Lexical Summary
yashar: To be straight, right, upright, pleasing
Original Word:יָשַׁר
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:yashar
Pronunciation:yah-SHAR
Phonetic Spelling:(yaw-shar')
KJV: direct, fit, seem good (meet), + please (will), be (esteem, go) right (on), bring (look, make, take the) straight (way), be upright(-ly)
NASB:right, agreeable, good, make your straight, directed, esteem right, evenly applied
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to be straight or even
2. (figuratively) to be (causatively, to make) right, pleasant, prosperous
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
direct, fit, seem good meet, please will, be esteem, go right on, bring look, make,
A primitive root; to be straight or even; figuratively, to be (causatively, to make) right, pleasant, prosperous -- direct, fit, seem good (meet), + please (will), be (esteem, go) right (on), bring (look, make, take the) straight (way), be upright(-ly).
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto be smooth, straight, or right
NASB Translationagreeable (2), directed (1), esteem right (1), evenly applied (1), fixed straight (1), good (2), looked* (1), looks* (1), make his smooth (1), make the smooth (1), make your straight (2), make smooth (1), making their straight (1), please* (1), pleased* (4), pleasing (1), right (4), smooth (1), straight (1), took the straight (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
(Late Hebrew
id., and derivatives; Arabic
be Gentle, tractable easy, II. make easy;
manageable, easy, but Sabean , , Os
ZMG 1865, 270 CIS
iv, 29, 2; Assyrian
Išâu,
be or
go straight, right,
mêšêru,
justice,
mêšêriš,
righteously, Dl
HWB 310) —
PerfectJeremiah 18:4 2t.; 3 feminineJudges 14:3;Habakkuk 2:4; 3masculine plural1 Kings 9:12;ImperfectNumbers 23:27 2t.;1 Samuel 18:20,26; 3feminine singularJudges 14:7; 3feminine plural1 Samuel 6:12 (Ges§ 47, n. 3; 71) —
go straight,in the way1 Samuel 6:12.
figurative,be pleasing, agreeable, right (in the yees of); said of a womanJudges 14:3,7; a manJeremiah 27:5; of matters and things ()1 Samuel 18:20,26;2 Samuel 17:4;1 Chronicles 13:4; 2Chronicles 30:4; of cities1 Kings 9:12; a placeNumbers 23:27 (E); withJeremiah 18:4.
,straightforward, upright;Habakkuk 2:4his soul is not upright in him (opposed toswollen).
Perfect1Psalm 119:128 (Job 37:3, 3masculine suffix Thes; but < Ew Di Hi De Da,Imperfect from );ImperfectProverbs 3:6;Proverbs 15:21; suffix (Masoretes abbreviated ) 2 Chronicles 32:30; 3 feminine singularProverbs 11:4; 1singularIsaiah 45:13;Isaiah 45:2 Qr (Kt Hiph`il Ges§ 70, 2 doubtless copyist's error);Imperative pluralIsaiah 40:3;Participle pluralProverbs 9:15; —
make smooth, straight, accusativeIsaiah 40:3;Isaiah 45:2; figurative, withmake smooth orstraight, i.e. free from obstacles, successfulIsaiah 45:13;Proverbs 11:5,Proverbs 3:5; in ethical sense,Proverbs 9:15those making straight their paths, going straightforward on their paths;Proverbs 15:21maketh straight his going, goeth straightforwards.
lead straight along direct, waters of an aqueduct 2 Chronicles 32:30; (of the thunderJob 37:3 according to some; but see rather )
esteem right, approvePsalm 119:128 (read ).
Participle1 Kings 6:35gold made level, laid smoothly out, upon the graven work.
Imperfect3pluralProverbs 4:25let thine eyelids look straight before thee; Imperativemake thy way evenPsalm 5:9 Qr (Kt ; see Ges70 (2)).
Topical Lexicon
Essential Ideaיָשַׁר (yāshar) conveys the condition of being straight, level, upright, or pleasing. Whether describing a road, a moral choice, or a king’s policy, the word portrays alignment with a standard—ultimately the standard set by the Lord Himself.
Literal Straightness and Divine Direction
Several occurrences picture physical movement that is “straight” because God or His providence guides it.
• The cows carrying the ark “went straight up the road to Beth Shemesh” (1 Samuel 6:12).
• Hezekiah “redirected” the waters of Gihon “straight down” to the City of David (2 Chronicles 32:30), an engineering feat preserving Jerusalem during siege.
•Job 37:3,Isaiah 40:3 and 45:2–13 employ the image of a highway made level for the LORD’s purposes. These texts ground John the Baptist’s call, “Make straight the way for the Lord” (John 1:23), establishing יָשַׁר as part of redemptive preparation.
Moral and Relational Rightness
InJudges 14 and1 Samuel 18 the word describes what seems “right in the eyes” of individuals. Samson chooses a Philistine wife “for she is right in my eyes” (Judges 14:3, 7). Saul sees political advantage when Michal loves David, “and the matter was pleasing in his sight” (1 Samuel 18:20, 26). Scripture records these instances without endorsing them, revealing how personal preference may diverge from God’s standard. By contrast Proverbs attaches יָשַׁר to wisdom:
• “In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:6).
