2:11 Proud men will be brought low,
arrogant men will be humiliated; 1
the Lord alone will be exalted 2
in that day.
2:12 Indeed, the Lord who commands armies has planned a day of judgment, 3
for 4 all the high and mighty,
for all who are proud – they will be humiliated;
2:17 Proud men will be humiliated,
arrogant men will be brought low; 5
the Lord alone will be exalted 6
in that day.
2:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem 7 that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz. 8
7:1 During 9 the reign of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel marched up to Jerusalem 10 to do battle, but they were unable to prevail against it. 11
7:2 It was reported to the family 12 of David, “Syria has allied with 13 Ephraim.” They and their people were emotionally shaken, just as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. 14 7:3 So the Lord told Isaiah, “Go out with your son Shear-jashub 15 and meet Ahaz at the end of the conduit of the upper pool which is located on the road to the field where they wash and dry cloth. 16 7:4 Tell him, ‘Make sure you stay calm! 17 Don’t be afraid! Don’t be intimidated 18 by these two stubs of smoking logs, 19 or by the raging anger of Rezin, Syria, and the son of Remaliah. 7:5 Syria has plotted with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah to bring about your demise. 20 7:6 They say, “Let’s attack Judah, terrorize it, and conquer it. 21 Then we’ll set up the son of Tabeel as its king.” 22 7:7 For this reason the sovereign master, 23 the Lord, says:
“It will not take place;
it will not happen.
7:8 For Syria’s leader is Damascus,
and the leader of Damascus is Rezin.
Within sixty-five years Ephraim will no longer exist as a nation. 24
7:9 Ephraim’s leader is Samaria,
and Samaria’s leader is the son of Remaliah.
If your faith does not remain firm,
then you will not remain secure.” 25
7:10 The Lord again spoke to Ahaz: 7:11 “Ask for a confirming sign from the Lord your God. You can even ask for something miraculous.” 26 7:12 But Ahaz responded, “I don’t want to ask; I don’t want to put the Lord to a test.” 27 7:13 So Isaiah replied, 28 “Pay attention, 29 family 30 of David. 31 Do you consider it too insignificant to try the patience of men? Is that why you are also trying the patience of my God? 7:14 For this reason the sovereign master himself will give you a confirming sign. 32 Look, this 33 young woman 34 is about to conceive 35 and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him 36 Immanuel. 37 7:15 He will eat sour milk 38 and honey, which will help him know how 39 to reject evil and choose what is right. 7:16 Here is why this will be so: 40 Before the child knows how to reject evil and choose what is right, the land 41 whose two kings you fear will be desolate. 42 7:17 The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father’s family a time 43 unlike any since Ephraim departed from Judah – the king of Assyria!” 44
7:18 At that time 45 the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. 46 7:19 All of them will come and make their home 47 in the ravines between the cliffs, and in the crevices of the cliffs, in all the thorn bushes, and in all the watering holes. 48 7:20 At that time 49 the sovereign master will use a razor hired from the banks of the Euphrates River, 50 the king of Assyria, to shave the head and the pubic hair; 51 it will also shave off the beard. 7:21 At that time 52 a man will keep alive a young cow from the herd and a couple of goats. 7:22 From the abundance of milk they produce, 53 he will have sour milk for his meals. Indeed, everyone left in the heart of the land will eat sour milk and honey. 7:23 At that time 54 every place where there had been a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels will be overrun 55 with thorns and briers. 7:24 With bow and arrow 56 men will hunt 57 there, for the whole land will be covered 58 with thorns and briers. 7:25 They will stay away from all the hills that were cultivated, for fear of the thorns and briers. 59 Cattle will graze there and sheep will trample on them. 60
1:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem 61 that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz during the time when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah reigned over Judah. 62
1:2 Listen, O heavens,
pay attention, O earth! 63
For the Lord speaks:
“I raised children, 64 I brought them up, 65
but 66 they have rebelled 67 against me!
1:3 An ox recognizes its owner,
a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food; 68
but Israel does not recognize me, 69
my people do not understand.”
1:4 70 The sinful nation is as good as dead, 71
the people weighed down by evil deeds.
They are offspring who do wrong,
children 72 who do wicked things.
They have abandoned the Lord,
and rejected the Holy One of Israel. 73
They are alienated from him. 74
1:5 75 Why do you insist on being battered?
Why do you continue to rebel? 76
Your head has a massive wound, 77
your whole body is weak. 78
1:6 From the soles of your feet to your head,
there is no spot that is unharmed. 79
There are only bruises, cuts,
and open wounds.
They have not been cleansed 80 or bandaged,
nor have they been treated 81 with olive oil. 82
1:7 Your land is devastated,
your cities burned with fire.
Right before your eyes your crops
are being destroyed by foreign invaders. 83
They leave behind devastation and destruction. 84
1:8 Daughter Zion 85 is left isolated,
like a hut in a vineyard,
or a shelter in a cucumber field;
she is a besieged city. 86
1:9 If the Lord who commands armies 87 had not left us a few survivors,
we would have quickly become like Sodom, 88
we would have become like Gomorrah.
1:10 Listen to the Lord’s word,
you leaders of Sodom! 89
Pay attention to our God’s rebuke, 90
people of Gomorrah!
1:11 “Of what importance to me are your many sacrifices?” 91
says the Lord.
“I am stuffed with 92 burnt sacrifices
of rams and the fat from steers.
The blood of bulls, lambs, and goats
I do not want. 93
1:12 When you enter my presence,
do you actually think I want this –
animals trampling on my courtyards? 94
1:13 Do not bring any more meaningless 95 offerings;
I consider your incense detestable! 96
You observe new moon festivals, Sabbaths, and convocations,
but I cannot tolerate sin-stained celebrations! 97
1:14 I hate your new moon festivals and assemblies;
they are a burden
that I am tired of carrying.
1:15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I look the other way; 98
when you offer your many prayers,
I do not listen,
because your hands are covered with blood. 99
1:16 100 Wash! Cleanse yourselves!
Remove your sinful deeds 101
from my sight.
Stop sinning!
1:17 Learn to do what is right!
Promote justice!
Give the oppressed reason to celebrate! 102
Take up the cause of the orphan!
Defend the rights of the widow! 103
1:18 104 Come, let’s consider your options,” 105 says the Lord.
“Though your sins have stained you like the color red,
you can become 106 white like snow;
though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet,
you can become 107 white like wool. 108
1:19 If you have a willing attitude and obey, 109
then you will again eat the good crops of the land.
1:20 But if you refuse and rebel,
you will be devoured 110 by the sword.”
Know for certain that the Lord has spoken. 111
1:21 How tragic that the once-faithful city
has become a prostitute! 112
She was once a center of 113 justice,
fairness resided in her,
but now only murderers. 114
1:22 Your 115 silver has become scum, 116
your beer is diluted with water. 117
1:23 Your officials are rebels, 118
they associate with 119 thieves.
All of them love bribery,
and look for 120 payoffs. 121
They do not take up the cause of the orphan, 122
or defend the rights of the widow. 123
1:24 Therefore, the sovereign Lord who commands armies, 124
the powerful ruler of Israel, 125 says this:
“Ah, I will seek vengeance 126 against my adversaries,
I will take revenge against my enemies. 127
1:25 I will attack you; 128
I will purify your metal with flux. 129
I will remove all your slag. 130
1:26 I will reestablish honest judges as in former times,
wise advisers as in earlier days. 131
Then you will be called, ‘The Just City,
Faithful Town.’”
1:27 132 Zion will be freed by justice, 133
and her returnees by righteousness. 134
1:28 All rebellious sinners will be shattered, 135
those who abandon the Lord will perish.
1:29 Indeed, they 136 will be ashamed of the sacred trees
you 137 find so desirable;
you will be embarrassed because of the sacred orchards 138
where you choose to worship.
1:30 For you will be like a tree whose leaves wither,
like an orchard 139 that is unwatered.
1:31 The powerful will be like 140 a thread of yarn,
their deeds like a spark;
both will burn together,
and no one will put out the fire.
2:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem 141 that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz. 142
2:2 In the future 143
the mountain of the Lord’s temple will endure 144
as the most important of mountains,
and will be the most prominent of hills. 145
All the nations will stream to it,
2:3 many peoples will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mountain,
to the temple of the God of Jacob,
so 146 he can teach us his requirements, 147
and 148 we can follow his standards.” 149
For Zion will be the center for moral instruction; 150
the Lord will issue edicts from Jerusalem. 151
2:4 He will judge disputes between nations;
he will settle cases for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares, 152
and their spears into pruning hooks. 153
Nations will not take up the sword against other nations,
and they will no longer train for war.
2:5 O descendants 154 of Jacob,
come, let us walk in the Lord’s guiding light. 155
2:6 Indeed, O Lord, 156 you have abandoned your people,
the descendants of Jacob.
For diviners from the east are everywhere; 157
they consult omen readers like the Philistines do. 158
Plenty of foreigners are around. 159
2:7 Their land is full of gold and silver;
there is no end to their wealth. 160
Their land is full of horses;
there is no end to their chariots. 161
2:8 Their land is full of worthless idols;
they worship 162 the product of their own hands,
what their own fingers have fashioned.
2:9 Men bow down to them in homage,
they lie flat on the ground in worship. 163
Don’t spare them! 164
2:10 Go up into the rocky cliffs,
hide in the ground.
Get away from the dreadful judgment of the Lord, 165
from his royal splendor!
2:11 Proud men will be brought low,
arrogant men will be humiliated; 166
the Lord alone will be exalted 167
in that day.
2:12 Indeed, the Lord who commands armies has planned a day of judgment, 168
for 169 all the high and mighty,
for all who are proud – they will be humiliated;
2:13 for all the cedars of Lebanon,
that are so high and mighty,
for all the oaks of Bashan; 170
2:14 for all the tall mountains,
for all the high hills, 171
2:15 for every high tower,
for every fortified wall,
2:16 for all the large ships, 172
for all the impressive 173 ships. 174
2:17 Proud men will be humiliated,
arrogant men will be brought low; 175
the Lord alone will be exalted 176
in that day.
2:18 The worthless idols will be completely eliminated. 177
2:19 They 178 will go into caves in the rocky cliffs
and into holes in the ground, 179
trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord 180
and his royal splendor,
when he rises up to terrify the earth. 181
2:20 At that time 182 men will throw
their silver and gold idols,
which they made for themselves to worship, 183
into the caves where rodents and bats live, 184
2:21 so they themselves can go into the crevices of the rocky cliffs
and the openings under the rocky overhangs, 185
trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord 186
and his royal splendor,
when he rises up to terrify the earth. 187
2:22 Stop trusting in human beings,
whose life’s breath is in their nostrils.
For why should they be given special consideration?
3:1 Look, the sovereign Lord who commands armies 188
is about to remove from Jerusalem 189 and Judah
every source of security, including 190
all the food and water, 191
3:2 the mighty men and warriors,
judges and prophets,
omen readers and leaders, 192
3:3 captains of groups of fifty,
the respected citizens, 193
advisers and those skilled in magical arts, 194
and those who know incantations.
3:4 The Lord says, 195 “I will make youths their officials;
malicious young men 196 will rule over them.
3:5 The people will treat each other harshly;
men will oppose each other;
neighbors will fight. 197
Youths will proudly defy the elderly
and riffraff will challenge those who were once respected. 198
3:6 Indeed, a man will grab his brother
right in his father’s house 199 and say, 200
‘You own a coat –
you be our leader!
This heap of ruins will be under your control.’ 201
3:7 At that time 202 the brother will shout, 203
‘I am no doctor, 204
I have no food or coat in my house;
don’t make me a leader of the people!’”
3:8 Jerusalem certainly stumbles,
Judah falls,
for their words and their actions offend the Lord; 205
they rebel against his royal authority. 206
3:9 The look on their faces 207 testifies to their guilt; 208
like the people of Sodom they openly boast of their sin. 209
Too bad for them! 210
For they bring disaster on themselves.
3:10 Tell the innocent 211 it will go well with them, 212
for they will be rewarded for what they have done. 213
3:11 Too bad for the wicked sinners!
For they will get exactly what they deserve. 214
3:12 Oppressors treat my 215 people cruelly;
creditors rule over them. 216
My people’s leaders mislead them;
they give you confusing directions. 217
3:13 The Lord takes his position to judge;
he stands up to pass sentence on his people. 218
3:14 The Lord comes to pronounce judgment
on the leaders of his people and their officials.
He says, 219 “It is you 220 who have ruined 221 the vineyard! 222
You have stashed in your houses what you have stolen from the poor. 223
3:15 Why do you crush my people
and grind the faces of the poor?” 224
The sovereign Lord who commands armies 225 has spoken.
3:16 The Lord says,
“The women 226 of Zion are proud.
They walk with their heads high 227
and flirt with their eyes.
They skip along 228
and the jewelry on their ankles jingles. 229
3:17 So 230 the sovereign master 231 will afflict the foreheads of Zion’s women 232 with skin diseases, 233
the Lord will make the front of their heads bald.” 234
3:18 235 At that time 236 the sovereign master will remove their beautiful ankle jewelry, 237 neck ornaments, crescent shaped ornaments, 3:19 earrings, bracelets, veils, 3:20 headdresses, ankle ornaments, sashes, sachets, 238 amulets, 3:21 rings, nose rings, 3:22 festive dresses, robes, shawls, purses, 3:23 garments, vests, head coverings, and gowns. 239
3:24 A putrid stench will replace the smell of spices, 240
a rope will replace a belt,
baldness will replace braided locks of hair,
a sackcloth garment will replace a fine robe,
and a prisoner’s brand will replace beauty.
3:25 Your 241 men will fall by the sword,
your strong men will die in battle. 242
3:26 Her gates will mourn and lament;
deprived of her people, she will sit on the ground. 243
4:1 Seven women will grab hold of
one man at that time. 244
They will say, “We will provide 245 our own food,
we will provide 246 our own clothes;
but let us belong to you 247 –
take away our shame!” 248
4:2 At that time 249
the crops given by the Lord will bring admiration and honor; 250
the produce of the land will be a source of pride and delight
to those who remain in Israel. 251
4:3 Those remaining in Zion, 252 those left in Jerusalem, 253
will be called “holy,” 254
all in Jerusalem who are destined to live. 255
4:4 At that time 256 the sovereign master 257 will wash the excrement 258 from Zion’s women,
he will rinse the bloodstains from Jerusalem’s midst, 259
as he comes to judge
and to bring devastation. 260
4:5 Then the Lord will create
over all of Mount Zion 261
and over its convocations
a cloud and smoke by day
and a bright flame of fire by night; 262
indeed a canopy will accompany the Lord’s glorious presence. 263
4:6 By day it will be a shelter to provide shade from the heat,
as well as safety and protection from the heavy downpour. 264
5:1 I 265 will sing to my love –
a song to my lover about his vineyard. 266
My love had a vineyard
on a fertile hill. 267
5:2 He built a hedge around it, 268 removed its stones,
and planted a vine.
He built a tower in the middle of it,
and constructed a winepress.
He waited for it to produce edible grapes,
but it produced sour ones instead. 269
5:3 So now, residents of Jerusalem, 270
people 271 of Judah,
you decide between me and my vineyard!
5:4 What more can I do for my vineyard
beyond what I have already done?
When I waited for it to produce edible grapes,
why did it produce sour ones instead?
5:5 Now I will inform you
what I am about to do to my vineyard:
I will remove its hedge and turn it into pasture, 272
I will break its wall and allow animals to graze there. 273
5:6 I will make it a wasteland;
no one will prune its vines or hoe its ground, 274
and thorns and briers will grow there.
I will order the clouds
not to drop any rain on it.
5:7 Indeed 275 Israel 276 is the vineyard of the Lord who commands armies,
the people 277 of Judah are the cultivated place in which he took delight.
He waited for justice, but look what he got – disobedience! 278
He waited for fairness, but look what he got – cries for help! 279
5:8 Those who accumulate houses are as good as dead, 280
those who also accumulate landed property 281
until there is no land left, 282
and you are the only landowners remaining within the land. 283
5:9 The Lord who commands armies told me this: 284
“Many houses will certainly become desolate,
large, impressive houses will have no one living in them. 285
5:10 Indeed, a large vineyard 286 will produce just a few gallons, 287
and enough seed to yield several bushels 288 will produce less than a bushel.” 289
5:11 Those who get up early to drink beer are as good as dead, 290
those who keep drinking long after dark
until they are intoxicated with wine. 291
5:12 They have stringed instruments, 292 tambourines, flutes,
and wine at their parties.
So they do not recognize what the Lord is doing,
they do not perceive what he is bringing about. 293
5:13 Therefore my 294 people will be deported 295
because of their lack of understanding.
Their 296 leaders will have nothing to eat, 297
their 298 masses will have nothing to drink. 299
5:14 So Death 300 will open up its throat,
and open wide its mouth; 301
Zion’s dignitaries and masses will descend into it,
including those who revel and celebrate within her. 302
5:15 Men will be humiliated,
they will be brought low;
the proud will be brought low. 303
5:16 The Lord who commands armies will be exalted 304 when he punishes, 305
the sovereign God’s authority will be recognized when he judges. 306
5:17 Lambs 307 will graze as if in their pastures,
amid the ruins the rich sojourners will graze. 308
5:18 Those who pull evil along using cords of emptiness are as good as dead, 309
who pull sin as with cart ropes. 310
5:19 They say, “Let him hurry, let him act quickly, 311
so we can see;
let the plan of the Holy One of Israel 312 take shape 313 and come to pass,
then we will know it!”
5:20 Those who call evil good and good evil are as good as dead, 314
who turn darkness into light and light into darkness,
who turn bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter. 315
5:21 Those who think they are wise are as good as dead, 316
those who think they possess understanding. 317
5:22 Those who are champions 318 at drinking wine are as good as dead, 319
who display great courage when mixing strong drinks.
5:23 They pronounce the guilty innocent for a payoff,
they ignore the just cause of the innocent. 320
5:24 Therefore, as flaming fire 321 devours straw,
and dry grass disintegrates in the flames,
so their root will rot,
and their flower will blow away like dust. 322
For they have rejected the law of the Lord who commands armies,
they have spurned the commands 323 of the Holy One of Israel. 324
5:25 So the Lord is furious 325 with his people;
he lifts 326 his hand and strikes them.
The mountains shake,
and corpses lie like manure 327 in the middle of the streets.
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again. 328
5:26 He lifts a signal flag for a distant nation, 329
he whistles for it to come from the far regions of the earth.
Look, they 330 come quickly and swiftly.
5:27 None tire or stumble,
they don’t stop to nap or sleep.
They don’t loosen their belts,
or unstrap their sandals to rest. 331
5:28 Their arrows are sharpened,
and all their bows are prepared. 332
The hooves of their horses are hard as flint, 333
and their chariot wheels are like a windstorm. 334
5:29 Their roar is like a lion’s;
they roar like young lions.
They growl and seize their prey;
they drag it away and no one can come to the rescue.
5:30 At that time 335 they will growl over their prey, 336
it will sound like sea waves crashing against rocks. 337
One will look out over the land and see the darkness of disaster,
clouds will turn the light into darkness. 338
6:1 In the year of King Uzziah’s death, 339 I saw the sovereign master 340 seated on a high, elevated throne. The hem of his robe filled the temple. 6:2 Seraphs 341 stood over him; each one had six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, 342 and they used the remaining two to fly. 6:3 They called out to one another, “Holy, holy, holy 343 is the Lord who commands armies! 344 His majestic splendor fills the entire earth!” 6:4 The sound of their voices shook the door frames, 345 and the temple was filled with smoke.
6:5 I said, “Too bad for me! I am destroyed, 346 for my lips are contaminated by sin, 347 and I live among people whose lips are contaminated by sin. 348 My eyes have seen the king, the Lord who commands armies.” 349 6:6 But then one of the seraphs flew toward me. In his hand was a hot coal he had taken from the altar with tongs. 6:7 He touched my mouth with it and said, “Look, this coal has touched your lips. Your evil is removed; your sin is forgiven.” 350 6:8 I heard the voice of the sovereign master say, “Whom will I send? Who will go on our behalf?” 351 I answered, “Here I am, send me!” 6:9 He said, “Go and tell these people:
‘Listen continually, but don’t understand!
Look continually, but don’t perceive!’
6:10 Make the hearts of these people calloused;
make their ears deaf and their eyes blind!
Otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
their hearts might understand and they might repent and be healed.” 352
6:11 I replied, “How long, sovereign master?” He said,
“Until cities are in ruins and unpopulated,
and houses are uninhabited,
and the land is ruined and devastated,
6:12 and the Lord has sent the people off to a distant place,
and the very heart of the land is completely abandoned. 353
6:13 Even if only a tenth of the people remain in the land, it will again be destroyed, 354 like one of the large sacred trees 355 or an Asherah pole, when a sacred pillar on a high place is thrown down. 356 That sacred pillar symbolizes the special chosen family.” 357
7:1 During 358 the reign of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel marched up to Jerusalem 359 to do battle, but they were unable to prevail against it. 360
7:2 It was reported to the family 361 of David, “Syria has allied with 362 Ephraim.” They and their people were emotionally shaken, just as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. 363 7:3 So the Lord told Isaiah, “Go out with your son Shear-jashub 364 and meet Ahaz at the end of the conduit of the upper pool which is located on the road to the field where they wash and dry cloth. 365 7:4 Tell him, ‘Make sure you stay calm! 366 Don’t be afraid! Don’t be intimidated 367 by these two stubs of smoking logs, 368 or by the raging anger of Rezin, Syria, and the son of Remaliah. 7:5 Syria has plotted with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah to bring about your demise. 369 7:6 They say, “Let’s attack Judah, terrorize it, and conquer it. 370 Then we’ll set up the son of Tabeel as its king.” 371 7:7 For this reason the sovereign master, 372 the Lord, says:
“It will not take place;
it will not happen.
7:8 For Syria’s leader is Damascus,
and the leader of Damascus is Rezin.
Within sixty-five years Ephraim will no longer exist as a nation. 373
7:9 Ephraim’s leader is Samaria,
and Samaria’s leader is the son of Remaliah.
If your faith does not remain firm,
then you will not remain secure.” 374
7:10 The Lord again spoke to Ahaz: 7:11 “Ask for a confirming sign from the Lord your God. You can even ask for something miraculous.” 375 7:12 But Ahaz responded, “I don’t want to ask; I don’t want to put the Lord to a test.” 376 7:13 So Isaiah replied, 377 “Pay attention, 378 family 379 of David. 380 Do you consider it too insignificant to try the patience of men? Is that why you are also trying the patience of my God? 7:14 For this reason the sovereign master himself will give you a confirming sign. 381 Look, this 382 young woman 383 is about to conceive 384 and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him 385 Immanuel. 386 7:15 He will eat sour milk 387 and honey, which will help him know how 388 to reject evil and choose what is right. 7:16 Here is why this will be so: 389 Before the child knows how to reject evil and choose what is right, the land 390 whose two kings you fear will be desolate. 391 7:17 The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father’s family a time 392 unlike any since Ephraim departed from Judah – the king of Assyria!” 393
7:18 At that time 394 the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. 395 7:19 All of them will come and make their home 396 in the ravines between the cliffs, and in the crevices of the cliffs, in all the thorn bushes, and in all the watering holes. 397 7:20 At that time 398 the sovereign master will use a razor hired from the banks of the Euphrates River, 399 the king of Assyria, to shave the head and the pubic hair; 400 it will also shave off the beard. 7:21 At that time 401 a man will keep alive a young cow from the herd and a couple of goats. 7:22 From the abundance of milk they produce, 402 he will have sour milk for his meals. Indeed, everyone left in the heart of the land will eat sour milk and honey. 7:23 At that time 403 every place where there had been a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels will be overrun 404 with thorns and briers. 7:24 With bow and arrow 405 men will hunt 406 there, for the whole land will be covered 407 with thorns and briers. 7:25 They will stay away from all the hills that were cultivated, for fear of the thorns and briers. 408 Cattle will graze there and sheep will trample on them. 409
8:1 The Lord told me, “Take a large tablet 410 and inscribe these words 411 on it with an ordinary stylus: 412 ‘Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.’ 413 8:2 Then I will summon 414 as my reliable witnesses Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah.” 8:3 I then had sexual relations with the prophetess; she conceived and gave birth to a son. The Lord told me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz, 8:4 for before the child knows how to cry out, ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria 415 will be carried off by the king of Assyria.” 416
8:5 The Lord spoke to me again: 8:6 “These people 417 have rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah 418 and melt in fear over Rezin and the son of Remaliah. 419 8:7 So look, the sovereign master 420 is bringing up against them the turbulent and mighty waters of the Euphrates River 421 – the king of Assyria and all his majestic power. It will reach flood stage and overflow its banks. 422 8:8 It will spill into Judah, flooding and engulfing, as it reaches to the necks of its victims. He will spread his wings out over your entire land, 423 O Immanuel.” 424
8:9 You will be broken, 425 O nations;
you will be shattered! 426
Pay attention, all you distant lands of the earth!
Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered!
Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered! 427
8:10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted!
Issue your orders, but they will not be executed! 428
For God is with us! 429
8:11 Indeed this is what the Lord told me. He took hold of me firmly and warned me not to act like these people: 430
8:12 “Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ every time these people say the word. 431
Don’t be afraid of what scares them; don’t be terrified.
8:13 You must recognize the authority of the Lord who commands armies. 432
He is the one you must respect;
he is the one you must fear. 433
8:14 He will become a sanctuary, 434
but a stone that makes a person trip,
and a rock that makes one stumble –
to the two houses of Israel. 435
He will become 436 a trap and a snare
to the residents of Jerusalem. 437
8:15 Many will stumble over the stone and the rock, 438
and will fall and be seriously injured,
and will be ensnared and captured.”
8:16 Tie up the scroll as legal evidence, 439
seal the official record of God’s instructions and give it to my followers. 440
8:17 I will wait patiently for the Lord,
who has rejected the family of Jacob; 441
I will wait for him.
8:18 Look, I and the sons whom the Lord has given me 442 are reminders and object lessons 443 in Israel, sent from the Lord who commands armies, who lives on Mount Zion.
8:19 444 They will say to you, “Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations. 445 Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?” 446 8:20 Then you must recall the Lord’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. 447 Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened. 448 8:21 They will pass through the land 449 destitute and starving. Their hunger will make them angry, 450 and they will curse their king and their God 451 as they look upward. 8:22 When one looks out over the land, he sees 452 distress and darkness, gloom 453 and anxiety, darkness and people forced from the land. 454 9:1 (8:23) 455 The gloom will be dispelled for those who were anxious. 456
In earlier times he 457 humiliated
the land of Zebulun,
and the land of Naphtali; 458
but now he brings honor 459
to the way of the sea,
the region beyond the Jordan,
and Galilee of the nations. 460
9:2 (9:1) The people walking in darkness
see a bright light; 461
light shines
on those who live in a land of deep darkness. 462
9:3 You 463 have enlarged the nation;
you give them great joy. 464
They rejoice in your presence
as harvesters rejoice;
as warriors celebrate 465 when they divide up the plunder.
9:4 For their oppressive yoke
and the club that strikes their shoulders,
the cudgel the oppressor uses on them, 466
you have shattered, as in the day of Midian’s defeat. 467
9:5 Indeed every boot that marches and shakes the earth 468
and every garment dragged through blood
is used as fuel for the fire.
9:6 For a child has been 469 born to us,
a son has been given to us.
He shoulders responsibility
and is called: 470
Extraordinary Strategist, 471
Mighty God, 472
Everlasting Father, 473
Prince of Peace. 474
9:7 His dominion will be vast 475
and he will bring immeasurable prosperity. 476
He will rule on David’s throne
and over David’s kingdom, 477
establishing it 478 and strengthening it
by promoting justice and fairness, 479
from this time forward and forevermore.
The Lord’s intense devotion to his people 480 will accomplish this.
9:8 481 The sovereign master 482 decreed judgment 483 on Jacob,
and it fell on Israel. 484
9:9 All the people were aware 485 of it,
the people of Ephraim and those living in Samaria. 486
Yet with pride and an arrogant attitude, they said, 487
9:10 “The bricks have fallen,
but we will rebuild with chiseled stone;
the sycamore fig trees have been cut down,
but we will replace them with cedars.” 488
9:11 Then the Lord provoked 489 their adversaries to attack them, 490
he stirred up 491 their enemies –
9:12 Syria from the east,
and the Philistines from the west,
they gobbled up Israelite territory. 492
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again. 493
9:13 The people did not return to the one who struck them,
they did not seek reconciliation 494 with the Lord who commands armies.
9:14 So the Lord cut off Israel’s head and tail,
both the shoots and stalk 495 in one day.
9:15 The leaders and the highly respected people 496 are the head,
the prophets who teach lies are the tail.
9:16 The leaders of this nation were misleading people,
and the people being led were destroyed. 497
9:17 So the sovereign master was not pleased 498 with their young men,
he took no pity 499 on their orphans and widows;
for the whole nation was godless 500 and did wicked things, 501
every mouth was speaking disgraceful words. 502
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again. 503
9:18 For 504 evil burned like a fire, 505
it consumed thorns and briers;
it burned up the thickets of the forest,
and they went up in smoke. 506
9:19 Because of the anger of the Lord who commands armies, the land was scorched, 507
and the people became fuel for the fire. 508
People had no compassion on one another. 509
9:20 They devoured 510 on the right, but were still hungry,
they ate on the left, but were not satisfied.
People even ate 511 the flesh of their own arm! 512
9:21 Manasseh fought against 513 Ephraim,
and Ephraim against Manasseh;
together they fought against Judah.
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again. 514
10:1 Those who enact unjust policies are as good as dead, 515
those who are always instituting unfair regulations, 516
10:2 to keep the poor from getting fair treatment,
and to deprive 517 the oppressed among my people of justice,
so they can steal what widows own,
and loot what belongs to orphans. 518
10:3 What will you do on judgment day, 519
when destruction arrives from a distant place?
To whom will you run for help?
Where will you leave your wealth?
10:4 You will have no place to go, except to kneel with the prisoners,
or to fall among those who have been killed. 520
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again. 521
10:5 Assyria, the club I use to vent my anger, is as good as dead, 522
a cudgel with which I angrily punish. 523
10:6 I sent him 524 against a godless 525 nation,
I ordered him to attack the people with whom I was angry, 526
to take plunder and to carry away loot,
to trample them down 527 like dirt in the streets.
10:7 But he does not agree with this,
his mind does not reason this way, 528
for his goal is to destroy,
and to eliminate many nations. 529
10:8 Indeed, 530 he says:
“Are not my officials all kings?
