweh endows the king
with the power to act as he ought, and so the king guarantees God’s order, namely mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ. The
psalmist makes explicit what constitutes God’s order—deliverance of the needy and poor, freedom from
oppression and violence (vv 4, 12–14). To come to the aid of these people is to act beṣedeq and to restore
ṣĕdāqâ. Yahweh also acts biṣdāqâ (e.g., Isa 5:16; 9:6[7]; Ps 119:40; 143:11; Zech 8:8).
The word ṣedeq occurs 8 times in the psalm on God’s law (Ps 119:7, 62, 75, 138, 142, 144, 164, 172). The
psalmist praises the ordinances, mišpāṭ m, of Yahweh’s ṣedeq (vv 7, 62, 164); Yahweh’s ordinances,
testimonies, and commandments are ṣedeq (vv 75, 144, 172); Yahweh has commanded ṣedeq (v 138); the
psalmist reflects that “your ṣĕdāqâ is ṣedeq forever (lĕʿ lām, or, O Eternal One), your tôrâ (law, instruction) is
ʾemet (truth)” (v 142). Yahweh’s saving action is divine order, his teaching is truth. The whole context of the
psalm is proper order in accordance with the prescriptions of Yahweh’s law. The one who conducts himself
tamim, blamelessly, and carries out ṣedeq, that which is proper, may sojourn in Yahweh’s tent and may dwell
on his holy hill (Ps 15:2). The priests are to be clothed with ṣedeq (Ps 132:9); i.e., they must comport
themselves according to proper liturgical and moral order. Psalm 24 is a liturgical psalm put into a cosmic
setting. Yahweh, who has founded the cosmos, will pass judgment on the one who approaches his holy place.
He who is the source of cosmic order has also given order to the formal worship of his people. If the worshipper
is not guilty of any disorder that would disqualify him from the temple, he will receive bĕrākâ (blessing) and
ṣĕdāqâ (saving grace?) from his saving God (lit., the God of his salvation, v 5). Psalm 118 is a royal hymn of
thanksgiving. The king praises Yahweh for his ḥesed (vv 1–5); Yahweh has stood by him in his distress;
Yahweh is his yĕš ʿâ. The king will enter the city, or temple, walking through the gates of ṣedeq to the place
where Yahweh’s order is found (v 19). The psalm is framed by Yahweh’s ḥesed (vv 1, 29); i.e., Yahweh’s
steadfast love embraces his saving action and his order.
The psalmist often speaks of “my ṣedeq.” Psalm 4 is a prayer of one in distress or perhaps a prayer for rain
(Dahood Psalms III AB, 23). God who is invoked is a God of ṣidq (v 2[1]), God of “my justice” or “my just
God,” he who restores order; if a prayer for rain, then God who restores the natural order; it is he, not the nature
gods of Canaan, who gives rain and fertility. God is called on to act. In an individual lament, the psalmist prays
for deliverance from his enemies because of “my ṣedeq” and “my tōm” (Ps 7:9[8]); i.e., he claims that he is
innocent of any breach of proper or liturgical order before God. A plea of the innocent is framed by the inclusio,
ṣedeq (Ps 17:1, 15):
Hear, Yahweh, my ṣedeq, attend to my cry
Give ear to my prayer, destroy deceitful lips.
Let my mišpāṭ shine (come from) before you,
may your eyes gaze upon my m šār m (equity, integrity).
The psalmist is conscious of his right conduct as he cries to God. He sings in conclusion:
I, bĕṣedeq, shall gaze upon your face,
bĕhāq ṣ, shall be sated with your tĕm nâ (presence, form, being).
Moses alone was allowed to see Yahweh’s tĕm nâ (Num 12:8); hāq ṣ is the Hipʿil inf. of q ṣ, to arise,
awake; (cf. Isa 26:19 and Dan 12:2, to arise from the sleep of death). He will see God’s face in God’s
vindicating or saving action which awakens him from death. Again, Yahweh has rewarded the singer
“according to my ṣedeq,” has repaid him according to bor yāday, “the innocence of my hand” (18:21[20]). The
psalmist has walked in accordance with God’s order (words repeated in v 25[24]; cf. 2 Sam 22:21, 25). The
psalmist prays that Yahweh will defend “my mišpāṭ and my dîn” (his just cause and judicial process, Ps 9:5[4])
as he (Yahweh) sits upon the throne šopēṭ ṣedeq, dispensing as judge what is proper. Yahweh is the one who
gives judgment as it should be given.