• “The righteousness of the blameless makes their way straight” (Proverbs 11:5).
• “A man of understanding walks uprightly” (Proverbs 15:21).
Thus the same verb exposes the tension between self-defined “rightness” and God-defined uprightness.
Corporate and Political Consensus
National decisions are repeatedly measured by what “seemed right” to leaders and assemblies: Absalom and Israel’s elders (2 Samuel 17:4), the united councils of Israel (1 Chronicles 13:4;2 Chronicles 30:4).1 Kings 9:12 notes Hiram’s displeasure with Solomon’s cities—“they were not right in his eyes.” These texts warn that public unanimity does not guarantee divine approval; true uprightness is judged by God’s covenant, not by majority vote.
Cultic and Ethical Alignment
Psalm 5:8 petitions, “Make Your way straight before me,” linking worship with ethical orientation.Psalm 119:128 declares, “I consider all Your precepts to be right; I hate every false way,” grounding moral judgment in revealed law. The potter scene inJeremiah 18:4 shows God refashioning what is marred “as seemed good to the potter,” illustrating His sovereign right to define and rectify.
Pride versus Faith: Habakkuk’s Pivotal Use
“Behold the proud; his soul is not upright in him, but the righteous will live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4). יָשַׁר contrasts the warped inner life of the proud with the straightness granted through faith. Paul cites this verse inRomans 1:17,Galatians 3:11, andHebrews 10:38, making יָשַׁר foundational for the doctrine of justification by faith.
Prophetic Messianic Overtones
Isaiah’s highway imagery (40:3; 45:2–13) frames Cyrus as a type and Christ as the ultimate fulfillment. God “will level the mountains” and “direct all his ways,” establishing a straight path for deliverance. The Gospels applyIsaiah 40:3 to the forerunner ministry of John, which prepares hearts for the King whose life perfectly embodied uprightness.
Theological Synthesis
1. God alone defines what is straight; human perception is reliable only when it coincides with His revelation.
2. Upright paths are both ethical (obedience) and providential (guidance).
3. Divine straightening often follows repentance, covenant renewal, or preparatory judgment.
4. Faith is the means by which God declares and makes a person upright, anticipating New Testament soteriology.
Ministry Significance
• Preaching: Use יָשַׁר texts to contrast cultural relativism with God’s absolute standard.
• Discipleship: Encourage believers to examine choices that merely “seem right” versus those Scripture affirms.Proverbs 3:6 offers a practical pattern—acknowledge, then walk.
• Leadership: Corporate decisions should be measured against biblical righteousness, not popularity.
• Counseling:Psalm 5:8 andPsalm 119:128 model prayers that align emotions and judgments with God’s straight way.
• Evangelism:Habakkuk 2:4 bridges Old and New Covenants, showing that righteousness by faith is no innovation but God’s consistent plan.
Typological Glimpse of Christ
Jesus embodies יָשַׁר as the “Way” (John 14:6). His paths were straight because His will was perfectly aligned with the Father’s. His saving work straightens what pride has made crooked, fulfilling Isaiah’s promise and inviting all who believe to walk the level road of reconciliation.
Forms and Transliterations
אֲיַשֵּׁ֑ר אֲיַשֵּׁ֑ר אישר הַֽ֝מְיַשְּׁרִ֗ים הַיְשַׁ֖ר הישר המישרים וַֽיַּישְּׁרֵ֥ם וַיִּישַׁ֥ר וַיִּשַׁ֤ר וַיִּשַׁ֥ר וַיִשַּׁ֨רְנָה וַתִּישַׁ֖ר ויישר ויישרם וישר וישרנה ותישר יְיַשֵּׁ֥ר יְיַשֶּׁר־ יִשְׁרֵ֑הוּ יִשָּׁ֑רְתִּי יַיְשִׁ֥רוּ יַשְּׁרוּ֙ יָשְׁר֖וּ יָשְׁרָ֥ה יָשַׁ֛ר יָשַׁ֥ר יישר יישר־ יישרו ישר ישרה ישרהו ישרו ישרתי מְיֻשָּׁ֖ר מישר תְּיַשֵּׁ֣ר תישר ’ă·yaš·šêr ’ăyaššêr ayashSher ham·yaš·šə·rîm hamyashsheRim hamyaššərîm hay·šar hayšar hayShar mə·yuš·šār meyushShar məyuššār tə·yaš·šêr teyashSher təyaššêr vaiyaishshRem vaiyiShar vattiShar vayishSharnah wa·yiš·šar·nāh wat·tî·šar wattîšar way·yayš·šə·rêm way·yi·šar way·yî·šar wayiššarnāh wayyayššərêm wayyišar wayyîšar yā·šar yā·šə·rāh yā·šə·rū yaš·šə·rū yāšar yāšərāh yāšərū yaShar yasheRah yasheRu yashsheRu yaššərū yay·ši·rū yayShiru yayširū yə·yaš·šêr yə·yaš·šer- yeyashSher yəyaššêr yəyaššer- yiš·rê·hū yiš·šā·rə·tî yishRehu yishShareti yišrêhū yiššārətî
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