10:9 Is not Calneh like Carchemish?
Hamath like Arpad?
Samaria like Damascus? 531
10:10 I overpowered kingdoms ruled by idols, 532
whose carved images were more impressive than Jerusalem’s 533 or Samaria’s.
10:11 As I have done to Samaria and its idols,
so I will do to Jerusalem and its idols.” 534
10:12 But when 535 the sovereign master 536 finishes judging 537 Mount Zion and Jerusalem, then I 538 will punish the king of Assyria for what he has proudly planned and for the arrogant attitude he displays. 539 10:13 For he says:
“By my strong hand I have accomplished this,
by my strategy that I devised.
I invaded the territory of nations, 540
and looted their storehouses.
Like a mighty conqueror, 541 I brought down rulers. 542
10:14 My hand discovered the wealth of the nations, as if it were in a nest,
as one gathers up abandoned eggs,
I gathered up the whole earth.
There was no wing flapping,
or open mouth chirping.” 543
10:15 Does an ax exalt itself over the one who wields it,
or a saw magnify itself over the one who cuts with it? 544
As if a scepter should brandish the one who raises it,
or a staff should lift up what is not made of wood!
10:16 For this reason 545 the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, will make his healthy ones emaciated. 546 His majestic glory will go up in smoke. 547
10:17 The light of Israel 548 will become a fire,
their Holy One 549 will become a flame;
it will burn and consume the Assyrian king’s 550 briers
and his thorns in one day.
10:18 The splendor of his forest and his orchard
will be completely destroyed, 551
as when a sick man’s life ebbs away. 552
10:19 There will be so few trees left in his forest,
a child will be able to count them. 553
10:20 At that time 554 those left in Israel, those who remain of the family 555 of Jacob, will no longer rely on a foreign leader that abuses them. 556 Instead they will truly 557 rely on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 558 10:21 A remnant will come back, a remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. 559 10:22 For though your people, Israel, are as numerous as 560 the sand on the seashore, only a remnant will come back. 561 Destruction has been decreed; 562 just punishment 563 is about to engulf you. 564 10:23 The sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, is certainly ready to carry out the decreed destruction throughout the land. 565
10:24 So 566 here is what the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, says: “My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of Assyria, even though they beat you with a club and lift their cudgel against you as Egypt did. 567 10:25 For very soon my fury 568 will subside, and my anger will be directed toward their destruction.” 10:26 The Lord who commands armies is about to beat them 569 with a whip, similar to the way he struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb. 570 He will use his staff against the sea, lifting it up as he did in Egypt. 571
10:27 At that time 572
the Lord will remove their burden from your shoulders, 573
and their yoke from your neck;
the yoke will be taken off because your neck will be too large. 574
10:28 575 They 576 attacked 577 Aiath,
moved through Migron,
depositing their supplies at Micmash.
10:29 They went through the pass,
spent the night at Geba.
Ramah trembled,
Gibeah of Saul ran away.
10:30 Shout out, daughter of Gallim!
Pay attention, Laishah!
Answer her, Anathoth! 578
10:31 Madmenah flees,
the residents of Gebim have hidden.
10:32 This very day, standing in Nob,
they shake their fist at Daughter Zion’s mountain 579 –
at the hill of Jerusalem.
10:33 Look, the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies,
is ready to cut off the branches with terrifying power. 580
The tallest trees 581 will be cut down,
the loftiest ones will be brought low.
10:34 The thickets of the forest will be chopped down with an ax,
and mighty Lebanon will fall. 582
11:1 A shoot will grow out of Jesse’s 583 root stock,
a bud will sprout 584 from his roots.
11:2 The Lord’s spirit will rest on him 585 –
a spirit that gives extraordinary wisdom, 586
a spirit that provides the ability to execute plans, 587
a spirit that produces absolute loyalty to the Lord. 588
11:3 He will take delight in obeying the Lord. 589
He will not judge by mere appearances, 590
or make decisions on the basis of hearsay. 591
11:4 He will treat the poor fairly, 592
and make right decisions 593 for the downtrodden of the earth. 594
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, 595
and order the wicked to be executed. 596
11:5 Justice will be like a belt around his waist,
integrity will be like a belt around his hips. 597
11:6 A wolf will reside 598 with a lamb,
and a leopard will lie down with a young goat;
an ox and a young lion will graze together, 599
as a small child leads them along.
11:7 A cow and a bear will graze together,
their young will lie down together. 600
A lion, like an ox, will eat straw.
11:8 A baby 601 will play
over the hole of a snake; 602
over the nest 603 of a serpent
an infant 604 will put his hand. 605
11:9 They will no longer injure or destroy
on my entire royal mountain. 606
For there will be universal submission to the Lord’s sovereignty,
just as the waters completely cover the sea. 607
11:10 At that time 608 a root from Jesse 609 will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance, 610 and his residence will be majestic. 11:11 At that time 611 the sovereign master 612 will again lift his hand 613 to reclaim 614 the remnant of his people 615 from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, 616 Cush, 617 Elam, Shinar, 618 Hamath, and the seacoasts. 619
11:12 He will lift a signal flag for the nations;
he will gather Israel’s dispersed people 620
and assemble Judah’s scattered people
from the four corners of the earth.
11:13 Ephraim’s jealousy will end, 621
and Judah’s hostility 622 will be eliminated.
Ephraim will no longer be jealous of Judah,
and Judah will no longer be hostile toward Ephraim.
11:14 They will swoop down 623 on the Philistine hills to the west; 624
together they will loot the people of the east.
They will take over Edom and Moab, 625
and the Ammonites will be their subjects.
11:15 The Lord will divide 626 the gulf 627 of the Egyptian Sea; 628
he will wave his hand over the Euphrates River 629 and send a strong wind, 630
he will turn it into seven dried-up streams, 631
and enable them to walk across in their sandals.
11:16 There will be a highway leading out of Assyria
for the remnant of his people, 632
just as there was for Israel,
when 633 they went up from the land of Egypt.
12:1 At that time 634 you will say:
“I praise you, O Lord,
for even though you were angry with me,
your anger subsided, and you consoled me.
12:2 Look, God is my deliverer! 635
I will trust in him 636 and not fear.
For the Lord gives me strength and protects me; 637
he has become my deliverer.” 638
12:3 Joyfully you will draw water
from the springs of deliverance. 639
12:4 At that time 640 you will say:
“Praise the Lord!
Ask him for help! 641
Publicize his mighty acts among the nations!
Make it known that he is unique! 642
12:5 Sing to the Lord, for he has done magnificent things,
let this be known 643 throughout the earth!
12:6 Cry out and shout for joy, O citizens of Zion,
for the Holy One of Israel 644 acts mightily 645 among you!”
13:1 646 This is a message about Babylon that God revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz: 647
13:2 648 On a bare hill raise a signal flag,
shout to them,
wave your hand,
so they might enter the gates of the princes!
13:3 I have given orders to my chosen soldiers; 649
I have summoned the warriors through whom I will vent my anger, 650
my boasting, arrogant ones. 651
13:4 652 There is a loud noise on the mountains –
it sounds like a large army! 653
There is great commotion among the kingdoms 654 –
nations are being assembled!
The Lord who commands armies is mustering
forces for battle.
13:5 They come from a distant land,
from the horizon. 655
It is the Lord with his instruments of judgment, 656
coming to destroy the whole earth. 657
13:6 Wail, for the Lord’s day of judgment 658 is near;
it comes with all the destructive power of the sovereign judge. 659
13:7 For this reason all hands hang limp, 660
every human heart loses its courage. 661
13:8 They panic –
cramps and pain seize hold of them
like those of a woman who is straining to give birth.
They look at one another in astonishment;
their faces are flushed red. 662
13:9 Look, the Lord’s day of judgment 663 is coming;
it is a day of cruelty and savage, raging anger, 664
destroying 665 the earth 666
and annihilating its sinners.
13:10 Indeed the stars in the sky and their constellations
no longer give out their light; 667
the sun is darkened as soon as it rises,
and the moon does not shine. 668
13:11 669 I will punish the world for its evil, 670
and wicked people for their sin.
I will put an end to the pride of the insolent,
I will bring down the arrogance of tyrants. 671
13:12 I will make human beings more scarce than pure gold,
and people more scarce 672 than gold from Ophir.
13:13 So I will shake the heavens, 673
and the earth will shake loose from its foundation, 674
because of the fury of the Lord who commands armies,
in the day he vents his raging anger. 675
13:14 Like a frightened gazelle 676
or a sheep with no shepherd,
each will turn toward home, 677
each will run to his homeland.
13:15 Everyone who is caught will be stabbed;
everyone who is seized 678 will die 679 by the sword.
13:16 Their children will be smashed to pieces before their very eyes;
their houses will be looted
and their wives raped.
13:17 Look, I am stirring up the Medes to attack them; 680
they are not concerned about silver,
nor are they interested in gold. 681
13:18 Their arrows will cut young men to ribbons; 682
they have no compassion on a person’s offspring, 683
they will not 684 look with pity on children.
13:19 Babylon, the most admired 685 of kingdoms,
the Chaldeans’ source of honor and pride, 686
will be destroyed by God
just as Sodom and Gomorrah were. 687
13:20 No one will live there again;
no one will ever reside there again. 688
No bedouin 689 will camp 690 there,
no shepherds will rest their flocks 691 there.
13:21 Wild animals will rest there,
the ruined 692 houses will be full of hyenas. 693
Ostriches will live there,
wild goats will skip among the ruins. 694
13:22 Wild dogs will yip in her ruined fortresses,
jackals will yelp in the once-splendid palaces. 695
Her time is almost up, 696
her days will not be prolonged. 697
14:1 The Lord will certainly have compassion on Jacob; 698 he will again choose Israel as his special people 699 and restore 700 them to their land. Resident foreigners will join them and unite with the family 701 of Jacob. 14:2 Nations will take them and bring them back to their own place. Then the family of Jacob will make foreigners their servants as they settle in the Lord’s land. 702 They will make their captors captives and rule over the ones who oppressed them. 14:3 When the Lord gives you relief from your suffering and anxiety, 703 and from the hard labor which you were made to perform, 14:4 you will taunt the king of Babylon with these words: 704
“Look how the oppressor has met his end!
Hostility 705 has ceased!
14:5 The Lord has broken the club of the wicked,
the scepter of rulers.
14:6 It 706 furiously struck down nations
with unceasing blows. 707
It angrily ruled over nations,
oppressing them without restraint. 708
14:7 The whole earth rests and is quiet;
they break into song.
14:8 The evergreens also rejoice over your demise, 709
as do the cedars of Lebanon, singing, 710
‘Since you fell asleep, 711
no woodsman comes up to chop us down!’ 712
14:9 Sheol 713 below is stirred up about you,
ready to meet you when you arrive.
It rouses 714 the spirits of the dead for you,
all the former leaders of the earth; 715
it makes all the former kings of the nations
rise from their thrones. 716
14:10 All of them respond to you, saying:
‘You too have become weak like us!
You have become just like us!
14:11 Your splendor 717 has been brought down to Sheol,
as well as the sound of your stringed instruments. 718
You lie on a bed of maggots,
with a blanket of worms over you. 719
14:12 Look how you have fallen from the sky,
O shining one, son of the dawn! 720
You have been cut down to the ground,
O conqueror 721 of the nations! 722
14:13 You said to yourself, 723
“I will climb up to the sky.
Above the stars of El 724
I will set up my throne.
I will rule on the mountain of assembly
on the remote slopes of Zaphon. 725
14:14 I will climb up to the tops 726 of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High!” 727
14:15 But you were brought down 728 to Sheol,
to the remote slopes of the pit. 729
14:16 Those who see you stare at you,
they look at you carefully, thinking: 730
“Is this the man who shook the earth,
the one who made kingdoms tremble?
14:17 Is this the one who made the world like a desert,
who ruined its 731 cities,
and refused to free his prisoners so they could return home?”’ 732
14:18 733 As for all the kings of the nations,
all of them 734 lie down in splendor, 735
each in his own tomb. 736
14:19 But you have been thrown out of your grave
like a shoot that is thrown away. 737
You lie among 738 the slain,
among those who have been slashed by the sword,
among those headed for 739 the stones of the pit, 740
as if you were a mangled corpse. 741
14:20 You will not be buried with them, 742
because you destroyed your land
and killed your people.
The offspring of the wicked
will never be mentioned again.
14:21 Prepare to execute 743 his sons
for the sins their ancestors have committed. 744
They must not rise up and take possession of the earth,
or fill the surface of the world with cities.” 745
14:22 “I will rise up against them,”
says the Lord who commands armies.
“I will blot out all remembrance of Babylon and destroy all her people, 746
including the offspring she produces,” 747
says the Lord.
14:23 “I will turn her into a place that is overrun with wild animals 748
and covered with pools of stagnant water.
I will get rid of her, just as one sweeps away dirt with a broom,” 749
says the Lord who commands armies.
14:24 750 The Lord who commands armies makes this solemn vow:
“Be sure of this:
Just as I have intended, so it will be;
just as I have planned, it will happen.
14:25 I will break Assyria 751 in my land,
I will trample them 752 underfoot on my hills.
Their yoke will be removed from my people,
the burden will be lifted from their shoulders. 753
14:26 This is the plan I have devised for the whole earth;
my hand is ready to strike all the nations.” 754
14:27 Indeed, 755 the Lord who commands armies has a plan,
and who can possibly frustrate it?
His hand is ready to strike,
and who can possibly stop it? 756
14:28 In the year King Ahaz died, 757 this message was revealed: 758
14:29 Don’t be so happy, all you Philistines,
just because the club that beat you has been broken! 759
For a viper will grow out of the serpent’s root,
and its fruit will be a darting adder. 760
14:30 The poor will graze in my pastures; 761
the needy will rest securely.
But I will kill your root by famine;
it will put to death all your survivors. 762
14:31 Wail, O city gate!
Cry out, O city!
Melt with fear, 763 all you Philistines!
For out of the north comes a cloud of smoke,
and there are no stragglers in its ranks. 764
14:32 How will they respond to the messengers of this nation? 765
Indeed, the Lord has made Zion secure;
the oppressed among his people will find safety in her.
15:1 Here is a message about Moab:
Indeed, in a night it is devastated,
Ar of Moab is destroyed!
Indeed, in a night it is devastated,
Kir of Moab is destroyed!
15:2 They went up to the temple, 766
the people of Dibon went up to the high places to lament. 767
Because of what happened to Nebo and Medeba, 768 Moab wails.
Every head is shaved bare,
every beard is trimmed off. 769
15:3 In their streets they wear sackcloth;
on their roofs and in their town squares
all of them wail,
they fall down weeping.
15:4 The people of 770 Heshbon and Elealeh cry out,
their voices are heard as far away as Jahaz.
For this reason Moab’s soldiers shout in distress;
their courage wavers. 771
15:5 My heart cries out because of Moab’s plight, 772
and for the fugitives 773 stretched out 774 as far as Zoar and Eglath Shelishiyah.
For they weep as they make their way up the ascent of Luhith;
they loudly lament their demise on the road to Horonaim. 775
15:6 For the waters of Nimrim are gone; 776
the grass is dried up,
the vegetation has disappeared,
and there are no plants.
15:7 For this reason what they have made and stored up,
they carry over the Stream of the Poplars.
15:8 Indeed, the cries of distress echo throughout Moabite territory;
their wailing can be heard in Eglaim and Beer Elim. 777
15:9 Indeed, the waters of Dimon 778 are full of blood!
Indeed, I will heap even more trouble on Dimon. 779
A lion will attack 780 the Moabite fugitives
and the people left in the land.
16:1 Send rams as tribute to the ruler of the land, 781
from Sela in the desert 782
to the hill of Daughter Zion.
16:2 At the fords of the Arnon 783
the Moabite women are like a bird
that flies about when forced from its nest. 784
16:3 “Bring a plan, make a decision! 785
Provide some shade in the middle of the day! 786
Hide the fugitives! Do not betray 787 the one who tries to escape!
16:4 Please let the Moabite fugitives live 788 among you.
Hide them 789 from the destroyer!”
Certainly 790 the one who applies pressure will cease, 791
the destroyer will come to an end,
those who trample will disappear 792 from the earth.
16:5 Then a trustworthy king will be established;
he will rule in a reliable manner,
this one from David’s family. 793
He will be sure to make just decisions
and will be experienced in executing justice. 794
16:6 We have heard about Moab’s pride,
their great arrogance,
their boasting, pride, and excess. 795
But their boastful claims are empty! 796
16:7 So Moab wails over its demise 797 –
they all wail!
Completely devastated, they moan
about what has happened to the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth. 798
16:8 For the fields of Heshbon are dried up,
as well as the vines of Sibmah.
The rulers of the nations trample all over its vines,
which reach Jazer and spread to the desert;
their shoots spread out and cross the sea.
16:9 So I weep along with Jazer 799
over the vines of Sibmah.
I will saturate you 800 with my tears, Heshbon and Elealeh,
for the conquering invaders shout triumphantly
over your fruit and crops. 801
16:10 Joy and happiness disappear from the orchards,
and in the vineyards no one rejoices or shouts;
no one treads out juice in the wine vats 802 –
I have brought the joyful shouts to an end. 803
16:11 So my heart constantly sighs for Moab, like the strumming of a harp, 804
my inner being sighs 805 for Kir Hareseth. 806
16:12 When the Moabites plead with all their might at their high places, 807
and enter their temples to pray, their prayers will be ineffective! 808
16:13 This is the message the Lord previously announced about Moab. 16:14 Now the Lord makes this announcement: “Within exactly three years 809 Moab’s splendor will disappear, along with all her many people; there will be just a few, insignificant survivors left.” 810
17:1 Here is a message about Damascus:
“Look, Damascus is no longer a city,
it is a heap of ruins!
17:2 The cities of Aroer are abandoned. 811
They will be used for herds,
which will lie down there in peace. 812
17:3 Fortified cities will disappear from Ephraim,
and Damascus will lose its kingdom. 813
The survivors in Syria
will end up like the splendor of the Israelites,”
says the Lord who commands armies.
17:4 “At that time 814
Jacob’s splendor will be greatly diminished, 815
and he will become skin and bones. 816
17:5 It will be as when one gathers the grain harvest,
and his hand gleans the ear of grain.
It will be like one gathering the ears of grain
in the Valley of Rephaim.
17:6 There will be some left behind,
like when an olive tree is beaten –
two or three ripe olives remain toward the very top,
four or five on its fruitful branches,”
says the Lord God of Israel.
17:7 At that time 817 men will trust in their creator; 818
they will depend on 819 the Holy One of Israel. 820
17:8 They will no longer trust in 821 the altars their hands made,
or depend on the Asherah poles and incense altars their fingers made. 822
17:9 At that time 823 their fortified cities will be
like the abandoned summits of the Amorites, 824
which they abandoned because of the Israelites;
there will be desolation.
17:10 For you ignore 825 the God who rescues you;
you pay no attention to your strong protector. 826
So this is what happens:
You cultivate beautiful plants
and plant exotic vines. 827
17:11 The day you begin cultivating, you do what you can to make it grow; 828
the morning you begin planting, you do what you can to make it sprout.
Yet the harvest will disappear 829 in the day of disease
and incurable pain.
17:12 The many nations massing together are as good as dead, 830
those who make a commotion as loud as the roaring of the sea’s waves. 831
The people making such an uproar are as good as dead, 832
those who make an uproar as loud as the roaring of powerful waves. 833
17:13 Though these people make an uproar as loud as the roaring of powerful waves, 834
when he shouts at 835 them, they will flee to a distant land,
driven before the wind like dead weeds on the hills,
or like dead thistles 836 before a strong gale.
17:14 In the evening there is sudden terror; 837
by morning they vanish. 838
This is the fate of those who try to plunder us,
the destiny of those who try to loot us! 839
18:1 The land of buzzing wings is as good as dead, 840
the one beyond the rivers of Cush,
18:2 that sends messengers by sea,
who glide over the water’s surface in boats made of papyrus.
Go, you swift messengers,
to a nation of tall, smooth-skinned people, 841
to a people that are feared far and wide, 842
to a nation strong and victorious, 843
whose land rivers divide. 844
18:3 All you who live in the world,
who reside on the earth,
you will see a signal flag raised on the mountains;
you will hear a trumpet being blown.
18:4 For this is what the Lord has told me:
“I will wait 845 and watch from my place,
like scorching heat produced by the sunlight, 846
like a cloud of mist 847 in the heat 848 of harvest.” 849
18:5 For before the harvest, when the bud has sprouted,
and the ripening fruit appears, 850
he will cut off the unproductive shoots 851 with pruning knives;
he will prune the tendrils. 852
18:6 They will all be left 853 for the birds of the hills
and the wild animals; 854
the birds will eat them during the summer,
and all the wild animals will eat them during the winter.
18:7 At that time
tribute will be brought to the Lord who commands armies,
by a people that are tall and smooth-skinned,
a people that are feared far and wide,
a nation strong and victorious,
whose land rivers divide. 855
The tribute 856 will be brought to the place where the Lord who commands armies has chosen to reside, on Mount Zion. 857
19:1 Here is a message about Egypt:
Look, the Lord rides on a swift-moving cloud
and approaches Egypt.
The idols of Egypt tremble before him;
the Egyptians lose their courage. 858
19:2 “I will provoke civil strife in Egypt, 859
brothers will fight with each other,
as will neighbors,
cities, and kingdoms. 860
19:3 The Egyptians will panic, 861
and I will confuse their strategy. 862
They will seek guidance from the idols and from the spirits of the dead,
from the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, and from the magicians. 863
19:4 I will hand Egypt over to a harsh master;
a powerful king will rule over them,”
says the sovereign master, 864 the Lord who commands armies.
19:5 The water of the sea will be dried up,
and the river will dry up and be empty. 865
19:6 The canals 866 will stink; 867
the streams of Egypt will trickle and then dry up;
the bulrushes and reeds will decay,
19:7 along with the plants by the mouth of the river. 868
All the cultivated land near the river
will turn to dust and be blown away. 869
19:8 The fishermen will mourn and lament,
all those who cast a fishhook into the river,
and those who spread out a net on the water’s surface will grieve. 870
19:9 Those who make clothes from combed flax will be embarrassed;
those who weave will turn pale. 871
19:10 Those who make cloth 872 will be demoralized; 873
all the hired workers will be depressed. 874
19:11 The officials of Zoan are nothing but fools; 875
Pharaoh’s wise advisers give stupid advice.
How dare you say to Pharaoh,
“I am one of the sages,
one well-versed in the writings of the ancient kings?” 876
19:12 But where, oh where, are your wise men? 877
Let them tell you, let them find out
what the Lord who commands armies has planned for Egypt.
19:13 The officials of Zoan are fools,
the officials of Memphis 878 are misled;
the rulers 879 of her tribes lead Egypt astray.
19:14 The Lord has made them undiscerning; 880
they lead Egypt astray in all she does,
so that she is like a drunk sliding around in his own vomit. 881
19:15 Egypt will not be able to do a thing,
head or tail, shoots and stalk. 882
19:16 At that time 883 the Egyptians 884 will be like women. 885 They will tremble and fear because the Lord who commands armies brandishes his fist against them. 886 19:17 The land of Judah will humiliate Egypt. Everyone who hears about Judah will be afraid because of what the Lord who commands armies is planning to do to them. 887
19:18 At that time five cities 888 in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord who commands armies. One will be called the City of the Sun. 889 19:19 At that time there will be an altar for the Lord in the middle of the land of Egypt, as well as a sacred pillar 890 dedicated to the Lord at its border. 19:20 It 891 will become a visual reminder in the land of Egypt of 892 the Lord who commands armies. When they cry out to the Lord because of oppressors, he will send them a deliverer and defender 893 who will rescue them. 19:21 The Lord will reveal himself to the Egyptians, and they 894 will acknowledge the Lord’s authority 895 at that time. 896 They will present sacrifices and offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and fulfill them. 19:22 The Lord will strike Egypt, striking and then healing them. They will turn to the Lord and he will listen to their prayers 897 and heal them.
19:23 At that time there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will visit Egypt, and the Egyptians will visit Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. 898 19:24 At that time Israel will be the third member of the group, along with Egypt and Assyria, and will be a recipient of blessing 899 in the earth. 900 19:25 The Lord who commands armies will pronounce a blessing over the earth, saying, 901 “Blessed be my people, Egypt, and the work of my hands, Assyria, and my special possession, 902 Israel!”
20:1 The Lord revealed the following message during the year in which King Sargon of Assyria sent his commanding general to Ashdod, and he fought against it and captured it. 903 20:2 At that time the Lord announced through 904 Isaiah son of Amoz: “Go, remove the sackcloth from your waist and take your sandals off your feet.” He did as instructed and walked around in undergarments 905 and barefoot. 20:3 Later the Lord explained, “In the same way that my servant Isaiah has walked around in undergarments and barefoot for the past three years, as an object lesson and omen pertaining to Egypt and Cush, 20:4 so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, both young and old. They will be in undergarments and barefoot, with the buttocks exposed; the Egyptians will be publicly humiliated. 906 20:5 Those who put their hope in Cush and took pride in Egypt will be afraid and embarrassed. 907 20:6 At that time 908 those who live on this coast 909 will say, ‘Look what has happened to our source of hope to whom we fled for help, expecting to be rescued from the king of Assyria! How can we escape now?’”
21:1 Here is a message about the Desert by the Sea: 910
Like strong winds blowing in the south, 911
one invades from the desert,
from a land that is feared.
21:2 I have received a distressing message: 912
“The deceiver deceives,
the destroyer destroys.
Attack, you Elamites!
Lay siege, you Medes!
I will put an end to all the groaning!” 913
21:3 For this reason my stomach churns; 914
cramps overwhelm me
like the contractions of a woman in labor.
I am disturbed 915 by what I hear,
horrified by what I see.
21:4 My heart palpitates, 916
I shake in fear; 917
the twilight I desired
has brought me terror.
21:5 Arrange the table,
lay out 918 the carpet,
eat and drink! 919
Get up, you officers,
smear oil on the shields! 920
21:6 For this is what the sovereign master 921 has told me:
“Go, post a guard!
He must report what he sees.
21:7 When he sees chariots,
teams of horses, 922
riders on donkeys,
riders on camels,
he must be alert,
very alert.”
21:8 Then the guard 923 cries out:
“On the watchtower, O sovereign master, 924
I stand all day long;
at my post
I am stationed every night.
21:9 Look what’s coming!
A charioteer,
a team of horses.” 925
When questioned, he replies, 926
“Babylon has fallen, fallen!
All the idols of her gods lie shattered on the ground!”
21:10 O my downtrodden people, crushed like stalks on the threshing floor, 927
what I have heard
from the Lord who commands armies,
the God of Israel,
I have reported to you.
21:11 Here is a message about Dumah: 928
Someone calls to me from Seir, 929
“Watchman, what is left of the night?
Watchman, what is left of the night?” 930
21:12 The watchman replies,
“Morning is coming, but then night. 931
If you want to ask, ask;
come back again.” 932
21:13 Here is a message about Arabia:
In the thicket of Arabia you spend the night,
you Dedanite caravans.
21:14 Bring out some water for the thirsty.
You who live in the land of Tema,
bring some food for the fugitives.
21:15 For they flee from the swords –
from the drawn sword
and from the battle-ready bow
and from the severity of the battle.
21:16 For this is what the sovereign master 933 has told me: “Within exactly one year 934 all the splendor of Kedar will come to an end. 21:17 Just a handful of archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be left.” 935 Indeed, 936 the Lord God of Israel has spoken.
22:1 Here is a message about the Valley of Vision: 937
What is the reason 938
that all of you go up to the rooftops?
22:2 The noisy city is full of raucous sounds;
the town is filled with revelry. 939
Your slain were not cut down by the sword;
they did not die in battle. 940
22:3 941 All your leaders ran away together –
they fled to a distant place;
all your refugees 942 were captured together –
they were captured without a single arrow being shot. 943
22:4 So I say:
“Don’t look at me! 944
I am weeping bitterly.
Don’t try 945 to console me
concerning the destruction of my defenseless people.” 946
22:5 For the sovereign master, 947 the Lord who commands armies,
has planned a day of panic, defeat, and confusion. 948
In the Valley of Vision 949 people shout 950
and cry out to the hill. 951
22:6 The Elamites picked up the quiver,
and came with chariots and horsemen; 952
the men of Kir 953 prepared 954 the shield. 955
22:7 Your very best valleys were full of chariots; 956
horsemen confidently took their positions 957 at the gate.
22:8 They 958 removed the defenses 959 of Judah.
At that time 960 you looked
for the weapons in the House of the Forest. 961
22:9 You saw the many breaks
in the walls of the city of David; 962
you stored up water in the lower pool.
22:10 You counted the houses in Jerusalem, 963
and demolished houses so you could have material to reinforce the wall. 964
22:11 You made a reservoir between the two walls
for the water of the old pool –
but you did not trust in 965 the one who made it; 966
you did not depend on 967 the one who formed it long ago!
22:12 At that time the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, called for weeping and mourning,
for shaved heads and sackcloth. 968
22:13 But look, there is outright celebration! 969
You say, “Kill the ox and slaughter the sheep,
eat meat and drink wine.
Eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” 970
22:14 The Lord who commands armies told me this: 971 “Certainly this sin will not be forgiven as long as you live,” 972 says the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies.
22:15 This is what the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, says:
“Go visit this administrator, Shebna, who supervises the palace, 973 and tell him: 974
22:16 ‘What right do you have to be here? What relatives do you have buried here? 975
Why 976 do you chisel out a tomb for yourself here?
He chisels out his burial site in an elevated place,
he carves out his tomb on a cliff.
22:17 Look, the Lord will throw you far away, 977 you mere man! 978
He will wrap you up tightly. 979
22:18 He will wind you up tightly into a ball
and throw you into a wide, open land. 980
There you will die,
and there with you will be your impressive chariots, 981
which bring disgrace to the house of your master. 982
22:19 I will remove you from 983 your office;
you will be thrown down 984 from your position.
22:20 “At that time 985 I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah. 22:21 I will put your robe on him, tie your belt around him, and transfer your authority to him. 986 He will become a protector of 987 the residents of Jerusalem and of the people 988 of Judah. 22:22 I will place the key 989 to the house of David on his shoulder. When he opens the door, no one can close it; when he closes the door, no one can open it. 22:23 I will fasten him like a peg into a solid place; 990 he will bring honor and respect to his father’s family. 991 22:24 His father’s family will gain increasing prominence because of him, 992 including the offspring and the offshoots. 993 All the small containers, including the bowls and all the jars will hang from this peg.’ 994
22:25 “At that time,” 995 says the Lord who commands armies, “the peg fastened into a solid place will come loose. It will be cut off and fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut off.” 996 Indeed, 997 the Lord has spoken.