Yahweh “rules the world bĕṣedeq and judges the people bĕm šār m” (equity, Ps 9:9[8]). He judges as is
proper, according to the order that he has established. The people acknowledge their rebellious acts and
approach the temple with confidence (Psalm 65). They petition the God of their salvation to show his wondrous
deeds bĕṣedeq (v 6[5]). Then follows a series of participles which describe Yahweh as the one who orders and
maintains the order of the universe. Yahweh gives order and saves; bĕṣedeq describes both actions. He is the
creator of the universe (Ps 96:5); hence he is king (v 10). He will judge the peoples bĕm šār m (with equity),
and govern in fidelity to the order he has set up, bĕṣedeq and beʾĕm nâ, (v 13).
Yahweh is the restorer of social order who will redress the affliction of the widow, the stranger, the
fatherless (Ps 94:6) and will do this through those who are imbued with and respect his tôrâ (v 12). The crucial
v 15 is difficult, but seems to mean that justice will return to the judicial tribunal; ṣedeq and mišpāṭ are in the
verse, but not in parallelism. Dahood proposes:
But the tribunal (ʿad) of justice (ṣedeq) will restore equity (mišpāṭ),
and with it all upright hearts (Psalms II AB, 345).
In any case, ṣedeq is in the context of proper order in society.
4. Isaiah 40–66. Only once in Deutero-Isaiah (chaps. 40–55) does ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ denote proper conduct or
order. Israel’s comportment through the centuries has not been according to ʾemet and ṣĕdāqâ (48:1a–b). If only
Israel had listened to Yahweh’s commandments her šāl m (welfare) would have been like a river and her
ṣĕdāqâ (prosperity) like the waves of the sea (48:18).
The oracles, accusations, and laments of Isaiah 56–66 complain that Israel has not followed the path of
ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ and mišpāṭ. The people are called on to observe mišpāṭ and do ṣĕdāqâ (56:1a), i.e., to conduct
themselves as is proper because Yahweh’s yĕš ʿâ and ṣĕdāqâ, his saving action, is about to be revealed (56:1b).
The mišpāṭ-ṣĕdāqâ in v 1a is the people’s order; the yĕš ʿâ-ṣĕdāqâ in v 1b is Yahweh’s action which is salvific
and restores his proper order. A series of accusations (57:2–10) concerns cultic aberrations, misguided acts that
were thought to set the people in a right relationship with God: “I will tell of your ṣĕdāqâ and maʿăśayik”
(57:12), i.e., your acts of supposed worship which you think make you “just” before God. The people seek
Yahweh daily and delight in his ways; they follow the prescribed ritual, like a nation which in fact really did
ṣĕdāqâ and mišpāṭ (58:2b), what is proper. They ask for “ordinances of conduct,” mišpĕṭê ṣedeq (cf. Ps 119:7,
62, 75). They fast ritually and perform ritual penance, thinking that thus all should go well with them. But mere
ritual without concern for the social order is a violation of proper order, of Yahweh’s order; it is not ṣĕdāqâ and
mišpāṭ (58:3–7). If, however, the people of Israel do what they should, following the order that Yahweh
requires (vv 6–7),
then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your ṣedeq shall go before you,
the kāb d (glory) of Yahweh shall be your rear guard (v 8).
Their proper conduct, ṣedeq, will be as Yahweh’s ṣedeq, and will reflect his glory.