23:1 Here is a message about Tyre:
Wail, you large ships, 998
for the port is too devastated to enter! 999
From the land of Cyprus 1000 this news is announced to them.
23:2 Lament, 1001 you residents of the coast,
you merchants of Sidon 1002 who travel over the sea,
whose agents sail over 23:3 the deep waters! 1003
Grain from the Shihor region, 1004
crops grown near the Nile 1005 she receives; 1006
she is the trade center 1007 of the nations.
23:4 Be ashamed, O Sidon,
for the sea 1008 says this, O fortress of the sea:
“I have not gone into labor
or given birth;
I have not raised young men
or brought up young women.” 1009
23:5 When the news reaches Egypt,
they will be shaken by what has happened to Tyre. 1010
23:6 Travel to Tarshish!
Wail, you residents of the coast!
23:7 Is this really your boisterous city 1011
whose origins are in the distant past, 1012
and whose feet led her to a distant land to reside?
23:8 Who planned this for royal Tyre, 1013
whose merchants are princes,
whose traders are the dignitaries 1014 of the earth?
23:9 The Lord who commands armies planned it –
to dishonor the pride that comes from all her beauty, 1015
to humiliate all the dignitaries of the earth.
23:10 Daughter Tarshish, travel back to your land, as one crosses the Nile;
there is no longer any marketplace in Tyre. 1016
23:11 The Lord stretched out his hand over the sea, 1017
he shook kingdoms;
he 1018 gave the order
to destroy Canaan’s fortresses. 1019
23:12 He said,
“You will no longer celebrate,
oppressed 1020 virgin daughter Sidon!
Get up, travel to Cyprus,
but you will find no relief there.” 1021
23:13 Look at the land of the Chaldeans,
these people who have lost their identity! 1022
The Assyrians have made it a home for wild animals.
They erected their siege towers, 1023
demolished 1024 its fortresses,
and turned it into a heap of ruins. 1025
23:14 Wail, you large ships, 1026
for your fortress is destroyed!
23:15 At that time 1027 Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, 1028 the typical life span of a king. 1029 At the end of seventy years Tyre will try to attract attention again, like the prostitute in the popular song: 1030
23:16 “Take the harp,
go through the city,
forgotten prostitute!
Play it well,
play lots of songs,
so you’ll be noticed!” 1031
23:17 At the end of seventy years 1032 the Lord will revive 1033 Tyre. She will start making money again by selling her services to all the earth’s kingdoms. 1034 23:18 Her profits and earnings will be set apart for the Lord. They will not be stored up or accumulated, for her profits will be given to those who live in the Lord’s presence and will be used to purchase large quantities of food and beautiful clothes. 1035
24:1 Look, the Lord is ready to devastate the earth
and leave it in ruins;
he will mar its surface
and scatter its inhabitants.
24:2 Everyone will suffer – the priest as well as the people, 1036
the master as well as the servant, 1037
the elegant lady as well as the female attendant, 1038
the seller as well as the buyer, 1039
the borrower as well as the lender, 1040
the creditor as well as the debtor. 1041
24:3 The earth will be completely devastated
and thoroughly ransacked.
For the Lord has decreed this judgment. 1042
24:4 The earth 1043 dries up 1044 and withers,
the world shrivels up and withers;
the prominent people of the earth 1045 fade away.
24:5 The earth is defiled by 1046 its inhabitants, 1047
for they have violated laws,
disregarded the regulation, 1048
and broken the permanent treaty. 1049
24:6 So a treaty curse 1050 devours the earth;
its inhabitants pay for their guilt. 1051
This is why the inhabitants of the earth disappear, 1052
and are reduced to just a handful of people. 1053
24:7 The new wine dries up,
the vines shrivel up,
all those who like to celebrate 1054 groan.
24:8 The happy sound 1055 of the tambourines stops,
the revelry of those who celebrate comes to a halt,
the happy sound of the harp ceases.
24:9 They no longer sing and drink wine; 1056
the beer tastes bitter to those who drink it.
24:10 The ruined town 1057 is shattered;
all of the houses are shut up tight. 1058
24:11 They howl in the streets because of what happened to the wine; 1059
all joy turns to sorrow; 1060
celebrations disappear from the earth. 1061
24:12 The city is left in ruins; 1062
the gate is reduced to rubble. 1063
24:13 This is what will happen throughout 1064 the earth,
among the nations.
It will be like when they beat an olive tree,
and just a few olives are left at the end of the harvest. 1065
24:14 They 1066 lift their voices and shout joyfully;
they praise 1067 the majesty of the Lord in the west.
24:15 So in the east 1068 extol the Lord,
along the seacoasts extol 1069 the fame 1070 of the Lord God of Israel.
24:16 From the ends of the earth we 1071 hear songs –
the Just One is majestic. 1072
But I 1073 say, “I’m wasting away! I’m wasting away! I’m doomed!
Deceivers deceive, deceivers thoroughly deceive!” 1074
24:17 Terror, pit, and snare
are ready to overtake you inhabitants of the earth! 1075
24:18 The one who runs away from the sound of the terror
will fall into the pit; 1076
the one who climbs out of the pit,
will be trapped by the snare.
For the floodgates of the heavens 1077 are opened up 1078
and the foundations of the earth shake.
24:19 The earth is broken in pieces,
the earth is ripped to shreds,
the earth shakes violently. 1079
24:20 The earth will stagger around 1080 like a drunk;
it will sway back and forth like a hut in a windstorm. 1081
Its sin will weigh it down,
and it will fall and never get up again.
24:21 At that time 1082 the Lord will punish 1083
the heavenly forces in the heavens 1084
and the earthly kings on the earth.
24:22 They will be imprisoned in a pit, 1085
locked up in a prison,
and after staying there for a long time, 1086 they will be punished. 1087
24:23 The full moon will be covered up, 1088
the bright sun 1089 will be darkened; 1090
for the Lord who commands armies will rule 1091
on Mount Zion in Jerusalem 1092
in the presence of his assembly, in majestic splendor. 1093
25:1 O Lord, you are my God! 1094
I will exalt you in praise, I will extol your fame. 1095
For you have done extraordinary things,
and executed plans made long ago exactly as you decreed. 1096
1 tn Heb “and the eyes of the pride of men will be brought low, and the arrogance of men will be brought down.” The repetition of the verbs שָׁפַל (shafal) and שָׁחָח (shakhakh) from v. 9 draws attention to the appropriate nature of the judgment. Those proud men who “bow low” before idols will be forced to “bow low” before God when he judges their sin.
2 tn Or “elevated”; CEV “honored.”
3 tn Heb “indeed [or “for”] the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] has a day.”
4 tn Or “against” (NAB, NASB, NRSV).
5 tn Heb “and the pride of men will be brought down, and the arrogance of men will be brought low.” As in v. 11, the repetition of the verbs שָׁפַל (shafal) and שָׁחָח (shakhakh) from v. 9 draws attention to the appropriate nature of the judgment. Those proud men who “bow low” before idols will be forced to “bow low” before God when he judges their sin.
6 tn Or “elevated”; NCV “praised”; CEV “honored.”
7 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
8 tn Heb “the word which Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.”
9 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
10 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
11 tn Or perhaps, “but they were unable to attack it.” This statement sounds like a summary of the whole campaign. The following context explains why they were unable to defeat the southern kingdom. The parallel passage (2 Kgs 16:5; cf. Num 22:11; 1 Sam 17:9 for a similar construction) affirms that Syria and Israel besieged Ahaz. Consequently, the statement that “they were not able to battle against them” must refer to the inability to conquer Ahaz.
12 tn Heb “house.” In this context the “house of David” includes King Ahaz, his family, and the royal court. See also Jer 21:12; Zech 12:7-8, 10, 12, for a similar use of the phrase.
13 tn Heb “rests upon.” Most understand the verb as נוּחַ (nuakh, “rest”), but HALOT 685 s.v. II נחה proposes that this is a hapax legomenon which means “stand by.”
14 tn Heb “and his heart shook and the heart of his people shook, like the shaking of the trees of the forest before the wind.” The singular pronoun “his” is collective, referring to the Davidic house/family. לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) here refers to the seat of the emotions.
15 tn The name means “a remnant will return.” Perhaps in this context, where the Lord is trying to encourage Ahaz, the name suggests that only a few of the enemy invaders will return home; the rest will be defeated.
16 tn Heb “the field of the washer”; traditionally “the fuller’s field” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “the Washerman’s Field.”
17 tn Heb “guard yourself and be quiet,” but the two verbs should be coordinated.
18 tn Heb “and let not your heart be weak”; ASV “neither let thy heart be faint.”
19 sn The derogatory metaphor indicates that the power of Rezin and Pekah is ready to die out.
20 tn This sentence opens with the conjunction יַעַן כִּי (ya’an ki, “because”). Consequently some take vv. 5-6 with what precedes, as another reason why Ahaz might be tempted to fear (see v. 4). However, it is more likely that vv. 5-6 give the basis for the Lord’s announcement in vv. 7-9. The conjunction יַעַן כִּי here introduces the basis for judgment (as in 3:16; 8:6; 29:13), which is then followed by the formal announcement of judgment.
21 tn Heb “and let us break it open for ourselves”; NASB “make for ourselves a breach in its walls”; NLT “fight our way into.”
22 tn Heb “and we will make the son of Tabeel king in its midst.”
sn The precise identity of this would-be puppet king is unknown. He may have been a Syrian official or the ruler of one of the small neighboring states. See Y. Aharoni, Land of the Bible, 370.
23 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 14, 19 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
24 tn Heb “Ephraim will be too shattered to be a nation”; NIV “to be a people.”
sn This statement is problematic for several reasons. It seems to intrude stylistically, interrupting the symmetry of the immediately preceding and following lines. Furthermore, such a long range prophecy lacks punch in the midst of the immediate crisis. After all, even if Israel were destroyed sometime within the next 65 years, a lot could still happen during that time, including the conquest of Judah and the demise of the Davidic family. Finally the significance of the time frame is uncertain. Israel became an Assyrian province within the next 15 years and ceased to exist as a nation. For these reasons many regard the statement as a later insertion, but why a later editor would include the reference to “65 years” remains a mystery. Some try to relate the prophecy to the events alluded to in Ezra 4:2, 10, which refers to how the Assyrian kings Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal settled foreigners in former Israelite territory, perhaps around 670
25 tn Heb “if you do not believe, you will not endure.” The verb forms are second plural; the Lord here addresses the entire Davidic family and court. (Verse 4 was addressed to the king.) There is a wordplay in the Hebrew text, designed to draw attention to the alternatives set before the king (cf. 1:20). “Believe” (תַאֳמִינוּ, ta’aminu) is a Hiphil form of the verb אָמָן (’aman); “endure” (תֵאָמֵנוּ, te’amenu) is a Niphal form of this same verb.
26 tn Heb “Make it as deep as Sheol or make it high upwards.” These words suggest that Ahaz can feel free to go beyond the bounds of ordinary human experience.
27 tn Ahaz uses the verb נָסַה (nasah, “test”) in its negative sense of “challenge, provoke.” However, this is false piety, a smokescreen designed to cover up his lack of faith in the Lord.
28 tn Heb “and he said.” The subject is unexpressed, but the reference to “my God” at the end of the verse indicates the prophet is speaking.
29 tn The verb is second plural in form, because the prophet addresses the whole family of David. He continues to use the plural in v. 14 (with one exception, see the notes on that verse), but then switches back to the second singular (addressing Ahaz specifically) in vv. 16-17.
30 tn Heb “house.” See the note at v. 2.
31 sn The address to the “house of David” is designed to remind Ahaz and his royal court of the protection promised to them through the Davidic covenant. The king’s refusal to claim God’s promise magnifies his lack of faith.
32 tn The Hebrew term אוֹת (’ot, “sign”) can refer to a miraculous event (see v. 11), but it does not carry this sense inherently. Elsewhere in Isaiah the word usually refers to a natural occurrence or an object/person vested with special significance (see 8:18; 19:20; 20:3; 37:30; 55:13; 66:19). Only in 38:7-8, 22 does it refer to a miraculous deed that involves suspending or overriding natural laws. The sign outlined in vv. 14-17 involves God’s providential control over events and their timing, but not necessarily miraculous intervention.
33 tn Heb “the young woman.” The Hebrew article has been rendered as a demonstrative pronoun (“this”) in the translation to bring out its force. It is very likely that Isaiah pointed to a woman who was present at the scene of the prophet’s interview with Ahaz. Isaiah’s address to the “house of David” and his use of second plural forms suggests other people were present, and his use of the second feminine singular verb form (“you will name”) later in the verse is best explained if addressed to a woman who is present.
34 tn Traditionally, “virgin.” Because this verse from Isaiah is quoted in Matt 1:23 in connection with Jesus’ birth, the Isaiah passage has been regarded since the earliest Christian times as a prophecy of Christ’s virgin birth. Much debate has taken place over the best way to translate this Hebrew term, although ultimately one’s view of the doctrine of the virgin birth of Christ is unaffected. Though the Hebrew word used here (עַלְמָה, ’almah) can sometimes refer to a woman who is a virgin (Gen 24:43), it does not carry this meaning inherently. The word is simply the feminine form of the corresponding masculine noun עֶלֶם (’elem, “young man”; cf. 1 Sam 17:56; 20:22). The Aramaic and Ugaritic cognate terms are both used of women who are not virgins. The word seems to pertain to age, not sexual experience, and would normally be translated “young woman.” The LXX translator(s) who later translated the Book of Isaiah into Greek sometime between the second and first century
35 tn Elsewhere the adjective הָרָה (harah), when used predicatively, refers to a past pregnancy (from the narrator’s perspective, 1 Sam 4:19), to a present condition (Gen 16:11; 38:24; 2 Sam 11:5), and to a conception that is about to occur in the near future (Judg 13:5, 7). (There is some uncertainty about the interpretation of Judg 13:5, 7, however. See the notes to those verses.) In Isa 7:14 one could translate, “the young woman is pregnant.” In this case the woman is probably a member of the royal family. Another option, the one followed in the present translation, takes the adjective in an imminent future sense, “the young woman is about to conceive.” In this case the woman could be a member of the royal family, or, more likely, the prophetess with whom Isaiah has sexual relations shortly after this (see 8:3).
36 tn Heb “and you will call his name.” The words “young lady” are supplied in the translation to clarify the identity of the addressee. The verb is normally taken as an archaic third feminine singular form here, and translated, “she will call.” However the form (קָרָאת, qara’t) is more naturally understood as second feminine singular, in which case the words would be addressed to the young woman mentioned just before this. In the three other occurrences of the third feminine singular perfect of I קָרָא (qara’, “to call”), the form used is קָרְאָה (qar’ah; see Gen 29:35; 30:6; 1 Chr 4:9). A third feminine singular perfect קָרָאת does appear in Deut 31:29 and Jer 44:23, but the verb here is the homonym II קָרָא (“to meet, encounter”). The form קָרָאת (from I קָרָא, “to call”) appears in three other passages (Gen 16:11; Isa 60:18; Jer 3:4 [Qere]) and in each case is second feminine singular.
37 sn The name Immanuel means “God [is] with us.”
38 tn Or, perhaps “cream,” frequently, “curds” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); KJV, ASV “butter”; CEV “yogurt.”
39 tn Heb “for his knowing.” Traditionally the preposition has been translated in a temporal sense, “when he knows.” However, though the preposition לְ (lamed) can sometimes have a temporal force, it never carries such a nuance in any of the 40 other passages where it is used with the infinitive construct of יָדַע (yada’, “to know”). Most often the construction indicates purpose/result. This sense is preferable here. The following context indicates that sour milk and honey will epitomize the devastation that God’s judgment will bring upon the land. Cultivated crops will be gone and the people will be forced to live off the milk produced by their goats and the honey they find in the thickets. As the child is forced to eat a steady diet of this sour milk and honey, he will be reminded of the consequences of sin and motivated to make correct moral decisions in order to avoid further outbreaks of divine discipline.
40 tn Heb “for, because.” The particle introduces the entire following context (vv. 16-25), which explains why Immanuel will be an appropriate name for the child, why he will eat sour milk and honey, and why experiencing such a diet will contribute to his moral development.
41 sn Since “two kings” are referred to later in the verse, the “land” must here refer to Syria-Israel.
42 tn Heb “the land will be abandoned, which you fear because of its two kings.” After the verb קוּץ (quts, “loathe, dread”) the phrase מִפְּנֵי (mipney, “from before”) introduces the cause of loathing/dread (see Gen 27:46; Exod 1:12; Num 22:3).
43 tn Heb “days” (so KJV, NAB); NASB, NRSV “such days.”
44 sn Initially the prophecy appears to be a message of salvation. Immanuel seems to have a positive ring to it, sour milk and honey elsewhere symbolize prosperity and blessing (see Deut 32:13-14; Job 20:17), verse 16 announces the defeat of Judah’s enemies, and verse 17a could be taken as predicting a return to the glorious days of David and Solomon. However, the message turns sour in verses 17b-25. God will be with his people in judgment, as well as salvation. The curds and honey will be signs of deprivation, not prosperity, the relief announced in verse 16 will be short-lived, and the new era will be characterized by unprecedented humiliation, not a return to glory. Because of Ahaz’s refusal to trust the Lord, potential blessing would be transformed into a curse, just as Isaiah turns an apparent prophecy of salvation into a message of judgment. Because the words “the king of Assyria” are rather awkwardly tacked on to the end of the sentence, some regard them as a later addition. However, the very awkwardness facilitates the prophet’s rhetorical strategy here, as he suddenly turns what sounds like a positive message into a judgment speech. Actually, “the king of Assyria,” stands in apposition to the earlier object “days,” and specifies who the main character of these coming “days” will be.
45 tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
46 sn Swarming flies are irritating; bees are irritating and especially dangerous because of the pain they inflict with their sting (see Deut 1:44; Ps 118:12). The metaphors are well chosen, for the Assyrians (symbolized by the bees) were much more powerful and dangerous than the Egyptians (symbolized by the flies). Nevertheless both would put pressure on Judah, for Egypt wanted Judah as a buffer state against Assyrian aggression, while Assyrian wanted it as a base for operations against Egypt. Following the reference to sour milk and honey, the metaphor is especially apt, for flies are attracted to dairy products and bees can be found in the vicinity of honey.
47 tn Heb “and shall rest” (so KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “and settle.”
48 tn The meaning of this word (נַהֲלֹל, nahalol) is uncertain; some understand this as referring to another type of thorn bush. For bibliography, see HALOT 676 s.v. I *נַהֲלֹל.
49 tn Heb “in that day” (so ASV, NASB); KJV “In the same day.”
50 tn Heb “the river” (so KJV); NASB “the Euphrates.” The name of the river has been supplied in the present translation for clarity.
51 tn Heb “the hair of the feet.” The translation assumes that the word “feet” is used here as a euphemism for the genitals. See BDB 920 s.v. רֶגֶל.
52 tn Heb “in that day.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
53 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated, see note on 2:2.
54 tn Heb “in that day.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
55 tn Heb “will become” (so NASB); NAB “shall be turned to.”
56 tn Heb “with arrows and a bow.” The more common English idiom is “bow[s] and arrow[s].”
57 tn Heb “go” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV); TEV “go hunting.”
58 tn Heb “will be” (so NASB, NRSV).
59 tn Heb “and all the hills which were hoed with a hoe, you will not go there [for] fear of the thorns and briers.”
60 tn Heb “and it will become a pasture for cattle and a trampling place for sheep.”
sn At this point one is able to summarize the content of the “sign” (vv. 14-15) as follows: A young woman known to be present when Isaiah delivered this message to Ahaz (perhaps a member of the royal family or the prophetess mentioned in 8:3) would soon give birth to a boy whom the mother would name Immanuel, “God is with us.” Eventually Immanuel would be forced to eat sour milk and honey, which would enable him to make correct moral decisions. How would this situation come about and how would it constitute a sign? Before this situation developed, the Israelites and Syrians would be defeated. But then the Lord would usher in a period of time unlike any since the division of the kingdom almost 200 years before. The Assyrians would overrun the land, destroy the crops, and force the people to subsist on goats’ milk and honey. At that time, as the people saw Immanuel eating his sour milk and honey, the Davidic family would be forced to acknowledge that God was indeed with them. He was present with them in the Syrian-Israelite crisis, fully capable of rescuing them; but he was also present with them in judgment, disciplining them for their lack of trust. The moral of the story is quite clear: Failure to appropriate God’s promises by faith can turn potential blessing into disciplinary judgment.
61 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
62 tn Heb “The vision of Isaiah son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, [and] Hezekiah, kings of Judah.”
sn Isaiah’s prophetic career probably began in the final year of Uzziah’s reign (ca. 740
63 sn The personified heavens and earth are summoned to God’s courtroom as witnesses against God’s covenant people. Long before this Moses warned the people that the heavens and earth would be watching their actions (see Deut 4:26; 30:19; 31:28; 32:1).
64 tn Or “sons” (NAB, NASB).
sn “Father” and “son” occur as common terms in ancient Near Eastern treaties and covenants, delineating the suzerain and vassal as participants in the covenant relationship. The prophet uses these terms, the reference to heavens and earth as witnesses, and allusions to deuteronomic covenant curses (1:7-9, 19-20) to set his prophecy firmly against the backdrop of Israel’s covenantal relationship with Yahweh.
65 sn The normal word pair for giving birth to and raising children is יָלַד (yalad, “to give birth to”) and גָּדַל (gadal, “to grow, raise”). The pair גָּדַל and רוּם (rum, “to raise up”) probably occur here to highlight the fact that Yahweh made something important of Israel (cf. R. Mosis, TDOT 2:403).
66 sn Against the backdrop of Yahweh’s care for his chosen people, Israel’s rebellion represents abhorrent treachery. The conjunction prefixed to a nonverbal element highlights the sad contrast between Yahweh’s compassionate care for His people and Israel’s thankless rebellion.
67 sn To rebel carries the idea of “covenant treachery.” Although an act of פֶּשַׁע (pesha’, “rebellion”) often signifies a breach of the law, the legal offense also represents a violation of an existing covenantal relationship (E. Carpenter and M. Grisanti, NIDOTTE 3:707).
68 tn Heb “and the donkey the feeding trough of its owner.” The verb in the first line does double duty in the parallelism.
69 tn Although both verbs have no object, the parallelism suggests that Israel fails to recognize the Lord as the one who provides for their needs. In both clauses, the placement of “Israel” and “my people” at the head of the clause focuses the reader’s attention on the rebellious nation (C. van der Merwe, J. Naudé, J. Kroeze, A Biblical Hebrew Reference Grammar, 346-47).
70 sn Having summoned the witnesses and announced the Lord’s accusation against Israel, Isaiah mourns the nation’s impending doom. The third person references to the Lord in the second half of the verse suggest that the quotation from the Lord (cf. vv. 2-3) has concluded.
71 tn Heb “Woe [to the] sinful nation.” The Hebrew term הוֹי, (hoy, “woe, ah”) was used in funeral laments (see 1 Kgs 13:30; Jer 22:18; 34:5) and carries the connotation of death. In highly dramatic fashion the prophet acts out Israel’s funeral in advance, emphasizing that their demise is inevitable if they do not repent soon.
72 tn Or “sons” (NASB). The prophet contrasts four terms of privilege – nation, people, offspring, children – with four terms that depict Israel’s sinful condition in Isaiah’s day – sinful, evil, wrong, wicked (see J. A. Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah, 43).
73 sn Holy One of Israel is one of Isaiah’s favorite divine titles for God. It pictures the Lord as the sovereign king who rules over his covenant people and exercises moral authority over them.
74 tn Heb “they are estranged backward.” The LXX omits this statement, which presents syntactical problems and seems to be outside the synonymous parallelistic structure of the verse.
75 sn In vv. 5-9 Isaiah addresses the battered nation (5-8) and speaks as their representative (9).
76 tn Heb “Why are you still beaten? [Why] do you continue rebellion?” The rhetorical questions express the prophet’s disbelief over Israel’s apparent masochism and obsession with sin. The interrogative construction in the first line does double duty in the parallelism. H. Wildberger (Isaiah, 1:18) offers another alternative by translating the two statements with one question: “Why do you still wish to be struck that you persist in revolt?”
77 tn Heb “all the head is ill”; NRSV “the whole head is sick”; CEV “Your head is badly bruised.”
78 tn Heb “and all the heart is faint.” The “heart” here stands for bodily strength and energy, as suggested by the context and usage elsewhere (see Jer 8:18; Lam 1:22).
79 tn Heb “there is not in it health”; NAB “there is no sound spot.”
80 tn Heb “pressed out.”
81 tn Heb “softened” (so NASB, NRSV); NIV “soothed.”
82 sn This verse describes wounds like those one would receive in battle. These wounds are comprehensive and without remedy.
83 tn Heb “As for your land, before you foreigners are devouring it.”
84 tn Heb “and [there is] devastation like an overthrow by foreigners.” The comparative preposition כְּ (kÿ, “like, as”) has here the rhetorical nuance, “in every way like.” The point is that the land has all the earmarks of a destructive foreign invasion because that is what has indeed happened. One could paraphrase, “it is desolate as it can only be when foreigners destroy.” On this use of the preposition in general, see GKC 376 §118.x. Many also prefer to emend “foreigners” here to “Sodom,” though there is no external attestation for such a reading in the
85 tn Heb “daughter of Zion” (so KJV, NASB, NIV). The genitive is appositional, identifying precisely which daughter is in view. By picturing Zion as a daughter, the prophet emphasizes her helplessness and vulnerability before the enemy.
86 tn Heb “like a city besieged.” Unlike the preceding two comparisons, which are purely metaphorical, this third one identifies the reality of Israel’s condition. In this case the comparative preposition, as in v. 7b, has the force, “in every way like,” indicating that all the earmarks of a siege are visible because that is indeed what is taking place. The verb form in MT is Qal passive participle of נָצַר (natsar, “guard”), but since this verb is not often used of a siege (see BDB 666 s.v. I נָצַר), some prefer to repoint the form as a Niphal participle from II צוּר (tsur, “besiege”). However, the latter is not attested elsewhere in the Niphal (see BDB 848 s.v. II צוּר).
87 tn Traditionally, “the Lord of hosts.” The title pictures God as the sovereign king who has at his disposal a multitude of attendants, messengers, and warriors to do his bidding. In some contexts, like this one, the military dimension of his rulership is highlighted. In this case, the title pictures him as one who leads armies into battle against his enemies.
88 tc The translation assumes that כִּמְעָט (kim’at, “quickly,” literally, “like a little”) goes with what follows, contrary to the MT accents, which take it with what precedes. In this case, one could translate the preceding line, “If the Lord who commands armies had not left us a few survivors.” If כִּמְעָט goes with the preceding line (following the MT accents), this expression highlights the idea that there would only be a few survivors (H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:20; H. Zobel, TDOT 8:456). Israel would not be almost like Sodom but exactly like Sodom.
89 sn Building on the simile of v. 9, the prophet sarcastically addresses the leaders and people of Jerusalem as if they were leaders and residents of ancient Sodom and Gomorrah. The sarcasm is appropriate, for if the judgment is comparable to Sodom’s, that must mean that the sin which prompted the judgment is comparable as well.
90 tn Heb “to the instruction of our God.” In this context, which is highly accusatory and threatening, תּוֹרָה (torah, “law, instruction”) does not refer to mere teaching, but to corrective teaching and rebuke.
91 tn Heb “Why to me the multitude of your sacrifices?” The sarcastic rhetorical question suggests that their many sacrifices are of no importance to the Lord. This phrase answers the possible objection that an Israelite could raise in response to God’s indictment: “But we are offering the sacrifices you commanded!”
sn In this section the Lord refutes a potential objection that his sinful people might offer in their defense. He has charged them with rebellion (vv. 2-3), but they might respond that they have brought him many sacrifices. So he points out that he requires social justice first and foremost, not empty ritual.
92 tn The verb שָׂבַע (sava’, “be satisfied, full”) is often used of eating and/or drinking one’s fill. See BDB 959 s.v. שָׂבַע. Here sacrifices are viewed, in typical ancient Near Eastern fashion, as food for the deity. God here declares that he has eaten and drunk, as it were, his fill.
93 sn In the chiastic structure of the verse, the verbs at the beginning and end highlight God’s displeasure, while the heaping up of references to animals, fat, and blood in the middle lines hints at why God wants no more of their sacrifices. They have, as it were, piled the food on his table and he needs no more.
94 tn Heb “When you come to appear before me, who requires this from your hand, trampling of my courtyards?” The rhetorical question sarcastically makes the point that God does not require this parade of livestock. The verb “trample” probably refers to the eager worshipers and their sacrificial animals walking around in the temple area.
95 tn Or “worthless” (NASB, NCV, CEV); KJV, ASV “vain.”
96 sn Notice some of the other practices that Yahweh regards as “detestable”: homosexuality (Lev 18:22-30; 20:13), idolatry (Deut 7:25; 13:15), human sacrifice (Deut 12:31), eating ritually unclean animals (Deut 14:3-8), sacrificing defective animals (Deut 17:1), engaging in occult activities (Deut 18:9-14), and practicing ritual prostitution (1 Kgs 14:23).
97 tn Heb “sin and assembly” (these two nouns probably represent a hendiadys). The point is that their attempts at worship are unacceptable to God because the people’s everyday actions in the socio-economic realm prove they have no genuine devotion to God (see vv. 16-17).
98 tn Heb “I close my eyes from you.”
99 sn This does not just refer to the blood of sacrificial animals, but also the blood, as it were, of their innocent victims. By depriving the poor and destitute of proper legal recourse and adequate access to the economic system, the oppressors have, for all intents and purposes, “killed” their victims.
100 sn Having demonstrated the people’s guilt, the Lord calls them to repentance, which will involve concrete action in the socio-economic realm, not mere emotion.
101 sn This phrase refers to Israel’s covenant treachery (cf. Deut 28:10; Jer 4:4; 21:12; 23:2, 22; 25:5; 26:3; 44:22; Hos 9:15; Ps 28:4). In general, the noun ַמעַלְלֵיכֶם (ma’alleykhem) can simply be a reference to deeds, whether good or bad. However, Isaiah always uses it with a negative connotation (cf. 3:8, 10).