A catalogue of the people’s sins follows (59:1–8). They look for salvation and God’s favor anywhere but in
the right area, which is the following of God’s proper order, mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ. This is the reason why God’s
saving action, mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ (cf. 56:1b), is far off. Yahweh is not incapable of hearing; the sins of the
people are the barrier to his presence (59:2–3); there is no one to speak bĕṣedeq (v 4a), no one to recall the
community to loyalty to Yahweh (v 4a is usually understood in a legal sense, “no one goes to law honestly,”
RSV). The people hoped for mišpāṭ and yĕš ʿâ (v 11b), but it is not there. Why? Because of their many sins (vv
12–13). They lament that mišpāṭ is turned back and that ṣĕdāqâ is far off (v 14). Why is it so? Because ʾĕmet
(truth, loyalty) has fallen in the public squares and nĕkoḥâ (equity) is no more. Yahweh was displeased that
there was no more ʾĕmet and mišpāṭ (v 15), i.e., no loyalty to his ordinances. There was no one to set the
situation right, so Yahweh himself had to intervene. Then his own arm brought salvation (verb yšʿ), his own
ṣĕdāqâ (saving action) sustained him (v 16). Like a leader going out to battle, Yahweh clothed himself with the
breastplate of ṣĕdāqâ and the helmet of yĕš ʿâ (v 17); he clothed himself too with “vengeance” and “fury.”
There is always the double aspect of Yahweh’s saving intervention—judgment for those who remain firm in
opposition (v 18), salvation for those “who turn from transgression” (v 20).
5. Ezekiel, Malachi, Joel. The words ṣedeq and ṣĕdāqâ occur almost exclusively in the context of personal
responsibility in Ezekiel and are restricted virtually to passages of hortatory repetition (3:16–21; 18; 33). The
leaders of Jerusalem are urged to do (ʿāsāh) mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ (18:5, 19, 22, 27; 33:14, 16, 19; 45:9), i.e., to act
as they ought in accordance with Yahweh’s precepts and ordinances from ritual observance to care for the poor
and needy (chap. 18). This constitutes a person’s mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ. Were Noah, Daniel, and Job living in the
midst of this sinful people, they would deliver their own lives by their own ṣĕdāqâ, proper conduct (14:14, 20).
Ezekiel destroys the traditional proverb: “The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on
edge” (18:1–4; cf. Jer 31:29–30). The refrain ṣĕdāqâ throughout chap. 18 vv 5, 19, 20, 22, 24, 26, 27) describes
that proper conduct which is each one’s personal responsibility; a catalogue of acts lists what the righteous one
does (vv 6–9a); this constitutes his ṣĕdāqâ. The phrase “to do (observe) mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ” belongs to the royal
ideology; it is the king who, in the first place, must preserve proper order; he does this by virtue of God’s ṣedeq,
ṣĕdāqâ, and mišpāṭ (Ps 72:1–3; Isa 32:1). But anyone who does this is ṣadd q. The word ṣĕdāqâ carries the
same tones and echoes throughout chap. 33 (vv 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 19). The deeds of the ṣadd q are ṣĕdāq t (pl.)
(3:20; 18:14; 33:13).
Malachi, God’s messenger, will refine the people until they present their offerings biṣdāqâ, as is proper
(3:3). Joel cries out: “Be glad, O sons of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God because Yahweh liṣdāqâ, in
accordance with the order that he has established, has given the appropriate rains at their proper time.”
6. Joshua–2 Kings. The word ṣedeq is not found in the former prophets; ṣĕdāqâ only 11 times. When
David spares Saul’s life at Ziph, he says to the king: “The Lord rewards every man for his ṣĕdāqâ and ʾĕmûnâ;
for the Lord gave you into my hand today, and I would not put forth my hand against the Lord’s anointed” (Sam
26:13). David had acted properly. When Mephibosheth meets David on his return from his flight before
Absalom, he acknowledges that the king has made a place for him at the royal table: “What futher ṣĕdāqâ have
I that I should complain to the king” (2 Sam 19:28–29[27–28]). David has observed all propriety so that
Mephibosheth has no just claim (for ṣĕdāqâ as claim, cf. Neh 2:20; also Isa 5:23, see above). The word ṣĕdāqâ
in 2 Sam 22:21, 25, is a repetition of Ps 18:21, 25 [20, 24]. David ruled over Israel ʿośeh (doing) mišpāṭ and
ṣĕdāqâ (2 Sam 8:15; cf. 1 Chr 18:14). He ruled as king by virtue of mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ which came from God (1
Kgs 10:9; Ps 72:1–3; Isa 32:1). When Yahweh asks Solomon what he should give him, Solomon replies that
Yahweh showed ḥesed (steadfast love) to David because he had conducted himself bĕʾemet, biṣdāqâ, bĕyišrâ,
i.e., loyally, as he ought. At the dedication of the temple Solomon prays that the just be justified according to
his ṣĕdāqâ (1 Kgs 8:22). If the just man conducts himself according to Yahweh’s order, that will justify him.