102 tn The precise meaning of this line is uncertain. The translation assumes an emendation of חָמוֹץ (khamots, “oppressor [?]”) to חָמוּץ (khamuts, “oppressed”), a passive participle from II חָמַץ (khamats, “oppress”; HALOT 329 s.v. II חמץ) and takes the verb II אָשַׁר (’ashar) in the sense of “make happy” (the delocutive Piel, meaning “call/pronounce happy,” is metonymic here, referring to actually effecting happiness). The parallelism favors this interpretation, for the next two lines speak of positive actions on behalf of the destitute. The other option is to retain the MT pointing and translate, “set right the oppressor,” but the nuance “set right” is not clearly attested elsewhere for the verb I אשׁר. This verb does appear as a participle in Isa 3:12 and 9:16 with the meaning “to lead or guide.” If it can mean to “lead” or “rebuke/redirect” in this verse, the prophet could be contrasting this appeal for societal reformation (v. 17c) with a command to reorder their personal lives (v. 17a-b). J. A. Motyer (The Prophecy of Isaiah, 47) suggests that these three statements (v. 17a-c) provide “the contrast between the two ends of imperfect society, the oppressor and the needy, the one inflicting and the other suffering the hurt. Isaiah looks for a transformed society wherever it needs transforming.”
103 tn This word refers to a woman who has lost her husband, by death or divorce. The orphan and widow are often mentioned in the OT as epitomizing the helpless and impoverished who have been left without the necessities of life due to the loss of a family provider.
104 sn The Lord concludes his case against Israel by offering them the opportunity to be forgiven and by setting before them the alternatives of renewed blessing (as a reward for repentance) and final judgment (as punishment for persistence in sin).
105 tn Traditionally, “let us reason together,” but the context suggests a judicial nuance. The Lord is giving the nation its options for the future.
106 tn The imperfects must be translated as modal (indicating capability or possibility) to bring out the conditional nature of the offer. This purification will only occur if the people repent and change their ways.
107 tn The imperfects must be translated as modal (indicating capability or possibility) to bring out the conditional nature of the offer. This purification will only occur if the people repent and change their ways.
108 tn Heb “though your sins are like red, they will become white like snow; though they are red like scarlet, they will be like wool.” The point is not that the sins will be covered up, though still retained. The metaphorical language must be allowed some flexibility and should not be pressed into a rigid literalistic mold. The people’s sins will be removed and replaced by ethical purity. The sins that are now as obvious as the color red will be washed away and the ones who are sinful will be transformed.
109 tn Heb “listen”; KJV “obedient”; NASB “If you consent and obey.”
110 sn The wordplay in the Hebrew draws attention to the options. The people can obey, in which case they will “eat” v. 19 (תֹּאכֵלוּ [to’khelu], Qal active participle of אָכַל) God’s blessing, or they can disobey, in which case they will be devoured (Heb “eaten,” תְּאֻכְּלוּ, [tÿ’ukkÿlu], Qal passive/Pual of אָכַל) by God’s judgment.
111 tn Heb “for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” The introductory כִּי (ki) may be asseverative (as reflected in the translation) or causal/explanatory, explaining why the option chosen by the people will become reality (it is guaranteed by the divine word).
112 tn Heb “How she has become a prostitute, the faithful city!” The exclamatory אֵיכָה (’ekhah, “how!”) is used several times as the beginning of a lament (see Lam 1:1; 2;1; 4:1-2). Unlike a number of other OT passages that link references to Israel’s harlotry to idolatry, Isaiah here makes the connection with social and moral violations.
113 tn Heb “filled with.”
114 tn Or “assassins.” This refers to the oppressive rich and/or their henchmen. R. Ortlund (Whoredom, 78) posits that it serves as a synecdoche for all varieties of criminals, the worst being mentioned to imply all lesser ones. Since Isaiah often addressed his strongest rebuke to the rulers and leaders of Israel, he may have in mind the officials who bore the responsibility to uphold justice and righteousness.
115 tn The pronoun is feminine singular; personified Jerusalem (see v. 21) is addressed.
116 tn Or “dross.” The word refers to the scum or impurites floating on the top of melted metal.
117 sn The metaphors of silver becoming impure and beer being watered down picture the moral and ethical degeneration that had occurred in Jerusalem.
118 tn Or “stubborn”; CEV “have rejected me.”
119 tn Heb “and companions of” (so KJV, NASB); CEV “friends of crooks.”
120 tn Heb “pursue”; NIV “chase after gifts.”
121 sn Isaiah may have chosen the word for gifts (שַׁלְמוֹנִים, shalmonim; a hapax legomena here), as a sarcastic pun on what these rulers should have been doing. Instead of attending to peace and wholeness (שָׁלוֹם, shalom), they sought after payoffs (שַׁלְמוֹנִים).
122 sn See the note at v. 17.
123 sn The rich oppressors referred to in Isaiah and the other eighth century prophets were not rich capitalists in the modern sense of the word. They were members of the royal military and judicial bureaucracies in Israel and Judah. As these bureaucracies grew, they acquired more and more land and gradually commandeered the economy and legal system. At various administrative levels bribery and graft become commonplace. The common people outside the urban administrative centers were vulnerable to exploitation in such a system, especially those, like widows and orphans, who had lost their family provider through death. Through confiscatory taxation, conscription, excessive interest rates, and other oppressive governmental measures and policies, they were gradually disenfranchised and lost their landed property, and with it, their rights as citizens. The socio-economic equilibrium envisioned in the law of Moses was radically disturbed.
124 tn Heb “the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” On the title “the Lord who commands armies,” see the note at v. 9.
125 tn Heb “the powerful [one] of Israel.”
126 tn Heb “console myself” (i.e., by getting revenge); NRSV “pour out my wrath on.”
127 sn The Lord here identifies with the oppressed and comes as their defender and vindicator.
128 tn Heb “turn my hand against you.” The second person pronouns in vv. 25-26 are feminine singular. Personified Jerusalem is addressed. The idiom “turn the hand against” has the nuance of “strike with the hand, attack,” in Ps 81:15 HT (81:14 ET); Ezek 38:12; Am 1:8; Zech 13:7. In Jer 6:9 it is used of gleaning grapes.
129 tn Heb “I will purify your dross as [with] flux.” “Flux” refers here to minerals added to the metals in a furnace to prevent oxides from forming. For this interpretation of II בֹּר (bor), see HALOT 153 s.v. II בֹּר and 750 s.v. סִיג.
130 sn The metaphor comes from metallurgy; slag is the substance left over after the metallic ore has been refined.
131 tn Heb “I will restore your judges as in the beginning; and your counselors as in the beginning.” In this context, where social injustice and legal corruption are denounced (see v. 23), the “judges” are probably government officials responsible for making legal decisions, while the “advisers” are probably officials who helped the king establish policies. Both offices are also mentioned in 3:2.
132 sn The third person reference to the Lord in v. 28 indicates that the prophet is again (see vv. 21-24a) speaking. Since v. 27 is connected to v. 28 by a conjunction, it is likely that the prophet’s words begin with v. 27.
133 tn Heb “Zion will be ransomed with justice.” Both cola in this verse end with similar terms: justice and righteousness (and both are preceded by a בְּ [bet] preposition). At issue is whether these virtues describe the means or result of the deliverance and whether they delineate God’s justice/righteousness or that of the covenant people. If the righteousness of Israelite returnees is in view, the point seems to be that the reestablishment of Zion as a center of justice (God’s people living in conformity with God’s demand for equity and justice) will deliver the city from its past humiliation and restore it to a place of prominence (see 2:2-4; cf. E. Kissane, Isaiah, 1:19). Most scholars conclude that “righteousness and “justice” refers to God alone (J. Ridderbos, Isaiah [BSC], 50; J. Watts, Isaiah [WBC], 1:25; E. J. Young, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:89; cf. NLT, TEV) or serves as a double reference to both divine and human justice and righteousness (J. A. Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah, 51; J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:10; H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:72). If it refers to both sides of the coin, these terms highlight the objective divine work of redemption and the subjective human response of penitence (Motyer, 51).
134 tc The Hebrew text has, “her repentant ones/returnees with righteousness.” The form שָׁבֶיהָ (shaveha, “her repentant ones”), as pointed in MT, is a masculine plural Qal participle from שׁוּב (shuv, “return”). Used substantivally, it refers to the “returning (i.e., repentant) ones.” It is possible that the parallel line (with its allusion to being freed by a ransom payment) suggests that the form be repointed to שִׁבְיָהּ (shivyah, “her captivity”), a reading that has support from the LXX. Some slightly emend the form to read וְשָׁבָה (vÿshavah, “and will return”). According to this view, the verb from the first line applies to the second line as well with the following translation as a result: “she will be released when fairness is restored.” Regardless, it makes best sense in the context to regard this as a reference to repentant Israelites returning to the land of promise. This understanding provides a better contrast with the rebels and sinners in 1:28.
135 tn Heb “and [there will be] a shattering of rebels and sinners together.”
136 tc The Hebrew text (and the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa) has the third person here, though a few Hebrew
137 tn The second person pronouns in vv. 29-30 are masculine plural, indicating that the rebellious sinners (v. 28) are addressed.
138 tn Or “gardens” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NAB “groves.”
139 tn Or “a garden” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
140 tn Heb “will become” (so NASB, NIV).
141 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
142 tn Heb “the word which Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.”
143 tn Heb “in the end of the days.” This phrase may refer generally to the future, or more technically to the final period of history. See BDB 31 s.v. ַאחֲרִית. The verse begins with a verb that functions as a “discourse particle” and is not translated. In numerous places throughout the OT, the “to be” verb with a prefixed conjunction (וְהָיָה [vÿhayah] and וַיְהִי [vayÿhi]) occurs in this fashion to introduce a circumstantial clause and does not require translation.
144 tn Or “be established” (KJV, NIV, NRSV).
145 tn Heb “as the chief of the mountains, and will be lifted up above the hills.” The image of Mount Zion being elevated above other mountains and hills pictures the prominence it will attain in the future.
146 tn The prefixed verb form with simple vav (ו) introduces a purpose/result clause after the preceding prefixed verb form (probably to be taken as a cohortative; see IBHS 650 §39.2.2a).
147 tn Heb “his ways.” In this context God’s “ways” are the standards of moral conduct he decrees that people should live by.
148 tn The cohortative with vav (ו) after the prefixed verb form indicates the ultimate purpose/goal of their action.
149 tn Heb “walk in his ways.”
150 tn Heb “for out of Zion will go instruction.”
151 tn Heb “the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”
152 sn Instead of referring to the large plow as a whole, the plowshare is simply the metal tip which actually breaks the earth and cuts the furrow.
153 sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:93; M. Klingbeil, NIDOTTE 1:1117-18). It was a short knife with a curved hook at the end sharpened on the inside like a sickle. Breaking weapons and fashioning agricultural implements indicates a transition from fear and stress to peace and security.
154 tn Heb “house,” referring to the family line or descendants (likewise in v. 6).
155 tn Heb “let’s walk in the light of the Lord.” In this context, which speaks of the Lord’s instruction and commands, the “light of the Lord” refers to his moral standards by which he seeks to guide his people. One could paraphrase, “let’s obey the Lord’s commands.”
156 tn The words “O Lord” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Isaiah addresses the Lord in prayer.
157 tc Heb “they are full from the east.” Various scholars retain the BHS reading and suggest that the prophet makes a general statement concerning Israel’s reliance on foreign customs (J. Watts, Isaiah [WBC], 1:32; J. de Waard, Isaiah, 12-13). Nevertheless, it appears that a word is missing. Based on the parallelism (note “omen readers” in 5:6c), many suggest that קֹסְמִים (qosÿmim, “diviners”) or מִקְסָם (miqsam, “divination”) has been accidentally omitted. Homoioteleuton could account for the omission of an original קֹסְמִים (note how this word and the following מִקֶּדֶם [miqqedem, “from the east”] both end in mem); an original מִקְסָם could have fallen out by homoioarcton (note how this word and the following מִקֶּדֶם both begin with mem).
158 tn Heb “and omen readers like the Philistines.” Through this line and the preceding, the prophet contends that Israel has heavily borrowed the pagan practices of the east and west (in violation of Lev 19:26; Deut 18:9-14).
159 tn Heb “and with the children of foreigners they [?].” The precise meaning of the final word is uncertain. Some take this verb (I שָׂפַק, safaq) to mean “slap,” supply the object “hands,” and translate, “they slap [hands] with foreigners”; HALOT 1349 s.v. I שׂפק. This could be a reference to foreign alliances. This translation has two disadvantages: It requires the conjectural insertion of “hands” and the use of this verb with its object prefixed with a בְּ (bet) preposition with this meaning does not occur elsewhere. The other uses of this verb refer to clapping at someone, an indication of hostility. The translation above assumes the verb is derived from II שׂפק (“to suffice,” attested in the Qal in 1 Kgs 20:10; HALOT 1349 s.v. II שׂפק). In this case the point is that a sufficient number of foreigners (in this case, too many!) live in the land. The disadvantage of this option is that the preposition prefixed to “the children of foreigners” does not occur with this verb elsewhere. The chosen translation is preferred since it continues the idea of abundant foreign influence and does not require a conjectural insertion or emendation.
160 tn Or “treasuries”; KJV “treasures.”
161 sn Judah’s royal bureaucracy had accumulated great wealth and military might, in violation of Deut 17:16-17.
162 tn Or “bow down to” (NIV, NRSV).
163 tn Heb “men bow down, men are low.” Since the verbs שָׁחָח (shakhakh) and שָׁפַל (shafal) are used later in this discourse to describe how God will humiliate proud men (see vv. 11, 17), some understand v. 9a as a prediction of judgment, “men will be brought down, men will be humiliated.” However, these prefixed verbal forms with vav (ו) consecutive appear to carry on the description that precedes and are better taken with the accusation. They draw attention to the fact that human beings actually bow down and worship before the lifeless products of their own hands.
164 tn Heb “don’t lift them up.” The idiom “lift up” (נָשָׂא with לְ, nasa’ with preposition lamed) can mean “spare, forgive” (see Gen 18:24, 26). Here the idiom plays on the preceding verbs. The idolaters are bowed low as they worship their false gods; the prophet asks God not to “lift them up.”
165 tn Heb “from the dread of the Lord,” that is, from the dread that he produces in the objects of his judgment.” The words “get away” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
166 tn Heb “and the eyes of the pride of men will be brought low, and the arrogance of men will be brought down.” The repetition of the verbs שָׁפַל (shafal) and שָׁחָח (shakhakh) from v. 9 draws attention to the appropriate nature of the judgment. Those proud men who “bow low” before idols will be forced to “bow low” before God when he judges their sin.
167 tn Or “elevated”; CEV “honored.”
168 tn Heb “indeed [or “for”] the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] has a day.”
169 tn Or “against” (NAB, NASB, NRSV).
170 sn The cedars of Lebanon and oaks of Bashan were well-known for their size and prominence. They make apt symbols here for powerful men who think of themselves as prominent and secure.
171 sn The high mountains and hills symbolize the apparent security of proud men, as do the high tower and fortified wall of v. 15.
172 tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” This probably refers to large ships either made in or capable of traveling to the distant western port of Tarshish.
173 tn Heb “desirable”; NAB, NIV “stately”; NRSV “beautiful.”
174 tn On the meaning of this word, which appears only here in the Hebrew Bible, see H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 41-42.
sn The ships mentioned in this verse were the best of their class, and therefore an apt metaphor for the proud men being denounced in this speech.
175 tn Heb “and the pride of men will be brought down, and the arrogance of men will be brought low.” As in v. 11, the repetition of the verbs שָׁפַל (shafal) and שָׁחָח (shakhakh) from v. 9 draws attention to the appropriate nature of the judgment. Those proud men who “bow low” before idols will be forced to “bow low” before God when he judges their sin.
176 tn Or “elevated”; NCV “praised”; CEV “honored.”
177 tc The verb “pass away” is singular in the Hebrew text, despite the plural subject (“worthless idols”) that precedes. The verb should be emended to a plural; the final vav (ו) has been accidentally omitted by haplography (note the vav at the beginning of the immediately following form).
tn Heb “will completely pass away”; ASV “shall utterly pass away.”
178 tn The identity of the grammatical subject is unclear. The “idols” could be the subject; they will “go” into the caves and holes when the idolaters throw them there in their haste to escape God’s judgment (see vv. 20-21). The picture of the idols, which represent the foreign deities worshiped by the people, fleeing from the Lord would be highly polemical and fit the overall mood of the chapter. However it seems more likely that the idolaters themselves are the subject, for v. 10 uses similar language in sarcastically urging them to run from judgment.
179 tn Heb “dust”; ASV “into the holes of the earth.”
180 tn Heb “from the dread of the Lord,” that is, from the dread that he produces in the objects of his judgment.” The words “trying to escape” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
181 tn Or “land.” It is not certain if these verses are describing the judgment of Judah (see vv. 6-9) or a more universal judgment on all proud men.
182 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
183 tn Or “bow down to.”
184 tn Heb “to the shrews and to the bats.” On the meaning of חֲפַרְפָּרָה (khafarparah, “shrew”), see HALOT 341 s.v. חֲפַרְפָּרָה. The BHS text as it stands (לַחְפֹּר פֵּרוֹת, perot lakhpor), makes no sense. Based on Theodotion’s transliteration and a similar reading in the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa, most scholars suggest that the MT mistakenly divided a noun (a hapax legomenon) that should be translated “moles,” “shrews,” or “rodents.”
185 sn The precise point of vv. 20-21 is not entirely clear. Are they taking the idols into their hiding places with them, because they are so attached to their man-made images? Or are they discarding the idols along the way as they retreat into the darkest places they can find? In either case it is obvious that the gods are incapable of helping them.
186 tn Heb “from the dread of the Lord,” that is, from the dread that he produces in the objects of his judgment.” The words “trying to escape” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
187 tn Or “land.” It is not certain if these verses are describing the judgment of Judah (see vv. 6-9) or a more universal judgment on all proud men. Almost all English versions translate “earth,” taking this to refer to universal judgment.
188 tn Heb “the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” On the title “the Lord who commands armies,” see the note at 1:9.
189 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
190 tn Heb “support and support.” The masculine and feminine forms of the noun are placed side-by-side to emphasize completeness. See GKC 394 §122.v.
191 tn Heb “all the support of food, and all the support of water.”
192 tn Heb “elder” (so ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV); NCV “older leaders.”
193 tn Heb “the ones lifted up with respect to the face.” For another example of the Hebrew idiom, see 2 Kgs 5:1.
194 tn Heb “and the wise with respect to magic.” On the meaning of חֲרָשִׁים (kharashim, “magic”), see HALOT 358 s.v. III חרשׁ. Some understand here a homonym, meaning “craftsmen.” In this case, one could translate, “skilled craftsmen” (cf. NIV, NASB).
195 tn The words “the Lord says” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The prophet speaks in vv. 1-3 (note the third person reference to the Lord in v. 1), but here the Lord himself announces that he will intervene in judgment. It is unclear where the Lord’s words end and the prophet’s pick up again. The prophet is apparently speaking again by v. 8, where the Lord is referred to in the third person. Since vv. 4-7 comprise a thematic unity, the quotation probably extends through v. 7.
196 tn תַעֲלוּלִים (ta’alulim) is often understood as an abstract plural meaning “wantonness, cruelty” (cf. NLT). In this case the chief characteristic of these leaders is substituted for the leaders themselves. However, several translations make the parallelism tighter by emending the form to עוֹלְלִים (’olÿlim, “children”; cf. ESV, NASB, NCV, NIV, NKJV, NRSV). This emendation is unnecessary for at least two reasons. The word in the MT highlights the cruelty or malice of the “leaders” who are left behind in the wake of God’s judgment. The immediate context makes clear the fact that they are mere youths. The coming judgment will sweep away the leaders, leaving a vacuum which will be filled by incompetent, inexperienced youths.
197 tn Heb “man against man, and a man against his neighbor.”
198 tn Heb “and those lightly esteemed those who are respected.” The verb רָהַב (rahav) does double duty in the parallelism.
199 tn Heb “[in] the house of his father” (so ASV); NIV “at his father’s home.”
200 tn The words “and say” are supplied for stylistic reasons.
201 tn Heb “your hand”; NASB “under your charge.”
sn The man’s motives are selfish. He tells his brother to assume leadership because he thinks he has some wealth to give away.
202 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
203 tn Heb “he will lift up [his voice].”
204 tn Heb “wrapper [of wounds]”; KJV, ASV, NRSV “healer.”
205 tn Heb “for their tongue and their deeds [are] to the Lord.”
206 tn Heb “to rebel [against] the eyes of his majesty.” The word כָּבוֹד (kavod) frequently refers to the Lord’s royal splendor that is an outward manifestation of his authority as king.
207 sn This refers to their proud, arrogant demeanor.
208 tn Heb “answers against them”; NRSV “bears witness against them.”
209 tn Heb “their sin, like Sodom, they declare, they do not conceal [it].”
210 tn Heb “woe to their soul.”
211 tn Or “the righteous” (KJV, NASB, NIV, TEV); NLT “those who are godly.”
212 tn Heb “that it is good.”
213 tn Heb “for the fruit of their deeds they will eat.”
214 tn Heb “for the work of his hands will be done to him.”
215 sn This may refer to the prophet or to the Lord.
216 tc The Hebrew text appears to read literally, “My people, his oppressors, he deals severely, and women rule over them.” The correct text and precise meaning of the verse are debated. The translation above assumes (1) an emendation of נֹגְשָׂיו (nogÿsayv, “his oppressors”) to נֹגְשִׂים (nogÿshim, “oppressors”) by moving the mem (ם) on the following form to the end of the word and dropping the vav (ו) as virtually dittographic; (2) an emendation of מְעוֹלֵל (mÿ’olel, a singular participle that does not agree with the preceding plural subject) to עֹלְלוּ (’olÿlu), a third plural Poel perfect from עָלַל (’alal, “deal severely”; note that the following form begins with a vav [ו]; the text may be haplographic or misdivided); and (3) an emendation (with support from the LXX) of נָשִׁים (nashim, “women”) to נֹשִׁים (noshim, “creditors”; a participle from נָשַׁא, nasa’). Another option is to emend מְעוֹלֵל to עוֹלְלִים (’olÿlim, “children”) and read, “My people’s oppressors are children; women rule over them.” In this case the point is the same as in v. 4; the leadership void left by the judgment will be filled by those incompetent to lead the community – children and women. (The text reflects the ancient Israelite patriarchal mindset.)
217 tn Heb “and the way of your paths they confuse.” The verb בָּלַע (bala’, “confuse”; HALOT 135 s.v. I בלע) is a homonym of the more common בָּלַע (“swallow”; see HALOT 134 s.v. בלע).
218 tc The Hebrew text has “nations,” but the preceding and following contexts make it clear that the Lord is judging his covenant people. עָמִים (’amim) should be changed (with support from the LXX) to עמו. The final mem (ם) on the form in the Hebrew is either dittographic or enclitic. When the mem was added or read as a plural ending, the vav (ו) was then misread as a yod (י).
219 tn The words “he says” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
220 tn The pronominal element is masculine plural; the leaders are addressed.
221 tn The verb בָּעַר (ba’ar, “graze, ruin”; HALOT 146 s.v. II בער) is a homonym of the more common בָּעַר (ba’ar, “burn”; see HALOT 145 s.v. I בער).
222 sn The vineyard is a metaphor for the nation here. See 5:1-7.
223 tn Heb “the plunder of the poor [is] in your houses” (so NASB).
224 sn The rhetorical question expresses the Lord’s outrage at what the leaders have done to the poor. He finds it almost unbelievable that they would have the audacity to treat his people in this manner.
225 tn Heb “the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” On the title “the Lord who commands armies,” see the note at 1:9.
sn The use of this title, which also appears in v. 1, forms an inclusio around vv. 1-15. The speech begins and ends with a reference to “the master, the Lord who commands armies.”
226 tn Heb “daughters” (so KJV, NAB, NRSV).
227 tn Heb “with an outstretched neck.” They proudly hold their heads high so that others can see the jewelry around their necks.
228 tn Heb “walking and skipping, they walk.”
229 tn Heb “and with their feet they jingle.”
230 tn In the Hebrew text vv. 16-17 and one long sentence, “Because the daughters of Zion are proud and walk…, the sovereign master will afflict….” In v. 17 the Lord refers to himself in the third person.
231 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in v. 18 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
232 tn Heb “the daughters of Zion.”
233 tn Or “a scab” (KJV, ASV); NIV, NCV, CEV “sores.”
234 tn The precise meaning of this line is unclear because of the presence of the rare word פֹּת (pot). Since the verb in the line means “lay bare, make naked,” some take פֹּת as a reference to the genitals (cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV, CEV). (In 1 Kgs 7:50 a noun פֹּת appears, with the apparent meaning “socket.”) J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:139, n. 2), basing his argument on alleged Akkadian evidence and the parallelism of the verse, takes פֹּת as “forehead.”
235 sn The translation assumes that the direct quotation ends with v. 17. The introductory formula “in that day” and the shift from a poetic to prosaic style indicate that a new speech unit begins in v. 18.
236 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
237 tn Or “the beauty of [their] ankle jewelry.”
238 tn Heb “houses of breath.” HALOT 124 s.v. בַּיִת defines them as “scent-bottles”; cf. NAB, NRSV “perfume boxes.”
239 tn The precise meaning of many of the words in this list is uncertain.
sn The rhetorical purpose for such a lengthy list is to impress on the audience the guilt of these women with their proud, materialistic attitude, whose husbands and fathers have profited at the expense of the poor.
240 tn Heb “and it will be in place of spices there will be a stench.” The nouns for “spices” and “stench” are right next to each other in the MT for emphatic contrast. The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
241 tn The pronoun is feminine singular, suggesting personified Zion, as representative of its women, is the addressee. The reference to “her gates’ in v. 26 makes this identification almost certain.
242 tn Heb “your strength in battle.” The verb in the first clause provides the verbal idea for the second clause.
243 tn Heb “she will be empty, on the ground she will sit.” Jerusalem is personified as a destitute woman who sits mourning the empty city.
244 tn Or “in that day” (ASV).
sn The seven to one ratio emphasizes the great disparity that will exist in the population due to the death of so many men in battle.
245 tn Heb “eat” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); CEV “buy.”
246 tn Heb “wear” (so NASB, NRSV); NCV “make.”
247 tn Heb “only let your name be called over us.” The Hebrew idiom “call the name over” indicates ownership. See 2 Sam 12:28, and BDB 896 s.v. I ָקרָא Niph. 2.d.(4). The language reflects the cultural reality of ancient Israel, where women were legally the property of their husbands.
248 sn This refers to the humiliation of being unmarried and childless. The women’s words reflect the cultural standards of ancient Israel, where a woman’s primary duties were to be a wife and mother.
249 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
250 tn Heb “and the vegetation of the Lord will become beauty and honor.” Many English versions understand the phrase צֶמַח יְהוָה (tsemakh yÿhvah) as a messianic reference and render it, “the Branch of the Lord” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT, and others). Though צֶמַח (tsemakh) is used by later prophets of a royal descendant (Jer 23;5; 33:15; Zech 3:8; 6:12), those passages contain clear contextual indicators that a human ruler is in view and that the word is being used in a metaphorical way of offspring. However, in Isa 4:2 there are no such contextual indicators. To the contrary, in the parallel structure of the verse צֶמַח יְהוָה corresponds to “produce of the land,” a phrase that refers elsewhere exclusively to literal agricultural produce (see Num 13:20, 26; Deut 1:25). In the majority of its uses צֶמַח refers to literal crops or vegetation (in Ps 65:10 the Lord is the source of this vegetation). A reference to the Lord restoring crops would make excellent sense in Isa 4 and the prophets frequently included this theme in their visions of the future age (see Isa 30:23-24; 32:20; Jer 31:12; Ezek 34:26-29; and Amos 9:13-14).
251 tn Heb “and the fruit of the land will become pride and beauty for the remnant of Israel.”
252 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
253 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
254 tn Or “set apart,” cf. CEV “special.”
255 tn Heb “all who are written down for life in Jerusalem.” A city register is envisioned; everyone whose name appears on the roll will be spared. This group comprises the remnant of the city referred to earlier in the verse.
256 tn Heb “when” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); CEV “after”; NRSV “once.”
257 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonai).
258 tn The word refers elsewhere to vomit (Isa 28:8) and fecal material (Isa 36:12). Many English versions render this somewhat euphemistically as “filth” (e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV). Ironically in God’s sight the beautiful jewelry described earlier is nothing but vomit and feces, for it symbolizes the moral decay of the city’s residents (cf. NLT “moral filth”).
259 sn See 1:21 for a related concept.
260 tn Heb “by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of burning.” The precise meaning of the second half of the verse is uncertain. רוּחַ (ruakh) can be understood as “wind” in which case the passage pictures the Lord using a destructive wind as an instrument of judgment. However, this would create a mixed metaphor, for the first half of the verse uses the imagery of washing and rinsing to depict judgment. Perhaps the image would be that of a windstorm accompanied by heavy rain. רוּחַ can also mean “spirit,” in which case the verse may be referring to the Lord’s Spirit or, more likely, to a disposition that the Lord brings to the task of judgment. It is also uncertain if בָּעַר (ba’ar) here means “burning” or “sweeping away, devastating.”
261 tn Heb “over all the place, Mount Zion.” Cf. NLT “Jerusalem”; CEV “the whole city.”
262 tn Heb “a cloud by day, and smoke, and brightness of fire, a flame by night.” Though the accents in the Hebrew text suggest otherwise, it might be preferable to take “smoke” with what follows, since one would expect smoke to accompany fire.
sn The imagery of the cloud by day and fire by night recalls the days of Moses, when a cloud and fire were tangible reminders that the Lord was guiding and protecting his people (Exod 13:21-22; 14:19, 24). In the future age envisioned in Isa 4, the Lord’s protective presence will be a reality.
263 tn Heb “indeed (or “for”) over all the glory, a canopy.” This may allude to Exod 40:34-35, where a cloud overshadows the meeting tent as it is filled with God’s glory.
264 tn Heb “a shelter it will be for shade by day from heat, and for a place of refuge and for a hiding place from cloudburst and rain.” Since both of the last nouns of this verse can mean rain, they can either refer to the rain storm and the rain as distinct items or together refer to a heavy downpour. Regardless, they do not represent unrelated phenomena.
265 tn It is uncertain who is speaking here. Possibly the prophet, taking the role of best man, composes a love song for his friend on the occasion of his wedding. If so, יָדִיד (yadid) should be translated “my friend.” The present translation assumes that Israel is singing to the Lord. The word דוֹד (dod, “lover”) used in the second line is frequently used by the woman in the Song of Solomon to describe her lover.
266 sn Israel, viewing herself as the Lord’s lover, refers to herself as his vineyard. The metaphor has sexual connotations, for it pictures her capacity to satisfy his appetite and to produce children. See Song 8:12.
267 tn Heb “on a horn, a son of oil.” Apparently קֶרֶן (qeren, “horn”) here refers to the horn-shaped peak of a hill (BDB 902 s.v.) or to a mountain spur, i.e., a ridge that extends laterally from a mountain (HALOT 1145 s.v. קֶרֶן; H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:180). The expression “son of oil” pictures this hill as one capable of producing olive trees. Isaiah’s choice of קֶרֶן, a rare word for hill, may have been driven by paronomastic concerns, i.e., because קֶרֶן sounds like כֶּרֶם (kerem, “vineyard”).
268 tn Or, “dug it up” (so NIV); KJV “fenced it.’ See HALOT 810 s.v. עזק.
269 tn Heb “wild grapes,” i.e., sour ones (also in v. 4).
sn At this point the love song turns sour as the Lord himself breaks in and completes the story (see vv. 3-6). In the final line of v. 2 the love song presented to the Lord becomes a judgment speech by the Lord.
270 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
271 tn Heb “men,” but in a generic sense.
272 tn Heb “and it will become [a place for] grazing.” בָּעַר (ba’ar, “grazing”) is a homonym of the more often used verb “to burn.”
273 tn Heb “and it will become a trampled place” (NASB “trampled ground”).
274 tn Heb “it will not be pruned or hoed” (so NASB); ASV and NRSV both similar.
275 tn Or “For” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).
276 tn Heb “the house of Israel” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).
277 tn Heb “men,” but in a generic sense.
278 tn Heb “but, look, disobedience.” The precise meaning of מִשְׂפָּח (mishpakh), which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain. Some have suggested a meaning “bloodshed.” The term is obviously chosen for its wordplay value; it sounds very much like מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat, “justice”). The sound play draws attention to the point being made; the people have not met the Lord’s expectations.
279 tn Heb “but, look, a cry for help.” The verb (“he waited”) does double duty in the parallelism. צְעָקָה (tsa’qah) refers to the cries for help made by the oppressed. It sounds very much like צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah, “fairness”). The sound play draws attention to the point being made; the people have not met the Lord’s expectations.
280 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who make a house touch a house.” The exclamation הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) was used in funeral laments (see 1 Kgs 13:30; Jer 22:18; 34:5) and carries the connotation of death.
281 tn Heb “[who] bring a field near a field.”
sn This verse does not condemn real estate endeavors per se, but refers to the way in which the rich bureaucrats of Judah accumulated property by exploiting the poor, in violation of the covenantal principle that the land belonged to God and that every family was to have its own portion of land. See the note at 1:23.
282 tn Heb “until the end of the place”; NASB “until there is no more room.”
283 tn Heb “and you are made to dwell alone in the midst of the land.”
284 tn Heb “in my ears, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].”
285 tn Heb “great and good [houses], without a resident.”
286 tn Heb “a ten-yoke vineyard.” The Hebrew term צֶמֶד (tsemed, “yoke”) is here a unit of square measure. Apparently a ten-yoke vineyard covered the same amount of land it would take ten teams of oxen to plow in a certain period of time. The exact size is unknown.
287 tn Heb “one bath.” A bath was a liquid measure. Estimates of its modern equivalent range from approximately six to twelve gallons.
288 tn Heb “a homer.” A homer was a dry measure, the exact size of which is debated. Cf. NCV “ten bushels”; CEV “five bushels.”
289 tn Heb “an ephah.” An ephah was a dry measure; there were ten ephahs in a homer. So this verse envisions major crop failure, where only one-tenth of the anticipated harvest is realized.
290 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who arise early in the morning, [who] chase beer.”
291 tn Heb “[who] delay until dark, [until] wine enflames them.”
sn This verse does not condemn drinking per se, but refers to the carousing lifestyle of the rich bureaucrats, made possible by wealth taken from the poor. Their carousing is not the fundamental problem, but a disgusting symptom of the real disease – their social injustice.
292 tn Two types of stringed instruments are specifically mentioned in the Hebrew text, the כִּנּוֹר (kinnor, “zither”) and נֶבֶל (nevel, “harp”).
293 tn Heb “the work of the Lord they do not look at, and the work of his hands they do not see.” God’s “work” can sometimes be his creative deeds, but in this context it is the judgment that he is planning to bring upon his people (cf. vv. 19, 26; 10:12; 28:21).
294 sn It is not certain if the prophet or the Lord is speaking at this point.
295 tn The suffixed (perfect) form of the verb is used; in this way the coming event is described for rhetorical effect as occurring or as already completed.
296 tn The third masculine singular suffix refers back to “my people.”
297 tn Heb “Their glory will be men of hunger.” כָּבוֹד (kavod, “glory”) is in opposition to הָמוֹן (hamon, “masses”) and refers here to the rich and prominent members of the nation. Some prefer to repoint מְתֵי (mÿtey, “men of”) as מִתֵי (mitey, “dead ones of”).
298 tn The third masculine singular suffix refers back to “my people.”
299 tn Heb “and their masses will be parched [by] thirst.”
300 tn Heb “Sheol” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV); the underworld, the land of the dead, according to the OT world view. Cf. NAB “the nether world”; TEV, CEV “the world of the dead”; NLT “the grave.”
301 tn Heb “so Sheol will make wide its throat, and open its mouth without limit.”
sn Death is portrayed in both the OT (Prov 1:12; Hab 2:5) and Canaanite myth as voraciously swallowing up its prey. In the myths Death is portrayed as having “a lip to the earth, a lip to the heavens … and a tongue to the stars.” (G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 69, text 5 ii 2-3.) Death describes his own appetite as follows: “But my appetite is the appetite of lions in the waste…If it is in very truth my desire to consume ‘clay’ [a reference to his human victims], then in truth by the handfuls I must eat it, whether my seven portions [indicating fullness and completeness] are already in the bowl or whether Nahar [the god of the river responsible for ferrying victims from the land of the living to the land of the dead] has to mix the cup.” (Driver, 68-69, text 5 i 14-22).
302 tn Heb “and her splendor and her masses will go down, and her tumult and the one who exults in her.” The antecedent of the four feminine singular pronominal suffixes used in v. 14b is unclear. The likely referent is personified Zion/Jerusalem (see 3:25-26; 4:4-5).
303 tn Heb “men are brought down, men are brought low, the eyes of pride are brought low.”
304 tn Or “elevated”; TEV “the Lord Almighty shows his greatness.”
305 tn Heb “by judgment/justice.” When God justly punishes the evildoers denounced in the preceding verses, he will be recognized as a mighty warrior.
306 tn Heb “The holy God will be set apart by fairness.” In this context God’s holiness is his sovereign royal authority, which implies a commitment to justice (see the note on the phrase “the sovereign king of Israel” in 1:4). When God judges evildoers as they deserve, his sovereignty will be acknowledged.
sn The appearance of מִשְׁפָט (mishpat, “justice”) and צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah, “fairness”) here is rhetorically significant, when one recalls v. 7. There God denounces his people for failing to produce a society where “justice” and “fairness” are valued and maintained. God will judge his people for their failure, taking “justice” and “fairness” into his own hands.
307 tn Or “young rams”; NIV, NCV “sheep”; NLT “flocks.”
308 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and ruins, fatlings, resident aliens, will eat.” This part of the verse has occasioned various suggestions of emendation. The parallelism is tighter if the second line refers to animals grazing. The translation, “amid the ruins the fatlings and young sheep graze,” assumes an emendation of “resident aliens” (גָּרִים, garim) to “young goats/sheep” (גְּדַיִם, gÿdayim) – confusion of dalet and resh is quite common – and understands “fatlings” and “young sheep” taken as a compound subject or as in apposition as the subject of the verb. However, no emendations are necessary if the above translation is correct. The meaning of מֵחִים (mekhim) has a significant impact on one’s textual decision and translation. The noun can refer to a sacrificial (“fat”) animal as it does in its only other occurrence (Ps 66:15). However, it could signify the rich of the earth (“the fat ones of the earth”; Ps 22:29 [MT 30]) using a different word for “fatness” (דָּשֶׁן, dashen). If so, it serves a figurative reference to the rich. Consequently, the above translation coheres with the first half of the verse. Just as the sheep are out of place grazing in these places (“as in their pasture”), the sojourners would not have expected to have the chance to eat in these locations. Both animals and itinerant foreigners would eat in places not normal for them.
sn The image completes the picture begun in v. 14 and adds to the irony. When judgment comes, Sheol will eat up the sinners who frequent the feasts; then the banqueting halls will lie in ruins and only sheep will eat there.
309 sn See the note at v. 8.
310 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “Woe to those who pull evil with the ropes of emptiness, and, as [with] ropes of a cart, sin.” Though several textual details are unclear, the basic idea is apparent. The sinners are so attached to their sinful ways (compared here to a heavy load) that they strain to drag them along behind them. If שָׁוְא (shavÿ’, “emptiness”) is retained, it makes a further comment on their lifestyle, denouncing it as one that is devoid of what is right and destined to lead to nothing but destruction. Because “emptiness” does not form a very tight parallel with “cart” in the next line, some emend שָׁוְא to שֶׂה (she, “sheep”) and עֲגָלָה (’agalah, “cart”) to עֵגֶל (’egel, “calf”): “Those who pull evil along with a sheep halter are as good as dead who pull sin with a calf rope” (following the lead of the LXX and improving the internal parallelism of the verse). In this case, the verse pictures the sinners pulling sin along behind them as one pulls an animal with a halter. For a discussion of this view, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:163, n. 1. Nevertheless, this emendation is unnecessary. The above translation emphasizes the folly of the Israelites who hold on to their sin (and its punishment) even while they hope for divine intervention.
311 tn Heb “let his work hurry, let it hasten.” The pronoun “his” refers to God, as the parallel line makes clear. The reference to his “work” alludes back to v. 12, which refers to his ‘work” of judgment. With these words the people challenged the prophet’s warning of approaching judgment. They were in essence saying that they saw no evidence that God was about to work in such a way.
312 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
313 tn Heb “draw near” (so NASB); NRSV “hasten to fulfillment.”
314 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who call.” See the note at v. 8.
315 sn In this verse the prophet denounces the perversion of moral standards. Darkness and bitterness are metaphors for evil; light and sweetness symbolize uprightness.
316 tn Heb “Woe [to] the wise in their own eyes.” See the note at v. 8.
317 tn Heb “[who] before their faces are understanding.”
sn Verses 18-21 contain three “woe-sayings” that are purely accusatory and have no formal announcement of judgment attached (as in the “woe-sayings” recorded in vv. 8-17). While this lack of symmetry is odd, it has a clear rhetorical purpose. Having established a pattern in vv. 8-17, the prophet deviates from it in vv. 18-21 to grab his audience’s attention. By placing the “woes” in rapid succession and heaping up the accusatory elements, he highlights the people’s guilt and introduces an element of tension and anticipation. One is reasonably certain that judgment will come, and when it does, it will be devastating. This anticipated devastation is described in frightening detail after the sixth and final woe (see vv. 22-30).
318 tn The language used here is quite sarcastic and paves the way for the shocking description of the enemy army in vv. 25-30. The rich leaders of Judah are nothing but “party animals” who are totally incapable of withstanding real warriors.
319 tn Heb “Woe [to]….” See the note at v. 8.
320 tn Heb “and the just cause of the innocent ones they turn aside from him.”
sn In vv. 22-23 the prophet returns to themes with which he opened his speech. The accusatory elements of vv. 8, 11-12, 18-23 are arranged in a chiastic manner: (A) social injustice (8), (B) carousing (11-12a), (C) spiritual insensitivity (12b) // (C') spiritual insensitivity (18-21), (B') carousing (22), (A') social injustice (23).
321 tn Heb “a tongue of fire” (so NASB), referring to a tongue-shaped flame.
322 sn They are compared to a flowering plant that withers quickly in a hot, arid climate.
323 tn Heb “the word.”
324 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
325 tn Heb “the anger of the Lord rages.”
326 tn Or “extends”; KJV, ASV “he hath stretched forth.”
327 tn Or “garbage” (NCV, CEV, NLT); NAB, NASB, NIV “refuse.”
328 tn Heb “in all this his anger is not turned, and still his hand is outstretched.”
329 tc The Hebrew text has literally, “for nations from a distance.” The following verses use singular forms to describe this nation, so the final mem (ם) on לְגּוֹיִם (lÿgoyim) may be enclitic or dittographic. In the latter case one could read לְגוֹי מֵרָחוֹק (lÿgoy merakhoq, “for a nation from a distance”; see Deut 28:49; Joel 3:8). Another possibility is to emend the text from לַגּוֹיִם מֵרָחוֹק (laggoyim merakhoq) to לְגוֹי מִמֶּרְחָק (lÿgoy mimmerkhaq, “for a nation from a distant place”) a phrase which occurs in Jer 5:15. In this case an error of misdivision has occurred in MT, the mem of the prefixed preposition being accidentally taken as a plural ending on the preceding word.
330 tn Heb “he.” Singular forms are used throughout vv. 26-30 to describe this nation, but for stylistic reasons the translation uses the plural for these collective singulars.
331 tn Heb “and the belt on his waist is not opened, and the thong of his sandals is not torn in two.”
332 tn Heb “bent” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “are strung.”
333 tn Heb “regarded like flint.”
334 sn They are like a windstorm in their swift movement and in the way they kick up dust.
335 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
336 tn Heb “over it”; the referent (the prey) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
337 tn Heb “like the growling of the sea.”
338 tn Heb “and one will gaze toward the land, and look, darkness of distress, and light will grow dark by its [the land’s?] clouds.”
sn The motif of light turning to darkness is ironic when compared to v. 20. There the sinners turn light (= moral/ethical good) to darkness (= moral/ethical evil). Now ironically the Lord will turn light (= the sinners’ sphere of existence and life) into darkness (= the judgment and death).
339 sn That is, approximately 740
340 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 8, 11 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
341 tn Hebrew שָׂרָף (saraf, “seraph”) literally means “burning one,” perhaps suggesting that these creatures had a fiery appearance (cf. TEV, CEV “flaming creatures”; NCV “heavenly creatures of fire”). Elsewhere in the OT the word “seraph” refers to poisonous snakes (Num 21:6; Deut 8:15; Isa 14:29; 30:6). Perhaps they were called “burning ones” because of their appearance or the effect of their venomous bites, which would cause a victim to burn up with fever. It is possible that the seraphs seen by Isaiah were at least partially serpentine in appearance. Though it might seem strange for a snake-like creature to have wings, two of the texts where “seraphs” are snakes describe them as “flying” (Isa 14:29; 30:6), perhaps referring to their darting movements. See the note at 14:29.
342 sn Some understand “feet” here as a euphemistic reference to the genitals.
343 tn Some have seen a reference to the Trinity in the seraphs’ threefold declaration, “holy, holy, holy.” This proposal has no linguistic or contextual basis and should be dismissed as allegorical. Hebrew sometimes uses repetition for emphasis. (See IBHS 233-34 §12.5a; and GKC 431-32 §133.k.) By repeating the word “holy,” the seraphs emphasize the degree of the Lord’s holiness. For another example of threefold repetition for emphasis, see Ezek 21:27 (Heb. v. 32). (Perhaps Jer 22:29 provides another example.)
sn Or “The Lord who commands armies has absolute sovereign authority!” The basic sense of the word “holy” is “set apart from that which is commonplace, special, unique.” In this context the Lord’s holiness is first and foremost his transcendent sovereignty as the ruler of the world. He is “set apart” from the world over which he rules. Note the emphasis on the elevated position of his throne in v. 1 and his designation as “the king” in v. 5. At the same time his holiness encompasses his moral authority, which derives from his royal position. As king he has the right to dictate to his subjects how they are to live; indeed his very own character sets the standard for proper behavior. He is “set apart” from his subjects in a moral sense as well. He sets the standard; they fall short of it. Note that in v. 5 Isaiah laments that he is morally unworthy to be in the king’s presence.
344 tn Perhaps in this context, the title has a less militaristic connotation and pictures the Lord as the ruler of the heavenly assembly. See the note at 1:9.
345 tn On the phrase אַמּוֹת הַסִּפִּים (’ammot hassippim, “pivots of the frames”) see HALOT 763 s.v. סַף.
346 tn Isaiah uses the suffixed (perfect) form of the verb for rhetorical purposes. In this way his destruction is described as occurring or as already completed. Rather than understanding the verb as derived from דָּמַה (damah, “be destroyed”), some take it from a proposed homonymic root דמה, which would mean “be silent.” In this case, one might translate, “I must be silent.”
347 tn Heb “a man unclean of lips am I.” Isaiah is not qualified to praise the king. His lips (the instruments of praise) are “unclean” because he has been contaminated by sin.
348 tn Heb “and among a nation unclean of lips I live.”
349 tn Perhaps in this context, the title has a less militaristic connotation and pictures the Lord as the ruler of the heavenly assembly. See the note at 1:9.
350 tn Or “ritually cleansed,” or “atoned for” (NIV).
351 tn Heb “for us.” The plural pronoun refers to the Lord, the seraphs, and the rest of the heavenly assembly.
352 sn Do we take this commission at face value? Does the Lord really want to prevent his people from understanding, repenting, and being healed? Verse 9, which ostensibly records the content of Isaiah’s message, is clearly ironic. As far as we know, Isaiah did not literally proclaim these exact words. The Hebrew imperatival forms are employed rhetorically and anticipate the response Isaiah will receive. When all is said and done, Isaiah might as well preface and conclude every message with these ironic words, which, though imperatival in form, might be paraphrased as follows: “You continually hear, but don’t understand; you continually see, but don’t perceive.” Isaiah might as well command them to be spiritually insensitive, because, as the preceding and following chapters make clear, the people are bent on that anyway. (This ironic command is comparable to saying to a particularly recalcitrant individual, “Go ahead, be stubborn!”) Verse 10b is also clearly sarcastic. On the surface it seems to indicate Isaiah’s hardening ministry will prevent genuine repentance. But, as the surrounding chapters clearly reveal, the people were hardly ready or willing to repent. Therefore, Isaiah’s preaching was not needed to prevent repentance! Verse 10b reflects the people’s attitude and might be paraphrased accordingly: “Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their mind, repent, and be restored, and they certainly wouldn’t want that, would they?” Of course, this sarcastic statement may also reveal that the Lord himself is now bent on judgment, not reconciliation. Just as Pharaoh’s rejection of Yahweh’s ultimatum ignited judgment and foreclosed, at least temporarily, any opportunity for repentance, so the Lord may have come to the point where he has decreed to bring judgment before opening the door for repentance once more. The sarcastic statement in verse 10b would be an emphatic way of making this clear. (Perhaps we could expand our paraphrase: “Otherwise they might…repent, and be restored, and they certainly wouldn’t want that, would they? Besides, it’s too late for that!”) Within this sarcastic framework, verse 10a must also be seen as ironic. As in verse 9 the imperatival forms should be taken as rhetorical and as anticipating the people’s response. One might paraphrase: “Your preaching will desensitize the minds of these people, make their hearing dull, and blind their eyes.” From the outset the Lord might as well command Isaiah to harden the people, because his preaching will end up having that effect. Despite the use of irony, we should still view this as a genuine, albeit indirect, act of divine hardening. After all, God did not have to send Isaiah. By sending him, he drives the sinful people further from him, for Isaiah’s preaching, which focuses on the Lord’s covenantal demands and impending judgment upon covenantal rebellion, forces the people to confront their sin and then continues to desensitize them as they respond negatively to the message. As in the case of Pharaoh, Yahweh’s hardening is not arbitrarily imposed on a righteous or even morally neutral object. Rather his hardening is an element of his righteous judgment on recalcitrant sinners. Ironically, Israel’s rejection of prophetic preaching in turn expedites disciplinary punishment, and brings the battered people to a point where they might be ready for reconciliation. The prophesied judgment (cf. 6:11-13) was fulfilled by 701
353 tn Heb “and great is the abandonment in the midst of the land.”
354 tn Or “be burned” (NRSV); NIV “laid waste.”
355 tn Heb “like a massive tree or like a big tree” (perhaps, “like a terebinth or like an oak”).
356 tn The Hebrew text has “which in the felling, a sacred pillar in them.” Some take מַצֶּבֶת (matsevet) as “stump,” and translate, “which, when chopped down, have a stump remaining in them.” But elsewhere מַצֶּבֶת refers to a memorial pillar (2 Sam 18:18) and the word resembles מַצֶּבָה (matsevah, “sacred pillar”). בָּם (bam, “in them”) may be a corruption of בָּמָה (bamah, “high place”; the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has במה). אֳשֶׁר (’asher, “which”) becomes a problem in this case, but one might emend the form to וּכְּאֲשֵׁרָה (ukÿ’asherah, “or like an Asherah pole”) and translate, “like one of the large sacred trees or an Asherah pole.” Though the text is difficult, the references to sacred trees and a sacred pillar suggest that the destruction of a high place is in view, an apt metaphor for the judgment of idolatrous Judah.
357 tn Heb “a holy offspring [is] its sacred pillar.” If מַצֶּבֶת (matsevet) is taken as “stump,” one can see in this statement a brief glimpse of hope. The tree (the nation) is chopped down, but the stump (a righteous remnant) remains from which God can restore the nation. However, if מַצֶּבֶת is taken as “sacred pillar” (מַצֶּבָה, matsevah; see the previous note), it is much more difficult to take the final statement in a positive sense. In this case “holy offspring” alludes to God’s ideal for his covenant people, the offspring of the patriarchs. Ironically that “holy” nation is more like a “sacred pillar” and it will be thrown down like a sacred pillar from a high place and its land destroyed like the sacred trees located at such shrines. Understood in this way, the ironic statement is entirely negative in tone, just like the rest of the preceding announcement of judgment. It also reminds the people of their failure; they did not oppose pagan religion, instead they embraced it. Now they will be destroyed in the same way they should have destroyed paganism.
358 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
359 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
360 tn Or perhaps, “but they were unable to attack it.” This statement sounds like a summary of the whole campaign. The following context explains why they were unable to defeat the southern kingdom. The parallel passage (2 Kgs 16:5; cf. Num 22:11; 1 Sam 17:9 for a similar construction) affirms that Syria and Israel besieged Ahaz. Consequently, the statement that “they were not able to battle against them” must refer to the inability to conquer Ahaz.
361 tn Heb “house.” In this context the “house of David” includes King Ahaz, his family, and the royal court. See also Jer 21:12; Zech 12:7-8, 10, 12, for a similar use of the phrase.
362 tn Heb “rests upon.” Most understand the verb as נוּחַ (nuakh, “rest”), but HALOT 685 s.v. II נחה proposes that this is a hapax legomenon which means “stand by.”
363 tn Heb “and his heart shook and the heart of his people shook, like the shaking of the trees of the forest before the wind.” The singular pronoun “his” is collective, referring to the Davidic house/family. לֵבָב (levav, “heart”) here refers to the seat of the emotions.
364 tn The name means “a remnant will return.” Perhaps in this context, where the Lord is trying to encourage Ahaz, the name suggests that only a few of the enemy invaders will return home; the rest will be defeated.
365 tn Heb “the field of the washer”; traditionally “the fuller’s field” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “the Washerman’s Field.”
366 tn Heb “guard yourself and be quiet,” but the two verbs should be coordinated.
367 tn Heb “and let not your heart be weak”; ASV “neither let thy heart be faint.”
368 sn The derogatory metaphor indicates that the power of Rezin and Pekah is ready to die out.
369 tn This sentence opens with the conjunction יַעַן כִּי (ya’an ki, “because”). Consequently some take vv. 5-6 with what precedes, as another reason why Ahaz might be tempted to fear (see v. 4). However, it is more likely that vv. 5-6 give the basis for the Lord’s announcement in vv. 7-9. The conjunction יַעַן כִּי here introduces the basis for judgment (as in 3:16; 8:6; 29:13), which is then followed by the formal announcement of judgment.
370 tn Heb “and let us break it open for ourselves”; NASB “make for ourselves a breach in its walls”; NLT “fight our way into.”
371 tn Heb “and we will make the son of Tabeel king in its midst.”
sn The precise identity of this would-be puppet king is unknown. He may have been a Syrian official or the ruler of one of the small neighboring states. See Y. Aharoni, Land of the Bible, 370.
372 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 14, 19 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
373 tn Heb “Ephraim will be too shattered to be a nation”; NIV “to be a people.”
sn This statement is problematic for several reasons. It seems to intrude stylistically, interrupting the symmetry of the immediately preceding and following lines. Furthermore, such a long range prophecy lacks punch in the midst of the immediate crisis. After all, even if Israel were destroyed sometime within the next 65 years, a lot could still happen during that time, including the conquest of Judah and the demise of the Davidic family. Finally the significance of the time frame is uncertain. Israel became an Assyrian province within the next 15 years and ceased to exist as a nation. For these reasons many regard the statement as a later insertion, but why a later editor would include the reference to “65 years” remains a mystery. Some try to relate the prophecy to the events alluded to in Ezra 4:2, 10, which refers to how the Assyrian kings Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal settled foreigners in former Israelite territory, perhaps around 670
374 tn Heb “if you do not believe, you will not endure.” The verb forms are second plural; the Lord here addresses the entire Davidic family and court. (Verse 4 was addressed to the king.) There is a wordplay in the Hebrew text, designed to draw attention to the alternatives set before the king (cf. 1:20). “Believe” (תַאֳמִינוּ, ta’aminu) is a Hiphil form of the verb אָמָן (’aman); “endure” (תֵאָמֵנוּ, te’amenu) is a Niphal form of this same verb.
375 tn Heb “Make it as deep as Sheol or make it high upwards.” These words suggest that Ahaz can feel free to go beyond the bounds of ordinary human experience.
376 tn Ahaz uses the verb נָסַה (nasah, “test”) in its negative sense of “challenge, provoke.” However, this is false piety, a smokescreen designed to cover up his lack of faith in the Lord.
377 tn Heb “and he said.” The subject is unexpressed, but the reference to “my God” at the end of the verse indicates the prophet is speaking.
378 tn The verb is second plural in form, because the prophet addresses the whole family of David. He continues to use the plural in v. 14 (with one exception, see the notes on that verse), but then switches back to the second singular (addressing Ahaz specifically) in vv. 16-17.
379 tn Heb “house.” See the note at v. 2.
380 sn The address to the “house of David” is designed to remind Ahaz and his royal court of the protection promised to them through the Davidic covenant. The king’s refusal to claim God’s promise magnifies his lack of faith.
381 tn The Hebrew term אוֹת (’ot, “sign”) can refer to a miraculous event (see v. 11), but it does not carry this sense inherently. Elsewhere in Isaiah the word usually refers to a natural occurrence or an object/person vested with special significance (see 8:18; 19:20; 20:3; 37:30; 55:13; 66:19). Only in 38:7-8, 22 does it refer to a miraculous deed that involves suspending or overriding natural laws. The sign outlined in vv. 14-17 involves God’s providential control over events and their timing, but not necessarily miraculous intervention.
382 tn Heb “the young woman.” The Hebrew article has been rendered as a demonstrative pronoun (“this”) in the translation to bring out its force. It is very likely that Isaiah pointed to a woman who was present at the scene of the prophet’s interview with Ahaz. Isaiah’s address to the “house of David” and his use of second plural forms suggests other people were present, and his use of the second feminine singular verb form (“you will name”) later in the verse is best explained if addressed to a woman who is present.
383 tn Traditionally, “virgin.” Because this verse from Isaiah is quoted in Matt 1:23 in connection with Jesus’ birth, the Isaiah passage has been regarded since the earliest Christian times as a prophecy of Christ’s virgin birth. Much debate has taken place over the best way to translate this Hebrew term, although ultimately one’s view of the doctrine of the virgin birth of Christ is unaffected. Though the Hebrew word used here (עַלְמָה, ’almah) can sometimes refer to a woman who is a virgin (Gen 24:43), it does not carry this meaning inherently. The word is simply the feminine form of the corresponding masculine noun עֶלֶם (’elem, “young man”; cf. 1 Sam 17:56; 20:22). The Aramaic and Ugaritic cognate terms are both used of women who are not virgins. The word seems to pertain to age, not sexual experience, and would normally be translated “young woman.” The LXX translator(s) who later translated the Book of Isaiah into Greek sometime between the second and first century
384 tn Elsewhere the adjective הָרָה (harah), when used predicatively, refers to a past pregnancy (from the narrator’s perspective, 1 Sam 4:19), to a present condition (Gen 16:11; 38:24; 2 Sam 11:5), and to a conception that is about to occur in the near future (Judg 13:5, 7). (There is some uncertainty about the interpretation of Judg 13:5, 7, however. See the notes to those verses.) In Isa 7:14 one could translate, “the young woman is pregnant.” In this case the woman is probably a member of the royal family. Another option, the one followed in the present translation, takes the adjective in an imminent future sense, “the young woman is about to conceive.” In this case the woman could be a member of the royal family, or, more likely, the prophetess with whom Isaiah has sexual relations shortly after this (see 8:3).
385 tn Heb “and you will call his name.” The words “young lady” are supplied in the translation to clarify the identity of the addressee. The verb is normally taken as an archaic third feminine singular form here, and translated, “she will call.” However the form (קָרָאת, qara’t) is more naturally understood as second feminine singular, in which case the words would be addressed to the young woman mentioned just before this. In the three other occurrences of the third feminine singular perfect of I קָרָא (qara’, “to call”), the form used is קָרְאָה (qar’ah; see Gen 29:35; 30:6; 1 Chr 4:9). A third feminine singular perfect קָרָאת does appear in Deut 31:29 and Jer 44:23, but the verb here is the homonym II קָרָא (“to meet, encounter”). The form קָרָאת (from I קָרָא, “to call”) appears in three other passages (Gen 16:11; Isa 60:18; Jer 3:4 [Qere]) and in each case is second feminine singular.
386 sn The name Immanuel means “God [is] with us.”
387 tn Or, perhaps “cream,” frequently, “curds” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); KJV, ASV “butter”; CEV “yogurt.”
388 tn Heb “for his knowing.” Traditionally the preposition has been translated in a temporal sense, “when he knows.” However, though the preposition לְ (lamed) can sometimes have a temporal force, it never carries such a nuance in any of the 40 other passages where it is used with the infinitive construct of יָדַע (yada’, “to know”). Most often the construction indicates purpose/result. This sense is preferable here. The following context indicates that sour milk and honey will epitomize the devastation that God’s judgment will bring upon the land. Cultivated crops will be gone and the people will be forced to live off the milk produced by their goats and the honey they find in the thickets. As the child is forced to eat a steady diet of this sour milk and honey, he will be reminded of the consequences of sin and motivated to make correct moral decisions in order to avoid further outbreaks of divine discipline.