The Queen of Sheba remarks that Solomon’s God made him king in love for Israel so that he might do mišpāṭ
and ṣĕdāqâ (1 Kgs 10:9; 2 Chr 9:8), i.e., observe and communicate through his observance Yahweh’s order.
According to the Chronicler, Solomon requires that the righteous be judged according to his ṣĕdāqâ (his proper
conduct) (2 Chr 6:23).
Nehemiah said to the governors of the province beyond the river: “It is the God of heaven who will make us
prosper, and we, his servants, shall arise and build; but for you, you have no portion, no ṣĕdāqâ, no memorial in
Jerusalem” (Neh 2:20). Only true Israelites can stake a claim there.
7. Job, Proverbs, Qoheleth. The verb ṣdq is used predominantly in a forensic sense in Job (see above).
The nouns ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ move between proper conduct and proper order with legal nuances. Job replies to
Eliphaz: “Turn, I pray, let no wrong be done; turn, now, my vindication (ṣidq ) is at stake” (or “relent, for my
cause is just,” AB 6: 29). Job claims: “I put on (my) ṣedeq and it clothed me, my mišpāṭ was like a robe and a
turban” (29:14; cf. Isa 61:10–11). If Job is weighed in a balance of ṣedeq; if he is tried according to proper
procedure, his integrity will be vindicated (31:6). Bildad asks: “Does God pervert mišpāṭ, does Šaddai pervert
ṣedeq?” (8:3). The implication is that God does not interfere with proper order. Bildad objects that, if Job were
pure and upright, God would be on his side and give him nĕwat ṣidqekā, a dwelling place or pasture that he
deserves because of his conduct (8:3; for the phrase, cf. Jer 3:23; 50:7). Job maintains that he has not sinned;
but if that is the case, asks Elihu, does his present state represent his mišpāṭ and ṣedeq before God? (35:2).
Because God observes proper order, Job’s state must be the result of his nonobservance of it. Elihu asserts: “…
to my maker I will give ṣedeq” (36:3); he will vindicate God by showing that God observes proper order in
punishing Job for his transgressions. Job maintains his claim that he has observed proper order, ṣĕdāqâ (27:6;
cf. 29:14; 31:6). Elihu speaks of ṣĕdāqâ twice in the context of human conduct (33:26; 35:8); he observes too
that God will not violate mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ (37:23).
In Proverbs, ṣedeq (9 times) and ṣĕdāqâ (18 times), and in Qoheleth, ṣedeq (3 times), the idea of proper
order predominates. The sayings in Proverbs are directed to knowing wisdom and instruction, to perceiving
words of insight, to receiving instruction in discernment and ṣedeq, mišpāṭ, m šār m (1:2–3). The wise man
teaches the proper way to act and how to perceive what constitutes proper order. Yahweh gives ḥokmâ
(wisdom) and daʿat (knowledge); he guards the paths of mišpāṭ (justice, 2:6–8). If you follow Yahweh’s way,
says the writer, you will come to an insight into ṣedeq and mišpāṭ (2:9), i.e., you will understand what proper
order is. Wisdom herself speaks in chap. 8: all the words of my mouth are bĕṣedeq, proper order itself (v 8); by
me kings rule and decree ṣedeq, my proper order (v 15); by me princes and nobles give judgment (Heb
uncertain) in ṣedeq, as they ought (v 16); riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and ṣĕdāqâ (prosperity,
v 18); I walk in the path of ṣĕdāqâ, in the midst of the way of mišpāṭ, i.e., as is proper (v 20). A legal proverb
says that he who speaks ʾĕmûnâ declares ṣedeq (12:17), i.e., to speak the truth is to observe proper order. A
king’s throne is based on ṣĕdāqâ, proper order (16:12); lips of ṣedeq, i.e., one who speaks what is proper, are a
joy to the king (16:13). When the wicked are removed from the presence of the king, this throne is based on
ṣedeq (25:5). In the words of Lemuel, judging ṣedeq means passing just judgment on the poor and needy (31:9).