389 tn Heb “for, because.” The particle introduces the entire following context (vv. 16-25), which explains why Immanuel will be an appropriate name for the child, why he will eat sour milk and honey, and why experiencing such a diet will contribute to his moral development.
390 sn Since “two kings” are referred to later in the verse, the “land” must here refer to Syria-Israel.
391 tn Heb “the land will be abandoned, which you fear because of its two kings.” After the verb קוּץ (quts, “loathe, dread”) the phrase מִפְּנֵי (mipney, “from before”) introduces the cause of loathing/dread (see Gen 27:46; Exod 1:12; Num 22:3).
392 tn Heb “days” (so KJV, NAB); NASB, NRSV “such days.”
393 sn Initially the prophecy appears to be a message of salvation. Immanuel seems to have a positive ring to it, sour milk and honey elsewhere symbolize prosperity and blessing (see Deut 32:13-14; Job 20:17), verse 16 announces the defeat of Judah’s enemies, and verse 17a could be taken as predicting a return to the glorious days of David and Solomon. However, the message turns sour in verses 17b-25. God will be with his people in judgment, as well as salvation. The curds and honey will be signs of deprivation, not prosperity, the relief announced in verse 16 will be short-lived, and the new era will be characterized by unprecedented humiliation, not a return to glory. Because of Ahaz’s refusal to trust the Lord, potential blessing would be transformed into a curse, just as Isaiah turns an apparent prophecy of salvation into a message of judgment. Because the words “the king of Assyria” are rather awkwardly tacked on to the end of the sentence, some regard them as a later addition. However, the very awkwardness facilitates the prophet’s rhetorical strategy here, as he suddenly turns what sounds like a positive message into a judgment speech. Actually, “the king of Assyria,” stands in apposition to the earlier object “days,” and specifies who the main character of these coming “days” will be.
394 tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
395 sn Swarming flies are irritating; bees are irritating and especially dangerous because of the pain they inflict with their sting (see Deut 1:44; Ps 118:12). The metaphors are well chosen, for the Assyrians (symbolized by the bees) were much more powerful and dangerous than the Egyptians (symbolized by the flies). Nevertheless both would put pressure on Judah, for Egypt wanted Judah as a buffer state against Assyrian aggression, while Assyrian wanted it as a base for operations against Egypt. Following the reference to sour milk and honey, the metaphor is especially apt, for flies are attracted to dairy products and bees can be found in the vicinity of honey.
396 tn Heb “and shall rest” (so KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “and settle.”
397 tn The meaning of this word (נַהֲלֹל, nahalol) is uncertain; some understand this as referring to another type of thorn bush. For bibliography, see HALOT 676 s.v. I *נַהֲלֹל.
398 tn Heb “in that day” (so ASV, NASB); KJV “In the same day.”
399 tn Heb “the river” (so KJV); NASB “the Euphrates.” The name of the river has been supplied in the present translation for clarity.
400 tn Heb “the hair of the feet.” The translation assumes that the word “feet” is used here as a euphemism for the genitals. See BDB 920 s.v. רֶגֶל.
401 tn Heb “in that day.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
402 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated, see note on 2:2.
403 tn Heb “in that day.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
404 tn Heb “will become” (so NASB); NAB “shall be turned to.”
405 tn Heb “with arrows and a bow.” The more common English idiom is “bow[s] and arrow[s].”
406 tn Heb “go” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV); TEV “go hunting.”
407 tn Heb “will be” (so NASB, NRSV).
408 tn Heb “and all the hills which were hoed with a hoe, you will not go there [for] fear of the thorns and briers.”
409 tn Heb “and it will become a pasture for cattle and a trampling place for sheep.”
sn At this point one is able to summarize the content of the “sign” (vv. 14-15) as follows: A young woman known to be present when Isaiah delivered this message to Ahaz (perhaps a member of the royal family or the prophetess mentioned in 8:3) would soon give birth to a boy whom the mother would name Immanuel, “God is with us.” Eventually Immanuel would be forced to eat sour milk and honey, which would enable him to make correct moral decisions. How would this situation come about and how would it constitute a sign? Before this situation developed, the Israelites and Syrians would be defeated. But then the Lord would usher in a period of time unlike any since the division of the kingdom almost 200 years before. The Assyrians would overrun the land, destroy the crops, and force the people to subsist on goats’ milk and honey. At that time, as the people saw Immanuel eating his sour milk and honey, the Davidic family would be forced to acknowledge that God was indeed with them. He was present with them in the Syrian-Israelite crisis, fully capable of rescuing them; but he was also present with them in judgment, disciplining them for their lack of trust. The moral of the story is quite clear: Failure to appropriate God’s promises by faith can turn potential blessing into disciplinary judgment.
410 sn Probably made of metal, wood, or leather. See HALOT 193 s.v. גִּלָּיוֹן.
411 tn Heb “write” (so KJV, ASV, NIV, NRSV).
412 tn Heb “with the stylus of a man.” The significance of the qualifying genitive “a man” is uncertain. For various interpretations see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:219, n. 1.
413 tn Heb “quickly, [the] plunder; it hurries, [the] loot.” The first word (מַהֵר, maher) is either a Piel imperative (“hurry [to]”) or infinitive (“hurrying,” or “quickly”). The third word (חָשׁ, khash) is either a third masculine singular perfect or a masculine singular participle, in either case from the root חוּשׁ (khush, “hurry”). Perhaps it is best to translate, “One hastens to the plunder, one hurries to the loot.” In this case מַהֵר is understood as an infinitive functioning as a verb, the subject of חוּשׁ is taken as indefinite, and the two nouns are understood as adverbial accusatives. As we discover in v. 3, this is the name of the son to be born to Isaiah through the prophetess.
414 tn The form in the text is a cohortative with prefixed vav (ו), suggesting that the Lord is announcing what he will do. Some prefer to change the verb to an imperative, “and summon as witnesses,” a reading that finds support from the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa. Another option is to point the prefixed conjunction as a vav consecutive and translate, “So I summoned as witnesses.” In this case Isaiah is recalling his response to the Lord’s commission. In any case, the reference to witnesses suggests that the name and the child who bears it will function as signs.
415 map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.
416 sn The child’s name foreshadows what will happen to Judah’s enemies; when their defeat takes place, the child will be a reminder that God predicted the event and brought it to pass. As such the child will be a reminder of God’s protective presence with his people.
417 tn The Hebrew text begins with “because.” In the Hebrew text vv. 6-7 are one long sentence, with v. 6 giving the reason for judgment and v. 7 formally announcing it.
418 sn The phrase “waters of Shiloah” probably refers to a stream that originated at the Gihon Spring and supplied the city of Jerusalem with water. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:225. In this context these waters stand in contrast to the flood waters of Assyria and symbolize God’s presence and blessings.
419 tn The precise meaning of v. 6 has been debated. The translation above assumes that “these people” are the residents of Judah and that מָשׂוֹשׂ (masos) is alternate form of מָסוֹס (masos, “despair, melt”; see HALOT 606 s.v. מסס). In this case vv. 7-8 in their entirety announce God’s disciplinary judgment on Judah. However, “these people” could refer to the Israelites and perhaps also the Syrians (cf v. 4). In this case מָשׂוֹשׂ probably means “joy.” One could translate, “and rejoice over Rezin and the son of Remaliah.” In this case v. 7a announces the judgment of Israel, with vv. 7b-8 then shifting the focus to the judgment of Judah.
420 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
421 tn Heb “the mighty and abundant waters of the river.” The referent of “the river” here, the Euphrates River, has been specified in the translation for clarity. As the immediately following words indicate, these waters symbolize the Assyrian king and his armies which will, as it were, inundate the land.
422 tn Heb “it will go up over all its stream beds and go over all its banks.”
423 tn Heb “and the spreading out of his wings [will be over] the fullness of the breadth of your land.” The metaphor changes here from raging flood to predatory bird.
424 sn The appearance of the name Immanuel (“God is with us”) is ironic at this point, for God is present with his people in judgment. Immanuel is addressed here as if he has already been born and will see the judgment occur. This makes excellent sense if his birth has just been recorded. There are several reasons for considering Immanuel and Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz one and the same. 8:3 is a birth account which could easily be understood as recording the fulfillment of the birth prophecy of 7:14. The presence of a formal record/witnesses (8:1-2) suggests a sign function for the child (cf. 7:14). As in 7:14-16, the removal of Judah’s enemies would take place before the child reached a specified age (cf. 8:4). Both 7:17-25 and 8:7-8 speak of an Assyrian invasion of Judah which would follow the defeat of Israel/Syria. The major objection to this view is the fact that different names appear, but such a phenomenon is not without parallel in the OT (cf. Gen 35:18). The name Immanuel may emphasize the basic fact of God’s presence, while the name Maher focuses on the specific nature of God’s involvement. In 7:14 the mother is viewed as naming the child, while in 8:3 Isaiah is instructed to give the child’s name, but one might again point to Gen 35:18 for a precedent. The sign child’s age appears to be different in 8:4 than in 7:15-16, but 7:15-16 pertains to the judgment on Judah, as well as the defeat of Israel/Syria (cf. vv. 17-25), while 8:4 deals only with the downfall of Israel/Syria. Some argue that the suffixed form “your land” in 8:8 points to a royal referent (a child of Ahaz or the Messiah), but usage elsewhere shows that the phrase does not need to be so restricted. While the suffix can refer to the king of a land (cf. Num 20:17; 21:22; Deut 2:27; Judg 11:17, 19; 2 Sam 24:13; 1 Kgs 11:22; Isa 14:20), it can also refer to one who is a native of a particular land (cf. Gen 12:1; 32:9; Jonah 1:8). (See also the use of “his land” in Isa 13:14 [where the suffix refers to a native of a land] and 37:7 [where it refers to a king].)
425 tn The verb רֹעוּ (ro’u) is a Qal imperative, masculine plural from רָעַע (ra’a’, “break”). Elsewhere both transitive (Job 34:24; Ps 2:9; Jer 15:12) and intransitive (Prov 25:19; Jer 11:16) senses are attested for the Qal of this verb. Because no object appears here, the form is likely intransitive: “be broken.” In this case the imperative is rhetorical (like “be shattered” later in the verse) and equivalent to a prediction, “you will be broken.” On the rhetorical use of the imperative in general, see IBHS 572 §34.4c; GKC 324 §110.c.
426 tn The imperatival form (Heb “be shattered”) is rhetorical and expresses the speaker’s firm conviction of the outcome of the nations’ attack. See the note on “be broken.”
427 tn The initial imperative (“get ready for battle”) acknowledges the reality of the nations’ hostility; the concluding imperative (Heb “be shattered”) is rhetorical and expresses the speakers’ firm conviction of the outcome of the nations’ attack. (See the note on “be broken.”) One could paraphrase, “Okay, go ahead and prepare for battle since that’s what you want to do, but your actions will backfire and you’ll be shattered.” This rhetorical use of the imperatives is comparable to saying to a child who is bent on climbing a high tree, “Okay, go ahead, climb the tree and break your arm!” What this really means is: “Okay, go ahead and climb the tree since that’s what you really want to do, but your actions will backfire and you’ll break your arm.” The repetition of the statement in the final two lines of the verse gives the challenge the flavor of a taunt (ancient Israelite “trash talking,” as it were).
428 tn Heb “speak a word, but it will not stand.”
429 sn In these vv. 9-10 the tone shifts abruptly from judgment to hope. Hostile nations like Assyria may attack God’s people, but eventually they will be destroyed, for God is with his people, sometimes to punish, but ultimately to vindicate. In addition to being a reminder of God’s presence in the immediate crisis faced by Ahaz and Judah, Immanuel (whose name is echoed in this concluding statement) was a guarantee of the nation’s future greatness in fulfillment of God’s covenantal promises. Eventually God would deliver his people from the hostile nations (vv. 9-10) through another child, an ideal Davidic ruler who would embody God’s presence in a special way (see 9:6-7). Jesus the Messiah is the fulfillment of the Davidic ideal prophesied by Isaiah, the one whom Immanuel foreshadowed. Through the miracle of the incarnation he is literally “God with us.” Matthew realized this and applied Isaiah’s ancient prophecy of Immanuel’s birth to Jesus (Matt 1:22-23). The first Immanuel was a reminder to the people of God’s presence and a guarantee of a greater child to come who would manifest God’s presence in an even greater way. The second Immanuel is “God with us” in a heightened and infinitely superior sense. He “fulfills” Isaiah’s Immanuel prophecy by bringing the typology intended by God to realization and by filling out or completing the pattern designed by God. Of course, in the ultimate fulfillment of the type, the incarnate Immanuel’s mother must be a virgin, so Matthew uses a Greek term (παρθένος, parqenos), which carries that technical meaning (in contrast to the Hebrew word עַלְמָה [’almah], which has the more general meaning “young woman”). Matthew draws similar analogies between NT and OT events in 2:15, 18. The linking of these passages by analogy is termed “fulfillment.” In 2:15 God calls Jesus, his perfect Son, out of Egypt, just as he did his son Israel in the days of Moses, an historical event referred to in Hos 11:1. In so doing he makes it clear that Jesus is the ideal Israel prophesied by Isaiah (see Isa 49:3), sent to restore wayward Israel (see Isa 49:5, cf. Matt 1:21). In 2:18 Herod’s slaughter of the infants is another illustration of the oppressive treatment of God’s people by foreign tyrants. Herod’s actions are analogous to those of the Assyrians, who deported the Israelites, causing the personified land to lament as inconsolably as a mother robbed of her little ones (Jer 31:15).
430 tc Heb “with strength of hand and he warned me from walking in the way of these people, saying.” Some want to change the pointing of the suffix and thereby emend the Qal imperfect יִסְּרֵנִי (yissÿreni, “he was warning me”) to the more common Piel perfect יִסְּרַנִי (yissÿrani, “he warned me”). Others follow the lead of the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa and read יְסִירֵנִי (yÿsireni, “he was turning me aside,” a Hiphil imperfect from סוּר, sur).
431 tn Heb “Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ with respect to all which these people say, ‘Conspiracy.’” The verb translated “do not say” is second masculine plural, indicating that this exhortation is directed to Isaiah and other followers of the Lord (see v. 16).
sn The background of this command is uncertain. Perhaps the “conspiracy” in view is the alliance between Israel and Syria. Some of the people may even have thought that individuals in Judah were plotting with Israel and Syria to overthrow the king.
432 tn Heb “the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts], him you must set apart.” The word order is emphatic, with the object being placed first.
433 tn Heb “he is your [object of] fear, he is your [object of] terror.” The roots יָרֵא (yare’) and עָרַץ (’arats) are repeated from v. 12b.
434 tn Because the metaphor of protection (“sanctuary”) does not fit the negative mood that follows in vv. 14b-15, some contend that מִקְדָּשׁ (miqdash, “sanctuary”) is probably a corruption of an original מוֹקֵשׁ (moqesh, “snare”), a word that appears in the next line (cf. NAB and H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:355-56). If the MT reading is retained (as in the above translation), the fact that Yahweh is a sanctuary wraps up the point of v. 13 and stands in contrast to God’s treatment of those who rebel against him (the rest of v. 14).
435 sn The two “houses” of Israel (= the patriarch Jacob) are the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah.
436 tn These words are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. וְהָיָה (vÿhayah, “and he will be”) does double duty in the parallel structure of the verse.
437 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
438 tn Heb “over them” (so NASB); NCV “over this rock.”
439 tn Heb “tie up [the] testimony.” The “testimony” probably refers to the prophetic messages God has given him. When the prophecies are fulfilled, he will be able to produce this official, written record to confirm the authenticity of his ministry and to prove to the people that God is sovereign over events.
440 tn Heb “seal [the] instruction among my followers.” The “instruction” probably refers to the prophet’s exhortations and warnings. When the people are judged for the sins, the prophet can produce these earlier messages and essentially say, “I told you so.” In this way he can authenticate his ministry and impress upon the people the reality of God’s authority over them.
441 tn Heb “who hides his face from the house of Jacob.”
442 sn This refers to Shear-jashub (7:3) and Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (8:1, 3).
443 tn Or “signs and portents” (NAB, NRSV). The names of all three individuals has symbolic value. Isaiah’s name (which meant “the Lord delivers”) was a reminder that the Lord was the nation’s only source of protection; Shear-jashub’s name was meant, at least originally, to encourage Ahaz (see the note at 7:3), and Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz’s name was a guarantee that God would defeat Israel and Syria (see the note at 8:4). The word מוֹפֶת (mofet, “portent”) can often refer to some miraculous event, but in 20:3 it is used, along with its synonym אוֹת (’ot, “sign”) of Isaiah’s walking around half-naked as an object lesson of what would soon happen to the Egyptians.
444 tn It is uncertain if the prophet or the Lord is speaking in vv. 19-22. If the latter, then vv. 19-22 resume the speech recorded in vv. 12-15, after the prophet’s response in vv. 16-18.
445 tn Heb “inquire of the ritual pits and of the magicians who chirp and mutter.” The Hebrew word אוֹב (’ov, “ritual pit”) refers to a pit used by a magician to conjure up underworld spirits. In 1 Sam 28:7 the witch of Endor is called a אוֹב-בַּעֲלַת (ba’alat-’ov, “owner of a ritual pit”). See H. Hoffner, “Second Millennium Antecedents to the Hebrew ’OñBù,” JBL 86 (1967): 385-401.
446 tn Heb “Should a nation not inquire of its gods on behalf of the living, (by inquiring) of the dead?” These words appear to be a continuation of the quotation begun in the first part of the verse. אֱלֹהָיו (’elohayv) may be translated “its gods” or “its God.” Some take the second half of the verse as the prophet’s (or the Lord’s) rebuke of the people who advise seeking oracles at the ritual pits, but in this case the words “the dead on behalf of the living” are difficult to explain.
447 tn Heb “to [the] instruction and to [the] testimony.” The words “then you must recall” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 19-20a are one long sentence, reading literally, “When they say to you…, to the instruction and to the testimony.” On the identity of the “instruction” and “testimony” see the notes at v. 16.
448 tn Heb “If they do not speak according to this word, [it is] because it has no light of dawn.” The literal translation suggests that “this word” refers to the instruction/testimony. However, it is likely that אִם־לֹא (’im-lo’) is asseverative here, as in 5:9. In this case “this word” refers to the quotation recorded in v. 19. For a discussion of the problem see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 230, n. 9. The singular pronoun in the second half of the verse is collective, referring back to the nation (see v. 19b).
449 tn Heb “he will pass through it.” The subject of the collective singular verb is the nation. (See the preceding note.) The immediately preceding context supplies no antecedent for “it” (a third feminine singular suffix in the Hebrew text); the suffix may refer to the land, which would be a reasonable referent with a verb of motion. Note also that אֶרֶץ (’erets, “land”) does appear at the beginning of the next verse.
450 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
451 tn Or “gods” (NAB, NRSV, CEV).
452 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).
453 tn The precise meaning of מְעוּף (mÿ’uf) is uncertain; the word occurs only here. See BDB 734 s.v. מָעוּף.
454 tn Heb “ and darkness, pushed.” The word מְנֻדָּח (mÿnudakh) appears to be a Pual participle from נדח (“push”), but the Piel is unattested for this verb and the Pual occurs only here.
455 sn In the Hebrew text (BHS) the chapter division comes one verse later than in the English Bible; 9:1 (8:23 HT). Thus 9:2-21 in the English Bible = 9:1-20 in the Hebrew text. Beginning with 10:1 the verse numbers in the English Bible and the Hebrew Bible are again the same.
456 tn The Hebrew text reads, “Indeed there is no gloom for the one to whom there was anxiety for her.” The feminine singular pronominal suffix “her” must refer to the land (cf. vv. 22a, 23b). So one could translate, “Indeed there will be no gloom for the land which was anxious.” In this case the statement introduces the positive message to follow. Some assume an emendation of לֹא (lo’, “no”) to לוֹ (lo, “to him”) and of לָהּ (lah, “to her”) to לוֹ (lo, “to him”), yielding this literal reading: “indeed there is gloom for him, for the one to whom there was anxiety for him.” In this case the statement concludes the preceding description of judgment.
457 tn The Lord must be understood as the subject of the two verbs in this verse.
458 sn The statement probably alludes to the Assyrian conquest of Israel in ca. 734-733
459 tn Heb Just as in earlier times he humiliated…, [in] the latter times he has brought honor.” The main verbs in vv. 1b-4 are Hebrew perfects. The prophet takes his rhetorical stance in the future age of restoration and describes future events as if they have already occurred. To capture the dramatic effect of the original text, the translation uses the English present or present perfect.
460 sn These three geographical designations may refer to provinces established by the Assyrians in 734-733
461 sn The darkness symbolizes judgment and its effects (see 8:22); the light represents deliverance and its effects, brought about by the emergence of a conquering Davidic king (see vv. 3-6).
462 tn Traditionally צַלְמָוֶת (tsalmavet) has been interpreted as a compound noun, meaning “shadow of death” (so KJV, ASV, NIV), but usage indicates that the word, though it sometimes refers to death, means “darkness.” The term should probably be repointed as an abstract noun צַלְמוּת (tsalmut). See the note at Ps 23:4.
463 sn The Lord is addressed directly in vv. 3-4.
464 tc The Hebrew consonantal text reads “You multiply the nation, you do not make great the joy.” The particle לֹא (lo’, “not”) is obviously incorrect; the marginal reading has לוֹ (lo, “to him”). In this case, one should translate, “You multiply the nation, you increase his (i.e., their) joy.” However, the parallelism is tighter if one emends הַגּוֹי לוֹ (hagoy lo, “the nation, to him”) to הַגִּילָה (haggilah, “the joy,” a noun attested in Isa 65:18), which corresponds to הַשִּׂמְחָה (hasimkhah, “the joy”) later in the verse (H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:386). As attractive as this reading is, it has not textual evidence supporting it. The MT reading (accepting the marginal reading “to him” for the negative particle “not”) affirms that Yahweh caused the nation to grow in population and increased their joy.
465 tn Heb “as they are happy.” The word “warriors” is supplied in the translation to clarify the word picture. This last simile comes close to reality, for vv. 4-5 indicate that the people have won a great military victory over their oppressors.
466 tn Heb “for the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the scepter of the oppressor against him.” The singular pronouns are collective, referring to the people. The oppressed nation is compared to an ox weighed down by a heavy yoke and an animal that is prodded and beaten.
467 sn This alludes to Gideon’s victory over Midian (Judg 7-8), when the Lord delivered Israel from an oppressive foreign invader.
468 tn Heb “Indeed every boot marching with shaking.” On the meaning of סְאוֹן (sÿ’on, “boot”) and the related denominative verb, both of which occur only here, see HALOT 738 s.v. סְאוֹן.
469 tn The Hebrew perfect (translated “has been born” and “has been given”) is used here as the prophet takes a rhetorical stance in the future. See the note at 9:1.
470 tn Or “and dominion was on his shoulders and he called his name.” The prefixed verbs with vav (ו) consecutive are used with the same rhetorical sense as the perfects in v. 6a. See the preceding note. There is great debate over the syntactical structure of the verse. No subject is indicated for the verb “he called.” If all the titles that follow are ones given to the king, then the subject of the verb must be indefinite, “one calls.” However, some have suggested that one to three of the titles that follow refer to God, not the king. For example, the traditional punctuation of the Hebrew text suggests the translation, “and the Extraordinary Strategist, the Mighty God calls his name, ‘Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’”
471 tn Some have seen two titles here (“Wonderful” and “Counselor,” cf. KJV, ASV). However, the pattern of the following three titles (each contains two elements) and the use of the roots פָּלַא (pala’) and יָעַץ (ya’ats) together in Isa 25:1 (cf. כִּי עָשִׂיתָ פֶּלֶא עֵצוֹת מֵרָחוֹק אֱמוּנָה אֹמֶן) and 28:29 (cf. הִפְלִיא עֵצָה) suggest otherwise. The term יוֹעֵץ (yo’ets) could be taken as appositional (genitive or otherwise) of species (“a wonder, i.e., a wonder as a counselor,” cf. NAB “Wonder-Counselor”) or as a substantival participle for which פָּלַא provides the direct object (“one who counsels wonders”). יוֹעֵץ is used as a royal title elsewhere (cf. Mic 4:9). Here it probably refers to the king’s ability to devise military strategy, as suggested by the context (cf. vv. 3-4 and the following title אֵל גִּבּוֹר, ’el gibor). In Isa 11:2 (also a description of this king) עֵצָה (’etsah) is linked with גְּבוּרָה (gÿvurah, the latter being typically used of military might, cf. BDB 150 s.v.). Note also עֵצָה וּגְבוּרָה לַמִּלְחָמָה in Isa 36:5. פֶּלֶא (pele’) is typically used of God (cf. however Lam 1:9). Does this suggest the deity of the messianic ruler? The NT certainly teaches he is God, but did Isaiah necessarily have this in mind over 700 years before his birth? Since Isa 11:2 points out that this king will receive the spirit of the Lord, which will enable him to counsel, it is possible to argue that the king’s counsel is “extraordinary” because it finds its source in the divine spirit. Thus this title does not necessarily suggest that the ruler is deity.
472 tn גִּבּוֹר (gibbor) is probably an attributive adjective (“mighty God”), though one might translate “God is a warrior” or “God is mighty.” Scholars have interpreted this title is two ways. A number of them have argued that the title portrays the king as God’s representative on the battlefield, whom God empowers in a supernatural way (see J. H. Hayes and S. A. Irvine, Isaiah, 181-82). They contend that this sense seems more likely in the original context of the prophecy. They would suggest that having read the NT, we might in retrospect interpret this title as indicating the coming king’s deity, but it is unlikely that Isaiah or his audience would have understood the title in such a bold way. Ps 45:6 addresses the Davidic king as “God” because he ruled and fought as God’s representative on earth. Ancient Near Eastern art and literature picture gods training kings for battle, bestowing special weapons, and intervening in battle. According to Egyptian propaganda, the Hittites described Rameses II as follows: “No man is he who is among us, It is Seth great-of-strength, Baal in person; Not deeds of man are these his doings, They are of one who is unique” (See Miriam Lichtheim, Ancient Egyptian Literature, 2:67). According to proponents of this view, Isa 9:6 probably envisions a similar kind of response when friends and foes alike look at the Davidic king in full battle regalia. When the king’s enemies oppose him on the battlefield, they are, as it were, fighting against God himself. The other option is to regard this title as a reference to God, confronting Isaiah’s readers with the divinity of this promised “child.” The use of this same title that clearly refers to God in a later passage (Isa 10:21) supports this interpretation. Other passages depict Yahweh as the great God and great warrior (Deut 10:17; Jer. 32:18). Although this connection of a child who is born with deity is unparalleled in any earlier biblical texts, Isaiah’s use of this title to make this connection represents Isaiah’s attempt (at God’s behest) to advance Israel in their understanding of the ideal Davidic king for whom they long.
473 tn This title must not be taken in an anachronistic Trinitarian sense. (To do so would be theologically problematic, for the “Son” is the messianic king and is distinct in his person from God the “Father.”) Rather, in its original context the title pictures the king as the protector of his people. For a similar use of “father” see Isa 22:21 and Job 29:16. This figurative, idiomatic use of “father” is not limited to the Bible. In a Phoenician inscription (ca. 850-800
474 tn This title pictures the king as one who establishes a safe socio-economic environment for his people. It hardly depicts him as a meek individual, for he establishes peace through military strength (as the preceding context and the first two royal titles indicate). His people experience safety and prosperity because their invincible king destroys their enemies. See Pss 72 and 144 for parallels to these themes.
475 tc The Hebrew text has לְםַרְבֵּה (lÿmarbeh), which is a corrupt reading. לם is dittographic; note the preceding word, שָׁלוֹם (shalom). The corrected text reads literally, “great is the dominion.”
476 tn Heb “and to peace there will be no end” (KJV and ASV both similar). On the political and socio-economic sense of שָׁלוֹם (shalom) in this context, see the note at v. 6 on “Prince of Peace.”
477 tn Heb “over the throne of David, and over his kingdom.” The referent of the pronoun “his” (i.e., David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
478 tn The feminine singular pronominal suffix on this form and the following one (translated “it” both times) refers back to the grammatically feminine noun “kingdom.”
479 tn Heb “with/by justice and fairness”; ASV “with justice and with righteousness.”
480 tn Heb “the zeal of the Lord.” In this context the Lord’s “zeal” refers to his intense devotion to and love for his people which prompts him to vindicate them and to fulfill his promises to David and the nation.
481 sn The following speech (9:8-10:4) assumes that God has already sent judgment (see v. 9), but it also announces that further judgment is around the corner (10:1-4). The speech seems to describe a series of past judgments on the northern kingdom which is ready to intensify further in the devastation announced in 10:1-4. It may have been written prior to the Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom in 734-733
482 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in v. 17 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
483 tn Heb “sent a word” (so KJV, ASV, NRSV); NASB “sends a message.”
484 tn The present translation assumes that this verse refers to judgment that had already fallen. Both verbs (perfects) are taken as indicating simple past; the vav (ו) on the second verb is understood as a simple vav conjunctive. Another option is to understand the verse as describing a future judgment (see 10:1-4). In this case the first verb is a perfect of certitude; the vav on the second verb is a vav consecutive.
485 tn The translation assumes that vv. 9-10 describe the people’s response to a past judgment (v. 8). The perfect is understood as indicating simple past and the vav (ו) is taken as conjunctive. Another option is to take the vav on the perfect as consecutive and translate, “all the people will know.”
486 tn Heb “and the people, all of them, knew; Ephraim and the residents of Samaria.”
487 tn Heb “with pride and arrogance of heart, saying.”
488 sn Though judgment (see v. 8) had taken away the prosperity they did have (symbolized by the bricks and sycamore fig trees), they arrogantly expected the future to bring even greater prosperity (symbolized by the chiseled stone and cedars).
489 tn The translation assumes that the prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive continues the narrative of past judgment.
490 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “adversaries of Rezin against him [i.e., them].” The next verse describes how the Syrians (over whom Rezin ruled, see 7:1, 8) and the Philistines encroached on Israel’s territory. Since the Syrians and Israelites were allies by 735
491 tn The prefixed verbal form is understood as a preterite, used, as is often the case in poetry, without vav consecutive. Note that prefixed forms with vav consecutive both precede (וַיְשַׂגֵּב, vaysaggev, “and he provoked”) and follow in v. 12 (וַיֹּאכְלוּ, vayyo’khÿlu, “and they devoured”) this verb.
492 tn Heb “and they devoured Israel with all the mouth”; NIV “with open mouth”; NLT “With bared fangs.”
493 tn Heb “in all this his anger is not turned, and still his hand is outstretched.” One could translate in the past tense here (and in 9:17b and 21b), but the appearance of the refrain in 10:4b, where it follows a woe oracle prophesying a future judgment, suggests it is a dramatic portrait of the judge which did not change throughout this period of past judgment and will remain unchanged in the future. The English present tense is chosen to best reflect this dramatic mood. (See also 5:25b, where the refrain appears following a dramatic description of coming judgment.)
494 tn This verse describes the people’s response to the judgment described in vv. 11-12. The perfects are understood as indicating simple past.
495 sn The metaphor in this line is that of a reed being cut down.
496 tn Heb “the elder and the one lifted up with respect to the face.” For another example of the Hebrew idiom, see 2 Kgs 5:1.
497 tn Heb “and the ones being led were swallowed up.” Instead of taking מְבֻלָּעִים (mÿbulla’im) from בָּלַע (bala’, “to swallow”), HALOT 134 s.v. בלע proposes a rare homonymic root בלע (“confuse”) here.
498 tn The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has לא יחמול (“he did not spare”) which is an obvious attempt to tighten the parallelism (note “he took no pity” in the next line). Instead of taking שָׂמַח (samakh) in one of its well attested senses (“rejoice over, be pleased with”), some propose, with support from Arabic, a rare homonymic root meaning “be merciful.”
499 tn The translation understands the prefixed verbs יִשְׂמַח (yismakh) and יְרַחֵם (yÿrakhem) as preterites without vav (ו) consecutive. (See v. 11 and the note on “he stirred up.”)
500 tn Or “defiled”; cf. ASV “profane”; NAB “profaned”; NIV “ungodly.”
501 tn מֵרַע (mera’) is a Hiphil participle from רָעַע (ra’a’, “be evil”). The intransitive Hiphil has an exhibitive force here, indicating that they exhibited outwardly the evidence of an inward condition by committing evil deeds.
502 tn Or “foolishness” (NASB), here in a moral-ethical sense.
503 tn Heb “in all this his anger is not turned, and still his hand is outstretched.”
sn See the note at 9:12.
504 tn Or “Indeed” (cf. NIV “Surely”). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
505 sn Evil was uncontrollable and destructive, and so can be compared to a forest fire.
506 tn Heb “and they swirled [with] the rising of the smoke” (cf. NRSV).
507 tn The precise meaning of the verb עְתַּם (’ÿtam), which occurs only here, is uncertain, though the context strongly suggests that it means “burn, scorch.”
508 sn The uncontrollable fire of the people’s wickedness (v. 18) is intensified by the fire of the Lord’s judgment (v. 19). God allows (or causes) their wickedness to become self-destructive as civil strife and civil war break out in the land.
509 tn Heb “men were not showing compassion to their brothers.” The idiom “men to their brothers” is idiomatic for reciprocity. The prefixed verbal form is either a preterite without vav (ו) consecutive or an imperfect used in a customary sense, describing continual or repeated behavior in past time.
510 tn Or “cut.” The verb גָּזַר (gazar) means “to cut.” If it is understood here, then one might paraphrase, “They slice off meat on the right.” However, HALOT 187 s.v. I גזר, proposes here a rare homonym meaning “to devour.”
511 tn The prefixed verbal form is either a preterite without vav consecutive or an imperfect used in a customary sense, describing continual or repeated behavior in past time.
512 tn Some suggest that זְרֹעוֹ (zÿro’o, “his arm”) be repointed זַרְעוֹ (zar’o, “his offspring”). In either case, the metaphor is that of a desperately hungry man who resorts to an almost unthinkable act to satisfy his appetite. He eats everything he can find to his right, but still being unsatisfied, then turns to his left and eats everything he can find there. Still being desperate for food, he then resorts to eating his own flesh (or offspring, as this phrase is metaphorically understood by some English versions, e.g., NIV, NCV, TEV, NLT). The reality behind the metaphor is the political turmoil of the period, as the next verse explains. There was civil strife within the northern kingdom; even the descendants of Joseph were at each other’s throats. Then the northern kingdom turned on their southern brother, Judah.
513 tn The words “fought against” are supplied in the translation both here and later in this verse for stylistic reasons.
514 tn Heb “in all this his anger is not turned, and still his hand is outstretched” (KJV and ASV both similar); NIV “his hand is still upraised.”
sn See the note at 9:12.
515 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who decree evil decrees.” On הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) see the note on the first phrase of 1:4.
516 tn Heb “[to] the writers who write out harm.” The participle and verb are in the Piel, suggesting repetitive action.
517 tn Or “rob” (ASV, NASB, NCV, NRSV); KJV “take away the right from the poor.”
518 tn Heb “so that widows are their plunder, and they can loot orphans.”
sn On the socio-economic background of vv. 1-2, see the note at 1:23.
519 tn Heb “the day of visitation” (so KJV, ASV), that is, the day when God arrives to execute justice on the oppressors.
520 tn Heb “except one kneels in the place of the prisoner, and in the place of the slain [who] fall.” On the force of בִּלְתִּי (bilti, “except”) and its logical connection to what precedes, see BDB 116 s.v. בֵלֶת. On the force of תַּחַת (takhat, “in the place of”) here, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:258, n. 6.
521 tn Heb “in all this his anger was not turned, and still his hand was outstretched”; KJV, ASV, NRSV “his had is stretched out still.”
sn See the note at 9:12.
522 tn Heb “Woe [to] Assyria, the club of my anger.” On הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) see the note on the first phrase of 1:4.
523 tn Heb “a cudgel is he, in their hand is my anger.” It seems likely that the final mem (ם) on בְיָדָם (bÿyadam) is not a pronominal suffix (“in their hand”), but an enclitic mem. If so, one can translate literally, “a cudgel is he in the hand of my anger.”
524 sn Throughout this section singular forms are used to refer to Assyria; perhaps the king of Assyria is in view (see v. 12).
525 tn Or “defiled”; cf. ASV “profane”; NAB “impious”; NCV “separated from God.”
526 tn Heb “and against the people of my anger I ordered him.”
527 tn Heb “to make it [i.e., the people] a trampled place.”
528 tn Heb “but he, not so does he intend, and his heart, not so does it think.”
529 tn Heb “for to destroy [is] in his heart, and to cut off nations, not a few.”
530 tn Or “For” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).
531 sn Calneh … Carchemish … Hamath … Arpad … Samaria … Damascus. The city states listed here were conquered by the Assyrians between 740-717
532 tn Heb “Just as my hand found the kingdoms of the idol[s].” The comparison is expanded in v. 11a (note “as”) and completed in v. 11b (note “so”).
533 map For the location of Jerusalem see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
534 tn The statement is constructed as a rhetorical question in the Hebrew text: “Is it not [true that] just as I have done to Samaria and its idols, so I will do to Jerusalem and its idols?”
sn This statement indicates that the prophecy dates sometime between 722-701
535 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
536 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 16, 23, 24, 33 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
537 tn Heb “his work on/against.” Cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV “on”; NIV “against.”
538 tn The Lord is speaking here, as in vv. 5-6a.
539 tn Heb “I will visit [judgment] on the fruit of the greatness of the heart of the king of Assyria, and on the glory of the height of his eyes.” The proud Assyrian king is likened to a large, beautiful fruit tree.
540 tn Heb “removed the borders of nations”; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV “boundaries.”
541 tc The consonantal text (Kethib) has כְּאַבִּיר (kÿ’abir, “like a strong one”); the marginal reading (Qere) is כַּבִיר (kavir, “mighty one”).
542 tn Heb “and I brought down, like a strong one, ones sitting [or “living”].” The participle יוֹשְׁבִים (yoshÿvim, “ones sitting”) could refer to the inhabitants of the nations, but the translation assumes that it refers to those who sit on thrones, i.e., rulers. See BDB 442 s.v. יָשַׁב and HALOT 444 s.v. ישׁב.
543 sn The Assyrians’ conquests were relatively unopposed, like robbing a bird’s nest of its eggs when the mother bird is absent.
544 tn Heb “the one who pushes it back and forth”; KJV “him that shaketh it”; ASV “him that wieldeth it.”
545 sn The irrational arrogance of the Assyrians (v. 15) will prompt the judgment about to be described.
546 tn Heb “will send leanness against his healthy ones”; NASB, NIV “will send a wasting disease.”
547 tc Heb “and in the place of his glory burning will burn, like the burning of fire.” The highly repetitive text (יֵקַד יְקֹד כִּיקוֹד אֵשׁ, yeqad yiqod kiqod ’esh) may be dittographic; if the second consonantal sequence יקד is omitted, the text would read “and in the place of his glory, it will burn like the burning of fire.”
548 tn In this context the “Light of Israel” is a divine title (note the parallel title “his holy one”). The title points to God’s royal splendor, which overshadows and, when transformed into fire, destroys the “majestic glory” of the king of Assyria (v. 16b).
549 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
550 tn Heb “his.” In vv. 17-19 the Assyrian king and his empire is compared to a great forest and orchard that are destroyed by fire (symbolic of the Lord).
551 tn Heb “from breath to flesh it will destroy.” The expression “from breath to flesh” refers to the two basic components of a person, the immaterial (life’s breath) and the material (flesh). Here the phrase is used idiomatically to indicate totality.
552 tn The precise meaning of this line is uncertain. מָסַס (masas), which is used elsewhere of substances dissolving or melting, may here mean “waste away” or “despair.” נָסַס (nasas), which appears only here, may mean “be sick” or “stagger, despair.” See BDB 651 s.v. I נָסַס and HALOT 703 s.v. I נסס. One might translate the line literally, “like the wasting away of one who is sick” (cf. NRSV “as when an invalid wastes away”).
553 tn Heb “and the rest of the trees of his forest will be counted, and a child will record them.”
554 tn Or “in that day.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
555 tn Heb “house” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
556 tn Heb “on one who strikes him down.” This individual is the king (“foreign leader”) of the oppressing nation (which NLT specifies as “the Assyrians”).
557 tn Or “sincerely”; KJV, ASV, NAB, NRSV “in truth.”
558 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
559 tn The referent of אֵל גִּבּוֹר (’el gibbor, “mighty God”) is uncertain. The title appears only here and in 9:6, where it is one of the royal titles of the coming ideal Davidic king. (Similar titles appear in Deut 10:17 and Neh 9:32 [“the great, mighty, and awesome God”] and in Jer 32:18 [“the great and mighty God”]. Both titles refer to God.) Though Hos 3:5 pictures Israel someday seeking “David their king,” and provides some support for a messianic interpretation of Isa 10:21, the Davidic king is not mentioned in the immediate context of Isa 10:21 (see Isa 11, however). The preceding verse mentions Israel relying on the Lord, so it is likely that the title refers to God here.
560 tn Heb “are like.”
561 sn The twofold appearance of the statement “a remnant will come back” (שְׁאָר יָשׁוּב, she’ar yashuv) in vv. 21-22 echoes and probably plays off the name of Isaiah’s son Shear-jashub (see 7:3). In its original context the name was meant to encourage Ahaz (see the note at 7:3), but here it has taken on new dimensions. In light of Ahaz’s failure and the judgment it brings down on the land, the name Shear-jashub now foreshadows the destiny of the nation. According to vv. 21-22, there is good news and bad news. The good news is that a remnant of God’s people will return; the bad news is that only a remnant will be preserved and come back. Like the name Immanuel, this name foreshadows both judgment (see the notes at 7:25 and 8:8) and ultimate restoration (see the note at 8:10).
562 tn Or “predetermined”; cf. ASV, NASB “is determined”; TEV “is in store.”
563 tn צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah) often means “righteousness,” but here it refers to God’s just judgment.
564 tn Or “is about to overflow.”
565 tn Heb “Indeed (or perhaps “for”) destruction and what is decreed the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, is about to accomplish in the middle of all the land.” The phrase כָלָא וְנֶחֱרָצָה (khala’ venekheratsah, “destruction and what is decreed”) is a hendiadys; the two terms express one idea, with the second qualifying the first.
566 tn Heb “therefore.” The message that follows is one of encouragement, for it focuses on the eventual destruction of the Assyrians. Consequently “therefore” relates back to vv. 5-21, not to vv. 22-23, which must be viewed as a brief parenthesis in an otherwise positive speech.
567 tn Heb “in the way [or “manner”] of Egypt.”
568 tc The Hebrew text has simply “fury,” but the pronominal element can be assumed on the basis of what immediately follows (see “my anger” in the clause). It is possible that the suffixed yod (י) has been accidentally dropped by virtual haplography. Note that a vav (ו) is prefixed to the form that immediately follows; yod and vav are very similar in later script phases.
569 tn Heb “him” (so KJV, ASV, NASB); the singular refers to the leader or king who stands for the entire nation. This is specified by NCV, CEV as “the Assyrians.”
570 sn According to Judg 7:25, the Ephraimites executed the Midianite general Oreb at a rock which was subsequently named after the executed enemy.
571 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and his staff [will be] against the sea, and he will lift it in the way [or “manner”] of Egypt.” If the text is retained, “the sea” symbolizes Assyria’s hostility, the metaphor being introduced because of the reference to Egypt. The translation above assumes an emendation of עַל הַיָּם (’al hayyam, “against the sea”) to עַלֵיהֶם (’alehem, “against them”). The proposed shift from the third singular pronoun (note “beat him” earlier in the verse) to the plural is not problematic, for the singular is collective. Note that a third plural pronoun is used at the end of v. 25 (“their destruction”). The final phrase, “in the way/manner of Egypt,” probably refers to the way in which God used the staff of Moses to bring judgment down on Egypt.
572 tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
573 tn Heb “he [i.e., the Lord] will remove his [i.e, Assyria’s] burden from upon your shoulder.”
574 tc The meaning of this line is uncertain. The Hebrew text reads literally, “and the yoke will be destroyed (or perhaps, “pulled down”) because of fatness.” Perhaps this is a bizarre picture of an ox growing so fat that it breaks the yoke around its neck or can no longer fit into its yoke. Fatness would symbolize the Lord’s restored blessings; the removal of the yoke would symbolize the cessation of Assyrian oppression. Because of the difficulty of the metaphor, many prefer to emend the text at this point. Some emend וְחֻבַּל (vÿkhubbal, “and it will be destroyed,” a perfect with prefixed vav), to יִחְבֹּל (yikhbol, “[it] will be destroyed,” an imperfect), and take the verb with what precedes, “and their yoke will be destroyed from your neck.” Proponents of this view (cf. NAB, NRSV) then emend עֹל (’ol, “yoke”) to עָלָה (’alah, “he came up”) and understand this verb as introducing the following description of the Assyrian invasion (vv. 28-32). מִפְּנֵי־שָׁמֶן (mippÿney-shamen, “because of fatness”) is then emended to read “from before Rimmon” (NAB, NRSV), “from before Samaria,” or “from before Jeshimon.” Although this line may present difficulties, it appears best to regard the line as a graphic depiction of God’s abundant blessings on his servant nation.
575 sn Verses 28-31 display a staccato style; the statements are short and disconnected (no conjunctions appear in the Hebrew text). The translation to follow strives for a choppy style that reflects the mood of the speech.
576 tn Heb “he,” that is, the Assyrians (as the preceding context suggests). Cf. NCV “The army of Assyria.”
sn Verses 28-32 describe an invasion of Judah from the north. There is no scholarly consensus on when this particular invasion took place, if at all. J. H. Hayes and S. A. Irvine (Isaiah, 209-10) suggest the text describes the Israelite-Syrian invasion of Judah (ca. 735
577 tn Heb “came against,” or “came to.”
578 tc The Hebrew text reads “Poor [is] Anathoth.” The parallelism is tighter if עֲנִיָּה (’aniyyah,“poor”) is emended to עֲנִיהָ (’aniha, “answer her”). Note how the preceding two lines have an imperative followed by a proper name.
579 tc The consonantal text (Kethib) has “a mountain of a house (בֵּית, bet), Zion,” but the marginal reading (Qere) correctly reads “the mountain of the daughter (בַּת, bat) of Zion.” On the phrase “Daughter Zion,” see the note on the same phrase in 1:8.
580 tc The Hebrew text reads “with terrifying power,” or “with a crash.” מַעֲרָצָה (ma’aratsah, “terrifying power” or “crash”) occurs only here. Several have suggested an emendation to מַעֲצָד (ma’atsad, “ax”) parallel to “ax” in v. 34; see HALOT 615 s.v. מַעֲצָד and H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:448.
sn As in vv. 12 (see the note there) and 18, the Assyrians are compared to a tree/forest in vv. 33-34.
581 tn Heb “the exalted of the height.” This could refer to the highest branches (cf. TEV) or the tallest trees (cf. NIV, NRSV).
582 tn The Hebrew text has, “and Lebanon, by/as [?] a mighty one, will fall.” The translation above takes the preposition בְּ (bet) prefixed to “mighty one” as indicating identity, “Lebanon, as a mighty one, will fall.” In this case “mighty one” describes Lebanon. (In Ezek 17:23 and Zech 11:2 the adjective is used of Lebanon’s cedars.) Another option is to take the preposition as indicating agency and interpret “mighty one” as a divine title (see Isa 33:21). One could then translate, “and Lebanon will fall by [the agency of] the Mighty One.”
583 sn The text mentions David’s father Jesse, instead of the great king himself. Perhaps this is done for rhetorical reasons to suggest that a new David, not just another disappointing Davidic descendant, will arise. Other prophets call the coming ideal Davidic king “David” or picture him as the second coming of David, as it were. See Jer 30:9; Ezek 34:23-24; 37:24-25; Hos 3:5; and Mic 5:2 (as well as the note there).
584 tc The Hebrew text has יִפְרֶה (yifreh, “will bear fruit,” from פָּרָה, parah), but the ancient versions, as well as the parallelism suggest that יִפְרַח (yifrakh, “will sprout”, from פָּרַח, parakh) is the better reading here. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:276, n. 2.
585 sn Like David (1 Sam 16:13), this king will be energized by the Lord’s spirit.
586 tn Heb “a spirit of wisdom and understanding.” The synonyms are joined here to emphasize the degree of wisdom he will possess. His wisdom will enable him to make just legal decisions (v. 3). A very similar phrase occurs in Eph 1:17.
587 tn Heb “a spirit of counsel [or “strategy”] and strength.” The construction is a hendiadys; the point is that he will have the strength/ability to execute the plans/strategies he devises. This ability will enable him to suppress oppressors and implement just policies (v. 4).
588 tn Heb “a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord.” “Knowledge” is used here in its covenantal sense and refers to a recognition of God’s authority and a willingness to submit to it. See Jer 22:16. “Fear” here refers to a healthy respect for God’s authority which produces obedience. Taken together the two terms emphasize the single quality of loyalty to the Lord. This loyalty guarantees that he will make just legal decisions and implement just policies (vv. 4-5).
589 tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “and his smelling is in the fear of the Lord.” In Amos 5:21 the Hiphil of רוּחַ (ruakh, “smell”) carries the nuance of “smell with delight, get pleasure from.” There the Lord declares that he does not “smell with delight” (i.e., get pleasure from) Israel’s religious assemblies, which probably stand by metonymy for the incense offered during these festivals. In Isa 11:3 there is no sacrificial context to suggest such a use, but it is possible that “the fear of the Lord” is likened to incense. This coming king will get the same kind of delight from obeying (fearing) the Lord, as a deity does in the incense offered by worshipers. Some regard such an explanation as strained in this context, and prefer to omit this line from the text as a virtual dittograph of the preceding statement.
590 tn Heb “by what appears to his eyes”; KJV “after the sight of his eyes”; NIV “by what he sees with his eyes.”
591 tn Heb “by what is heard by his ears”; NRSV “by what his ears hear.”
592 tn Heb “with justice” (so NAB) or “with righteousness” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
593 tn Heb “make decisions with rectitude”; cf. ASV, NRSV “and decide with equity.”
594 tn Or “land” (NAB, NCV, CEV). It is uncertain if the passage is picturing universal dominion or focusing on the king’s rule over his covenant people. The reference to God’s “holy mountain” in v. 9 and the description of renewed Israelite conquests in v. 14 suggest the latter, though v. 10 seems to refer to a universal kingdom (see 2:2-4).
595 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and he will strike the earth with the scepter of his mouth.” Some have suggested that in this context אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”) as an object of judgment seems too broad in scope. The parallelism is tighter if one emends the word to ץ(י)עָרִ (’arits, “potentate, tyrant”). The phrase “scepter of his mouth” refers to the royal (note “scepter”) decrees that he proclaims with his mouth. Because these decrees will have authority and power (see v. 2) behind them, they can be described as “striking” the tyrants down. Nevertheless, the MT reading may not need emending. Isaiah refers to the entire “earth” as the object of God’s judgment in several places without specifying the wicked as the object of the judgment (Isa 24:17-21; 26:9, 21; 28:22; cf. 13:11).
596 tn Heb “and by the breath of his lips he will kill the wicked.” The “breath of his lips” refers to his speech, specifically in this context his official decrees that the wicked oppressors be eliminated from his realm. See the preceding note.
597 tn Heb “Justice will be the belt [or “undergarment”] on his waist, integrity the belt [or “undergarment”] on his hips.” The point of the metaphor is uncertain. If a belt worn outside the robe is in view, then the point might be that justice/integrity will be readily visible or that these qualities will give support to his rule. If an undergarment is in view, then the idea might be that these characteristics support his rule or that they are basic to everything else.
598 tn The verb גּוּר (gur) normally refers to living as a dependent, resident alien in another society.
599 tc The Hebrew text reads, “and an ox, and a young lion, and a fatling together.” Since the preceding lines refer to two animals and include a verb, many emend וּמְרִיא (umÿri’, “and the fatling”) to an otherwise unattested verb יִמְרְאוּ (yimrÿ’u, “they will graze”); cf. NAB, TEV, CEV. One of the Qumran copies of Isaiah confirms this suggestion (1QIsaa). The present translation assumes this change.
600 tn Heb “and a cow and a bear will graze – together – they will lie down, their young.” This is a case of pivot pattern; יַחְדָּו (yakhddav, “together”) goes with both the preceding and following statements.
601 tn Heb “one sucking,” i.e., still being nursed by his mother.
602 tn Or perhaps, “cobra” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NCV); KJV, ASV, NRSV “asp.”
603 tc The Hebrew text has the otherwise unattested מְאוּרַת (mÿ’urat, “place of light”), i.e., opening of a hole. Some prefer to emend to מְעָרַת (mÿ’arat, “cave, den”).
604 tn Heb “one who is weaned” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).
605 sn The transformation of the animal kingdom depicted here typifies what will occur in human society under the just rule of the ideal king (see vv. 3-5). The categories “predator-prey” (i.e., oppressor-oppressed) will no longer exist.
606 tn Heb “in all my holy mountain.” In the most basic sense the Lord’s “holy mountain” is the mountain from which he rules over his kingdom (see Ezek 28:14, 16). More specifically it probably refers to Mount Zion/Jerusalem or to the entire land of Israel (see Pss 2:6; 15:1; 43:3; Isa 56:7; 57:13; Ezek 20:40; Ob 16; Zeph 3:11). If the Lord’s universal kingdom is in view in this context (see the note on “earth” at v. 4), then the phrase would probably be metonymic here, standing for God’s worldwide dominion (see the next line).
607 tn Heb “for the earth will be full of knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” The translation assumes that a universal kingdom is depicted here, but אֶרֶץ (’erets) could be translated “land” (see the note at v. 4). “Knowledge of the Lord” refers here to a recognition of the Lord’s sovereignty which results in a willingness to submit to his authority. See the note at v. 2.
608 tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
609 sn See the note at v. 1.
610 tn Heb “ a root from Jesse, which stands for a signal flag of the nations, of him nations will inquire” [or “seek”].
611 tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
612 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonai).
613 tc The Hebrew text reads, “the sovereign master will again, a second time, his hand.” The auxiliary verb יוֹסִיף (yosif), which literally means “add,” needs a main verb to complete it. Consequently many emend שֵׁנִית (shenit, “a second time”) to an infinitive. Some propose the form שַׁנֹּת (shannot, a Piel infinitive construct from שָׁנָה, shanah) and relate it semantically to an Arabic cognate meaning “to be high.” If the Hebrew text is retained a verb must be supplied. “Second time” would allude back to the events of the Exodus (see vv. 15-16).
614 tn Or “acquire”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV “recover.”
615 tn Heb “the remnant of his people who remain.”
616 sn Perhaps a reference to Upper (i.e., southern) Egypt (so NIV, NLT; NCV “South Egypt”).
617 tn Or “Ethiopia” (NAB, NRSV, NLT).
618 tn Or “Babylonia” (NIV, NCV, TEV, NLT).
619 tn Or perhaps, “the islands of the sea.”
620 tn Or “the banished of Israel,” i.e., the exiles.
621 tn Heb “turn aside”; KJV, NASB, NRSV “depart.”
622 tn Heb “hostile ones of Judah.” Elsewhere when the substantival participle of צָרָר (tsarar) takes a pronominal suffix or appears in a construct relationship, the following genitive is objective. (For a list of texts see BDB 865 s.v. III צָרַר) In this case the phrase “hostile ones of Judah” means “those who are hostile toward Judah,” i.e., Judah’s enemies. However, the parallel couplet that follows suggests that Judah’s hostility toward Ephraim is in view. In this case “hostile ones of Judah” means “hostile ones from Judah.” The translation above assumes the latter, giving the immediate context priority over general usage.
623 tn Heb “fly.” Ephraim/Judah are compared to a bird of prey.
624 tn Heb “on the shoulder of Philistia toward the sea.” This refers to the slopes of the hill country west of Judah. See HALOT 506 s.v. כָּתֵף.
625 tn Heb “Edom and Moab [will be the place of] the outstretching of their hand,” i.e., included in their area of jurisdiction (see HALOT 648 s.v. ח(וֹ)מִשְׁלֹ).
626 tn The verb is usually understood as “put under the ban, destroy,” or emended to חָרָב (kharav, “dry up”). However, HALOT 354 s.v. II חרם proposes a homonymic root meaning “divide.”
627 tn Heb “tongue” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).
628 sn That is, the Red Sea.
629 tn Heb “the river”; capitalized in some English versions (e.g., ASV, NASB, NRSV) as a reference to the Euphrates River.
630 tn Heb “with the [?] of his wind” [or “breath”]. The Hebrew term עַיָם (’ayam) occurs only here. Some attempt to relate the word to an Arabic root and translate, “scorching [or “hot”] wind.” This interpretation fits especially well if one reads “dry up” in the previous line. Others prefer to emend the form to עֹצֶם (’otsem, “strong”). See HALOT 817 s.v. עֲצַם.
631 tn Heb “seven streams.” The Hebrew term נַחַל (nakhal, “stream”) refers to a wadi, or seasonal stream, which runs during the rainy season, but is otherwise dry. The context (see v. 15b) here favors the translation, “dried up streams.” The number seven suggests totality and completeness. Here it indicates that God’s provision for escape will be thorough and more than capable of accommodating the returning exiles.
632 tn Heb “and there will be a highway for the remnant of his people who remain, from Assyria.”
633 tn Heb “in the day” (so KJV).
634 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
635 tn Or “salvation” (KJV, NIV, NRSV).
636 tn The words “in him” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
637 tc The Hebrew text has, “for my strength and protection [is] the Lord, the Lord (Heb “Yah, Yahweh).” The word יְהוָה (yehvah) is probably dittographic or explanatory here (note that the short form of the name [יָהּ, yah] precedes, and that the graphically similar וַיְהִי [vayÿhi] follows). Exod 15:2, the passage from which the words of v. 2b are taken, has only יָהּ. The word זִמְרָת (zimrat) is traditionally understood as meaning “song,” in which case one might translate, “for the Lord gives me strength and joy” (i.e., a reason to sing); note that in v. 5 the verb זָמַר (zamar, “sing”) appears. Many recent commentators, however, have argued that the noun is here instead a homonym, meaning “protection” or “strength.” See HALOT 274 s.v. III *זמר.
638 tn Or “salvation” (so many English versions, e.g., KJV, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “my savior.”
639 tn Or “salvation” (so many English versions, e.g., KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); CEV “victory.”
sn Water is here a metaphor for renewed life; the springs symbolize the restoration of God’s favor.
640 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
641 tn Heb “call in his name,” i.e., “invoke his name.”
642 tn Heb “bring to remembrance that his name is exalted.” The Lord’s “name” stands here for his character and reputation.
643 tc The translation follows the marginal reading (Qere), which is a Hophal participle from יָדַע (yada’), understood here in a gerundive sense.
644 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
645 tn Or “is great” (TEV). However, the context emphasizes his mighty acts of deliverance (cf. NCV), not some general or vague character quality.
646 sn Isa 13-23 contains a series of judgment oracles against various nations. It is likely that Israel, not the nations mentioned, actually heard these oracles. The oracles probably had a twofold purpose. For those leaders who insisted on getting embroiled in international politics, these oracles were a reminder that Judah need not fear foreign nations or seek international alliances for security reasons. For the righteous remnant within the nation, these oracles were a reminder that Israel’s God was indeed the sovereign ruler of the earth, worthy of his people’s trust.
647 tn Heb “The message [traditionally, “burden”] [about] Babylon which Isaiah son of Amoz saw.”
648 sn The Lord is speaking here (see v. 3).
649 tn Heb “my consecrated ones,” i.e., those who have been set apart by God for the special task of carrying out his judgment.
650 tn Heb “my warriors with respect to my anger.”
651 tn Heb “the boasting ones of my pride”; cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV “my proudly exulting ones.”
652 sn In vv. 4-10 the prophet appears to be speaking, since the Lord is referred to in the third person. However, since the Lord refers to himself in the third person later in this chapter (see v. 13), it is possible that he speaks throughout the chapter.
653 tn Heb “a sound, a roar [is] on the mountains, like many people.”
654 tn Heb “a sound, tumult of kingdoms.”
655 tn Heb “from the end of the sky.”
656 tn Or “anger”; cf. KJV, ASV “the weapons of his indignation.”
657 tn Or perhaps, “land” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NLT). Even though the heading and subsequent context (see v. 17) indicate Babylon’s judgment is in view, the chapter has a cosmic flavor that suggests that the coming judgment is universal in scope. Perhaps Babylon’s downfall occurs in conjunction with a wider judgment, or the cosmic style is poetic hyperbole used to emphasize the magnitude and importance of the coming event.