All will go well with the one who comports himself with ṣĕdāqâ, according to proper order (11:4, 5, 6, 28, 29;
13:6); ṣĕdāqâ guarantees life (12:28; 21:21), prosperity to a nation (14:34), and to the old (16:31); ṣĕdāqâ is
acceptable to Yahweh (15:9), and he who does mišpāṭ and ṣĕdāqâ is more acceptable to Yahweh than sacrifice
(21:3).
Qoheleth has seen mišpāṭ and ṣedeq, proper order, overturned (3:16; 5:7[8]). He has even seen the righteous
man perishing in his ṣedeq, as he does what is right (7:15); the ṣadd q, though he observes proper order,
perishes like the rest.
8. Daniel. Daniel confesses to Yahweh that the people have sinned and not listened to the prophets (9:3–6).
Yahweh has kept the covenant and shown ḥesed, steadfast love; the people have not: “To thee, O Lord, belongs
ṣĕdāqâ, but to us confusion of face” (v 7). Yahweh has fulfilled his part, but the people have not fulfilled theirs.
Gabriel announces to Daniel that the people have been granted seventy weeks to put an end to sin and
transgression and to bring about ṣedeq ʿolām m, lasting order (9:24).
9. ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ + mišpāṭ. The word pair ṣedeq or ṣĕdāqâ + mišpāṭ occurs in parallelism, in coordinate
relationship, and in the phrase to do (ʿāśâ) or to observe (šāmār) ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ and mišpāṭ. The pair is a
hendiadys and designates the order in Israelite society which God wills and transmits through the king to the
people who are required to respond to God’s action by living according to that order. The king is the trustee or
guarantor of the order.
ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ and mišpāṭ are the foundation of Yahweh’s throne (Pss 89:15[14]; 97:2). His rule is proper
order and he sustains it through the throne (i.e., the king). The ideal king will establish lasting peace upon the
throne of David and over his kingdom and uphold it bĕ-mišpāṭ û-biṣdāqâ (Isa 9:6[7]). Because the throne is
based on ṣĕdāqâ, the doing of evil is an abomination to kings (Prov 16:12; 25:5). The base of the throne of the
Egyptian king takes the form of the sign mʿ.t, a hieroglyph standing for justice, order, proper divine order,
which can only be rendered in Hebrew by ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ. By the 19th and 20th Dynasties the throne base,
because of its form, was understood as justice, right order (Brunner 1958; Schmid 1968: 61). Much Israelite
throne ritual was dependent either directly, or indirectly through Canaanite tradition, on Egypt (cf. 1 Kgs 10:18–
20).
E. God’s ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ: Saving Action.
God’s ṣedeq-ṣĕdāqâ is very often his saving action on behalf of his people, especially in the Psalms and
Isaiah 40–66.
1. Psalms. a. God’s ṣedeq. (Ps 7:9–10[8–9]; cf. above). The heavens proclaim God’s ṣedeq (Pss 50:6;
97:6), i.e., his action on behalf of his ḥăs d m, who are bound to him by the obligations that they have assumed
in a solemn sacrificial rite (50:5). Yahweh reigns (97:1); he comes in a theophany (vv 2–5) and protects his
people (v 10); it is this action that reveals his glory (kāb d, parallel to ṣedeq, v 6). Yahweh comes to the help of
the afflicted and lamenting psalmist who calls for exultant joy from those who desire his (the psalmist’s) ṣedeq,
i.e., his sharing in the effect of God’s saving action (35:27). This meaning derives from the second part of the
Description:The root ṣdq is West Semitic in origin and is well attested in this language group: 1. Akkadian. The CAD has only one entry for