658 tn Heb “the day of the Lord” (so KJV, NAB).
659 tn Heb “like destruction from the sovereign judge it comes.” The comparative preposition (כְּ, kÿ) has here the rhetorical nuance, “in every way like.” The point is that the destruction unleashed will have all the earmarks of divine judgment. One could paraphrase, “it comes as only destructive divine judgment can.” On this use of the preposition in general, see GKC 376 §118.x.
sn The divine name used here is שַׁדַּי (shaddai, “Shaddai”). Shaddai (or El Shaddai) is the sovereign king/judge of the world who grants life/blesses and kills/judges. In Genesis he blesses the patriarchs with fertility and promises numerous descendants. Outside Genesis he both blesses/protects and takes away life/happiness. The patriarchs knew God primarily as El Shaddai (Exod 6:3). While the origin and meaning of this name is uncertain (see discussion below) its significance is clear. The name is used in contexts where God appears as the source of fertility and life. In Gen 17:1-8 he appears to Abram, introduces himself as El Shaddai, and announces his intention to make the patriarch fruitful. In the role of El Shaddai God repeats these words (now elevated to the status of a decree) to Jacob (35:11). Earlier Isaac had pronounced a blessing upon Jacob in which he asked El Shaddai to make Jacob fruitful (28:3). Jacob later prays that his sons will be treated with mercy when they return to Egypt with Benjamin (43:14). The fertility theme is not as apparent here, though one must remember that Jacob viewed Benjamin as the sole remaining son of the favored and once-barren Rachel (cf. 29:31; 30:22-24; 35:16-18). It is quite natural that he would appeal to El Shaddai to preserve Benjamin’s life, for it was El Shaddai’s miraculous power which made it possible for Rachel to give him sons in the first place. In 48:3 Jacob, prior to blessing Joseph’s sons, tells him how El Shaddai appeared to him at Bethel (cf. chapter 28) and promised to make him fruitful. When blessing Joseph on his deathbed Jacob refers to Shaddai (we should probably read “El Shaddai,” along with a few Hebrew
660 tn Heb “drop”; KJV “be faint”; ASV “be feeble”; NAB “fall helpless.”
661 tn Heb “melts” (so NAB).
662 tn Heb “their faces are faces of flames.” Their faces are flushed with fear and embarrassment.
663 tn Heb “the day of the Lord.”
664 tn Heb “[with] cruelty, and fury, and rage of anger.” Three synonyms for “anger” are piled up at the end of the line to emphasize the extraordinary degree of divine anger that will be exhibited in this judgment.
665 tn Heb “making desolate.”
666 tn Or “land” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NLT).
667 tn Heb “do not flash forth their light.”
668 tn Heb “does not shed forth its light.”
669 sn The Lord is definitely speaking (again?) at this point. See the note at v. 4.
670 tn Or “I will bring disaster on the world.” Hebrew רָעָה (ra’ah) could refer to the judgment (i.e., disaster, calamity) or to the evil that prompts it. The structure of the parallel line favors the latter interpretation.
671 tn Or perhaps, “the violent”; cf. NASB, NIV “the ruthless.”
672 tn The verb is supplied in the translation from the first line. The verb in the first line (“I will make scarce”) does double duty in the parallel structure of the verse.
673 tn Or “the sky.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
674 tn Heb “from its place” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NCV).
675 tn Heb “and in the day of the raging of his anger.”
676 tn Or “like a gazelle being chased.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
677 tn Heb “his people” (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV) or “his nation” (cf. TEV “their own countries”).
678 tn Heb “carried off,” i.e., grabbed from the fleeing crowd. See HALOT 764 s.v. ספה.
679 tn Heb “will fall” (so KJV, NIV, NRSV); NLT “will be run through with a sword.”
680 tn Heb “against them”; NLT “against Babylon.”
681 sn They cannot be bought off, for they have a lust for bloodshed.
682 tn Heb “and bows cut to bits young men.” “Bows” stands by metonymy for arrows.
683 tn Heb “the fruit of the womb.”
684 tn Heb “their eye does not.” Here “eye” is a metonymy for the whole person.
685 tn Or “most beautiful” (NCV, TEV).
686 tn Heb “the beauty of the pride of the Chaldeans.”
sn The Chaldeans were a group of tribes who lived in southern Mesopotamia. The established the so-called neo-Babylonian empire in the late seventh century
687 tn Heb “and Babylon…will be like the overthrow by God of Sodom and Gomorrah.” On מַהְפֵּכַת (mahpekhat, “overthrow”) see the note on the word “destruction” in 1:7.
688 tn Heb “she will not be inhabited forever, and she will not be dwelt in to generation and generation (i.e., forever).” The Lord declares that Babylon, personified as a woman, will not be inhabited. In other words, her people will be destroyed and the Chaldean empire will come to a permanent end.
689 tn Or “Arab” (NAB, NASB, NIV); cf. CEV, NLT “nomads.”
690 tn יַהֵל (yahel) is probably a corrupted form of יֶאֱהַל (ye’ehal). See GKC 186 §68.k.
691 tn The words “their flocks” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The Hebrew text does not supply the object here, but see Jer 33:12.
692 tn The word “ruined” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
693 tn The precise referent of this word in uncertain. See HALOT 29 s.v. *אֹחַ. Various English versions translate as “owls” (e.g., NAB, NASB), “wild dogs” (NCV); “jackals” (NIV); “howling creatures” (NRSV, NLT).
694 tn Heb “will skip there.”
695 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “wild dogs will yip among his widows, and jackals in the palaces of pleasure.” The verb “yip” is supplied in the second line; it does double duty in the parallel structure. “His widows” makes little sense in this context; many emend the form (אַלְמנוֹתָיו, ’almnotayv) to the graphically similar אַרְמְנוֹתֶיהָ (’armÿnoteha, “her fortresses”), a reading that is assumed in the present translation. The use of “widows” may represent an intentional wordplay on “fortresses,” indicating that the fortresses are like dejected widows (J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:308, n. 1).
696 tn Heb “near to come is her time.”
697 sn When was the prophecy of Babylon’s fall fulfilled? Some argue that the prophecy was fulfilled in 689
698 tn The sentence begins with כִּי (ki), which is understood as asseverative (“certainly”) in the translation. Another option is to translate, “For the Lord will have compassion.” In this case one of the reasons for Babylon’s coming demise (13:22b) is the Lord’s desire to restore his people.
699 tn The words “as his special people” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
700 tn Or “settle” (NASB, NIV, NCV, NLT).
701 tn Heb “house.”
702 tn Heb “and the house of Jacob will take possession of them [i.e., the nations], on the land of the Lord, as male servants and female servants.”
703 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
704 tn Heb “you will lift up this taunt over the king of Babylon, saying.”
705 tc The word in the Hebrew text (מַדְהֵבָה, madhevah) is unattested elsewhere and of uncertain meaning. Many (following the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa) assume a dalet-resh (ד-ר) confusion and emend the form to מַרְהֵבָה (marhevah, “onslaught”). See HALOT 548 s.v. II *מִדָּה and HALOT 633 s.v. *מַרְהֵבָה.
706 tn Or perhaps, “he” (cf. KJV; NCV “the king of Babylon”). The present translation understands the referent of the pronoun (“it”) to be the “club/scepter” of the preceding line.
707 tn Heb “it was striking down nations in fury [with] a blow without ceasing.” The participle (“striking down”) suggests repeated or continuous action in past time.
708 tn Heb “it was ruling in anger nations [with] oppression without restraint.” The participle (“ruling”) suggests repeated or continuous action in past time.
709 tn Heb “concerning you.”
710 tn The word “singing” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. Note that the personified trees speak in the second half of the verse.
711 tn Heb “lay down” (in death); cf. NAB “laid to rest.”
712 tn Heb “the [wood]cutter does not come up against us.”
713 sn Sheol is the proper name of the subterranean world which was regarded as the land of the dead.
714 tn Heb “arousing.” The form is probably a Polel infinitive absolute, rather than a third masculine singular perfect, for Sheol is grammatically feminine (note “stirred up”). See GKC 466 §145.t.
715 tn Heb “all the rams of the earth.” The animal epithet is used metaphorically here for leaders. See HALOT 903 s.v. *עַתּוּד.
716 tn Heb “lifting from their thrones all the kings of the nations.” הֵקִים (heqim, a Hiphil perfect third masculine singular) should be emended to an infinitive absolute (הָקֵים, haqem). See the note on “rouses” earlier in the verse.
717 tn Or “pride” (NCV, CEV); KJV, NIV, NRSV “pomp.”
718 tn Or “harps” (NAB, NIV, NRSV).
719 tn Heb “under you maggots are spread out, and worms are your cover.”
720 tn The Hebrew text has הֵילֵל בֶּן־שָׁחַר (helel ben-shakhar, “Helel son of Shachar”), which is probably a name for the morning star (Venus) or the crescent moon. See HALOT 245 s.v. הֵילֵל.
sn What is the background for the imagery in vv. 12-15? This whole section (vv. 4b-21) is directed to the king of Babylon, who is clearly depicted as a human ruler. Other kings of the earth address him in vv. 9ff., he is called “the man” in v. 16, and, according to vv. 19-20, he possesses a physical body. Nevertheless the language of vv. 12-15 has led some to see a dual referent in the taunt song. These verses, which appear to be spoken by other pagan kings to a pagan king (cf. vv. 9-11), contain several titles and motifs that resemble those of Canaanite mythology, including references to Helel son of Shachar, the stars of El, the mountain of assembly, the recesses of Zaphon, and the divine title Most High. Apparently these verses allude to a mythological story about a minor god (Helel son of Shachar) who tried to take over Zaphon, the mountain of the gods. His attempted coup failed and he was hurled down to the underworld. The king of Babylon is taunted for having similar unrealized delusions of grandeur. Some Christians have seen an allusion to the fall of Satan here, but this seems contextually unwarranted (see J. Martin, “Isaiah,” BKCOT, 1061).
721 tn Some understand the verb to from חָלַשׁ (khalash, “to weaken”), but HALOT 324 s.v. II חלשׁ proposes a homonym here, meaning “to defeat.”
722 sn In this line the taunting kings hint at the literal identity of the king, after likening him to the god Helel and a tree. The verb גָדַע (gada’, “cut down”) is used of chopping down trees in 9:10 and 10:33.
723 tn Heb “you, you said in your heart.”
724 sn In Canaanite mythology the stars of El were astral deities under the authority of the high god El.
725 sn Zaphon, the Canaanite version of Olympus, was the “mountain of assembly” where the gods met.
726 tn Heb “the high places.” This word often refers to the high places where pagan worship was conducted, but here it probably refers to the “backs” or tops of the clouds. See HALOT 136 s.v. בָּמָה.
727 sn Normally in the OT the title “Most High” belongs to the God of Israel, but in this context, where the mythological overtones are so strong, it probably refers to the Canaanite high god El.
728 tn The prefixed verb form is taken as a preterite. Note the use of perfects in v. 12 to describe the king’s downfall.
729 tn The Hebrew term בּוּר (bor, “cistern”) is sometimes used metaphorically to refer to the place of the dead or the entrance to the underworld.
730 tn The word “thinking” is supplied in the translation in order to make it clear that the next line records their thoughts as they gaze at him.
731 tc The pronominal suffix is masculine, even though its antecedent appears to be the grammatically feminine noun “world.” Some have suggested that the form עָרָיו (’arayv, plural noun with third masculine singular suffix) should be emended to עָרֶיהָ (’areha, plural noun with third feminine singular suffix). This emendation may be unnecessary in light of other examples of lack of agreement a suffix and its antecedent noun.
732 tn Heb “and his prisoners did not let loose to [their] homes.” This really means, “he did not let loose his prisoners and send them back to their homes.’ On the elliptical style, see GKC 366 §117.o.
733 sn It is unclear where the quotation of the kings, begun in v. 10b, ends. However, the reference to the “kings of the nations” in v. 18 (see also v. 9) seems to indicate that the quotation has ended at this point and that Israel’s direct taunt (cf. vv. 4b-10a) has resumed. In fact the references to the “kings of the nations” may form a stylistic inclusio or frame around the quotation.
734 tc The phrase “all of them” does not appear in the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa.
735 sn This refers to the typically extravagant burial of kings.
736 tn Heb “house” (so KJV, ASV), but in this context a tomb is in view. Note the verb “lie down” in the preceding line and the reference to a “grave” in the next line.
737 tn Heb “like a shoot that is abhorred.” The simile seems a bit odd; apparently it refers to a small shoot that is trimmed from a plant and tossed away. Some prefer to emend נֵצֶר (netser, “shoot”); some propose נֵפֶל (nefel, “miscarriage”). In this case one might paraphrase: “like a horrible-looking fetus that is delivered when a woman miscarries.”
738 tn Heb “are clothed with.”
739 tn Heb “those going down to.”
740 tn בּוֹר (bor) literally means “cistern”; cisterns were constructed from stones. On the metaphorical use of “cistern” for the underworld, see the note at v. 15.
741 tn Heb “like a trampled corpse.” Some take this line with what follows.
742 tn Heb “you will not be united with them in burial” (so NASB).
743 tn Or “the place of slaughter for.”
744 tn Heb “for the sin of their fathers.”
745 sn J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:320, n. 10) suggests that the garrison cities of the mighty empire are in view here.
746 tn Heb “I will cut off from Babylon name and remnant” (ASV, NAB, and NRSV all similar).
747 tn Heb “descendant and child.”
748 tn Heb “I will make her into a possession of wild animals.” It is uncertain what type of animal קִפֹּד (qippod) refers to. Some suggest a rodent (cf. NASB, NRSV “hedgehog”), others an owl (cf, NAB, NIV, TEV).
749 tn Heb “I will sweep her away with the broom of destruction.”
750 sn Having announced the downfall of the Chaldean empire, the Lord appends to this prophecy a solemn reminder that the Assyrians, the major Mesopotamian power of Isaiah’s day, would be annihilated, foreshadowing what would subsequently happen to Babylon and the other hostile nations.
751 tn Heb “to break Assyria.”
752 tn Heb “him.” This is a collective singular referring to the nation, or a reference to the king of Assyria who by metonymy stands for the entire nation.
753 tn Heb “and his [i.e., Assyria’s] yoke will be removed from them [the people?], and his [Assyria’s] burden from his [the nation’s?] shoulder will be removed.” There are no antecedents in this oracle for the suffixes in the phrases “from them” and “from his shoulder.” Since the Lord’s land and hills are referred to in the preceding line and the statement seems to echo 10:27, it is likely that God’s people are the referents of the suffixes; the translation uses “my people” to indicate this.
754 tn Heb “and this is the hand that is outstretched over all the nations.”
755 tn Or “For” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
756 tn Heb “His hand is outstretched and who will turn it back?”
757 sn Perhaps 715
758 tn Heb “this oracle came.”
759 sn The identity of this “club” (also referred to as a “serpent” in the next line) is uncertain. It may refer to an Assyrian king, or to Ahaz. For discussion see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:331-32. The viper/adder referred to in the second half of the verse is his successor.
760 tn Heb “flying burning one.” The designation “burning one” may allude to the serpent’s appearance or the effect of its poisonous bite. (See the note at 6:2.) The qualifier “flying” probably refers to the serpent’s quick, darting movements, though one might propose a homonym here, meaning “biting.” (See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:332, n. 18.) Some might think in terms of a mythological flying, fire breathing dragon (cf. NAB “a flying saraph”; CEV “a flying fiery dragon”), but this proposal does not make good sense in 30:6, where the phrase “flying burning one” appears again in a list of desert animals.
761 tc The Hebrew text has, “the firstborn of the poor will graze.” “Firstborn” may be used here in an idiomatic sense to indicate the very poorest of the poor. See BDB 114 s.v. בְּכוֹר. The translation above assumes an emendation of בְּכוֹרֵי (bÿkhorey, “firstborn of”) to בְּכָרַי (bekharay, “in my pastures”).
762 tn Heb “your remnant” (so NAB, NRSV).
763 tn Or “despair” (see HALOT 555 s.v. מוג). The form נָמוֹג (namog) should be taken here as an infinitive absolute functioning as an imperative. See GKC 199-200 §72.v.
764 tn Heb “and there is no one going alone in his appointed places.” The meaning of this line is uncertain. בּוֹדֵד (boded) appears to be a participle from בָּדַד (badad, “be separate”; see BDB 94 s.v. בָּדַד). מוֹעָד (mo’ad) may mean “assembly” or, by extension, “multitude” (see HALOT 558 s.v. *מוֹעָד), but the referent of the third masculine pronominal suffix attached to the noun is unclear. It probably refers to the “nation” mentioned in the next line.
765 sn The question forces the Philistines to consider the dilemma they will face – surrender and oppression, or battle and death.
766 tn Heb “house.”
767 tn Heb “even Dibon [to] the high places to weep.” The verb “went up” does double duty in the parallel structure.
768 tn Heb “over [or “for”] Nebo and over [or “for”] Medeba.”
769 sn Shaving the head and beard were outward signs of mourning and grief.
770 tn The words “the people of” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
771 tc The Hebrew text has, “For this reason the soldiers of Moab shout, his inner being quivers for him.” To achieve tighter parallelism, some emend the first line, changing חֲלֻצֵי (khalutse, “soldiers”) to חַלְצֵי (khaltse, “loins”) and יָרִיעוּ (yari’u, “they shout,” from רוּעַ, rua’) to יָרְעוּ (yor’u, “they quiver”), a verb from יָרַע (yara’), which also appears in the next line. One can then translate v. 4b as “For this reason the insides of the Moabites quiver, their whole body shakes” (cf. NAB, NRSV).
772 tn Heb “for Moab.” For rhetorical purposes the speaker (the Lord?, see v. 9) plays the role of a mourner.
773 tn The vocalization of the Hebrew text suggests “the bars of her gates,” but the form should be repointed to yield, “her fugitives.” See HALOT 156-57 s.v. בָּרִחַ, and BDB 138 s.v. בָּרִיהַ.
774 tn The words “are stretched out” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
775 tn Heb “For the ascent of Luhith, with weeping they go up it; for [on] the road to Horonaim an outcry over shattering they raise up.”
776 tn Heb “are waste places”; cf. NRSV “are a desolation.”
777 tn Heb “to Eglaim [is] her wailing, and [to] Beer Elim [is] her wailing.”
778 tc The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa reads “Dibon” instead of “Dimon” in this verse.
779 tn Heb “Indeed I will place on Dimon added things.” Apparently the Lord is speaking.
780 tn The words “will attack” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
781 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “Send [a plural imperatival form is used] a ram [to] the ruler of the land.” The term כַּר (kar, “ram”) should be emended to the plural כָּרִים (karim). The singular form in the text is probably the result of haplography; note that the next word begins with a mem (מ).
782 tn The Hebrew text has “toward [across?] the desert.”
783 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
784 tn Heb “like a bird fleeing, thrust away [from] a nest, the daughters of Moab are [at] the fords of Arnon.”
785 sn It is unclear who is being addressed in this verse. Perhaps the prophet, playing the role of a panic stricken Moabite refugee, requests the leaders of Judah (the imperatives are plural) to take pity on the fugitives.
786 tn Heb “Make your shade like night in the midst of noonday.” “Shade” here symbolizes shelter, while the heat of noonday represents the intense suffering of the Moabites. By comparing the desired shade to night, the speaker visualizes a huge dark shadow cast by a large tree that would provide relief from the sun’s heat.
787 tn Heb “disclose, uncover.”
788 tn That is, “live as resident foreigners.”
789 tn Heb “Be a hiding place for them.”
790 tn The present translation understands כִּי (ki) as asseverative, but one could take it as explanatory (“for,” KJV, NASB) or temporal (“when,” NAB, NRSV). In the latter case, v. 4b would be logically connected to v. 5.
791 tn A perfect verbal form is used here and in the next two lines for rhetorical effect; the demise of the oppressor(s) is described as if it had already occurred.
792 tc The Hebrew text has, “they will be finished, the one who tramples, from the earth.” The plural verb form תַּמּוּ, (tammu, “disappear”) could be emended to agree with the singular subject רֹמֵס (romes, “the one who tramples”) or the participle can be emended to a plural (רֹמֵסִם, romesim) to agree with the verb. The translation assumes the latter. Haplography of mem (ם) seems likely; note that the word after רֹמֵס begins with a mem.
793 tn Heb “and a throne will be established in faithfulness, and he will sit on it in reliability, in the tent of David.”
794 tn Heb “one who judges and seeks justice, and one experienced in fairness.” Many understand מְהִר (mÿhir) to mean “quick, prompt” (see BDB 555 s.v. מָהִיר), but HALOT 552 s.v. מָהִיר offers the meaning “skillful, experienced,” and translates the phrase in v. 5 “zealous for what is right.”
795 tn עֶבְרָה (’evrah) often means “anger, fury,” but here it appears to refer to boastful outbursts or excessive claims. See HALOT 782 s.v. עֶבְרָה.
796 tn Heb “not so his boasting.”
797 tn Heb “So Moab wails for Moab.”
798 tn The Hebrew text has, “for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth you [masculine plural] moan, surely destroyed.” The “raisin cakes” could have cultic significance (see Hos 3:1), but the next verse focuses on agricultural disaster, so here the raisin cakes are mentioned as an example of the fine foods that are no longer available (see 2 Sam 6:19; Song 2:5) because the vines have been destroyed by the invader (see v. 8). Some prefer to take אֲשִׁישֵׁי (’ashishe, “raisin cakes of”) as “men of” (see HALOT 95 s.v. *אָשִׁישׁ; cf. NIV). The verb form תֶהְגּוּ (tehgu, “you moan”) is probably the result of dittography (note that the preceding word ends in tav [ת]) and should be emended to הגו (a perfect, third plural form), “they moan.”
799 tn Heb “So I weep with the weeping of Jazer.” Once more the speaker (the Lord? – see v. 10b) plays the role of a mourner (see 15:5).
800 tc The form אֲרַיָּוֶךְ (’arayyavekh) should be emended to אֲרַוָּיֶךְ (’aravvayekh; the vav [ו] and yod [י] have been accidentally transposed) from רָוָה (ravah, “be saturated”).
801 tn Heb “for over your fruit and over your harvest shouting has fallen.” The translation assumes that the shouting is that of the conqueror (Jer 51:14). Another possibility is that the shouting is that of the harvesters (see v. 10b, as well as Jer 25:30), in which case one might translate, “for the joyful shouting over the fruit and crops has fallen silent.”
802 tn Heb “wine in the vats the treader does not tread.”
803 sn The Lord appears to be the speaker here. See 15:9.
804 tn Heb “so my intestines sigh for Moab like a harp.” The word מֵעַי (me’ay, “intestines”) is used here of the seat of the emotions. English idiom requires the word “heart.” The point of the comparison to a harp is not entirely clear. Perhaps his sighs of mourning resemble a harp in sound, or his constant sighing is like the repetitive strumming of a harp.
805 tn The verb is supplied in the translation; “sighs” in the preceding line does double duty in the parallel structure.
806 tn Heb “Kir Heres” (so ASV, NRSV, TEV, CEV), a variant name for “Kir Hareseth” (see v. 7).
807 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
808 tn Heb “when he appears, when he grows tired, Moab on the high places, and enters his temple to pray, he will not prevail.” It is possible that “when he grows tired” is an explanatory gloss for the preceding “when he appears.”
809 tn Heb “in three years, like the years of a hired worker.” The three years must be reckoned exactly, just as a hired worker would carefully keep track of the time he had agreed to work for an employer in exchange for a predetermined wage.
810 tn Heb “and the splendor of Moab will be disgraced with all the great multitude, and a small little remnant will not be strong.”
811 tn Three cities are known by this name in the OT: (1) an Aroer located near the Arnon, (2) an Aroer in Ammon, and (3) an Aroer of Judah. (See BDB 792-93 s.v. עֲרֹעֵר, and HALOT 883 s.v. II עֲרוֹעֵר.) There is no mention of an Aroer in Syrian territory. For this reason some want to emend the text here to עֲזֻבוֹת עָרַיהָ עֲדֵי עַד (’azuvot ’arayha ’adey ’ad, “her cities are permanently abandoned”). However, Aroer near the Arnon was taken by Israel and later conquered by the Syrians. (See Josh 12:2; 13:9, 16; Judg 11:26; 2 Kgs 10:33). This oracle pertains to Israel as well as Syria (note v. 3), so it is possible that this is a reference to Israelite and/or Syrian losses in Transjordan.
812 tn Heb “and they lie down and there is no one scaring [them].”
813 tn Heb “and kingship from Damascus”; cf. NASB “And sovereignty from Damascus.”
814 tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
815 tn Heb “will be tiny.”
816 tn Heb “and the fatness of his flesh will be made lean.”
817 tn Heb “in that day” (so ASV, NASB, NIV); KJV “At that day.”
818 tn Heb “man will gaze toward his maker.”
819 tn Heb “his eyes will look toward.”
820 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
821 tn Heb “he will not gaze toward.”
822 tn Heb “and that which his fingers made he will not see, the Asherah poles and the incense altars.”
823 tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV).
824 tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “like the abandonment of the wooded height and the top one.” The following relative clause appears to allude back to the Israelite conquest of the land, so it seems preferable to emend הַחֹרֶשׁ וְהָאָמִיר (hakhoresh vÿha’amir, “the wooded height and the top one”) to חֹרֵשֵׁי הָאֱמֹרִי (khoreshe ha’emori, “[like the abandonment] of the wooded heights of the Amorites”).
825 tn Heb “you have forgotten” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV).
826 tn Heb “and the rocky cliff of your strength you do not remember.”
827 tn Heb “a vine, a strange one.” The substantival adjective זָר (zar) functions here as an appositional genitive. It could refer to a cultic plant of some type, associated with a pagan rite. But it is more likely that it refers to an exotic, or imported, type of vine, one that is foreign (i.e., “strange”) to Israel.
828 tn Heb “in the day of your planting you [?].” The precise meaning of the verb תְּשַׂגְשֵׂגִי (tÿsagsegi) is unclear. It is sometimes derived from שׂוּג/סוּג (sug, “to fence in”; see BDB 691 s.v. II סוּג). In this case one could translate “you build a protective fence.” However, the parallelism is tighter if one derives the form from שָׂגָא/שָׂגָה (saga’/sagah, “to grow”); see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:351, n. 4. For this verb, see BDB 960 s.v. שָׂגָא.
829 tc The Hebrew text has, “a heap of harvest.” However, better sense is achieved if נֵד (ned, “heap”) is emended to a verb. Options include נַד (nad, Qal perfect third masculine singular from נָדַד [nadad, “flee, depart”]), נָדַד (Qal perfect third masculine singular from נָדַד), נֹדֵד (noded, Qal active participle from נָדַד), and נָד (nad, Qal perfect third masculine singular, or participle masculine singular, from נוּד [nud, “wander, flutter”]). See BDB 626 s.v. נוּד and HALOT 672 s.v. I נדד. One could translate literally: “[the harvest] departs,” or “[the harvest] flies away.”
830 tn Heb “Woe [to] the massing of the many nations.” The word הוֹי (hoy) could be translated as a simple interjection here (“ah!”), but since the following verses announce the demise of these nations, it is preferable to take הוֹי as a funeral cry. See the note on the first phrase of 1:4.
831 tn Heb “like the loud noise of the seas, they make a loud noise.”
832 tn Heb “the uproar of the peoples.” The term הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) does double duty in the parallel structure of the verse; the words “are as good as dead” are supplied in the translation to reflect this.
833 tn Heb “like the uproar of mighty waters they are in an uproar.”
834 tn Heb “the peoples are in an uproar like the uproar of mighty waters.”
835 tn Or “rebukes.” The verb and related noun are used in theophanies of God’s battle cry which terrifies his enemies. See, for example, Pss 18:15; 76:7; 106:9; Isa 50:2; Nah 1:4, and A. Caquot, TDOT 3:49-53.
836 tn Or perhaps “tumbleweed” (NAB, NIV, CEV); KJV “like a rolling thing.”
837 tn Heb “at the time of evening, look, sudden terror.”
838 tn Heb “before morning he is not.”
839 tn Heb “this is the portion of those who plunder us, and the lot of those who loot us.”
840 tn Heb “Woe [to] the land of buzzing wings.” On הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) see the note on the first phrase of 1:4.
sn The significance of the qualifying phrase “buzzing wings” is uncertain. Some suggest that the designation points to Cush as a land with many insects. Another possibility is that it refers to the swiftness with which this land’s messengers travel (v. 2a); they move over the sea as swiftly as an insect flies through the air. For a discussion of the options, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:359-60.
841 tn The precise meaning of the qualifying terms is uncertain. מְמֻשָּׁךְ (mÿmushakh) appears to be a Pual participle from the verb מָשַׁךְ (mashakh, “to draw, extend”). Lexicographers theorize that it here refers to people who “stretch out,” as it were, or are tall. See BDB 604 s.v. מָשַׁךְ, and HALOT 645-46 s.v. משׁךְ. מוֹרָט (morat) is taken as a Pual participle from מָרַט (marat), which can mean “to pull out [hair],” in the Qal, “become bald” in the Niphal, and “be wiped clean” in the Pual. Lexicographers theorize that the word here refers to people with bare, or smooth, skin. See BDB 598-99 s.v. מָרַט, and HALOT 634-35 s.v. מרט. These proposed meanings, which are based on etymological speculation, must be regarded as tentative.
842 tn Heb “from it and onwards.” HALOT 245 s.v. הָלְאָה suggests the translation “far and wide.”
843 tn Once more the precise meaning of the qualifying terms is uncertain. The expression קַו־קָו (qav-qav) is sometimes related to a proposed Arabic cognate and taken to mean “strength” (see BDB 876 II קַו). Others, on the basis of Isa 28:10, 13, understand the form as gibberish (literally, “kav, kav”) and take it to be a reference to this nation’s strange, unknown language. The form מְבוּסָה (mÿvusah) appears to be derived from בּוּס (bus, “to trample”), so lexicographers suggest the meaning “trampling” or “subjugation,” i.e., a nation that subdues others. See BDB 101 s.v. בּוּס and HALOT 541 s.v. מְבוּסָה. These proposals, which are based on etymological speculation, must be regarded as tentative.
844 tn The precise meaning of the verb בָּזָא (baza’), which occurs only in this oracle (see also v. 7) in the OT, is uncertain. BDB 102 s.v. suggests “divide” on the basis of alleged Aramaic and Arabic cognates; HALOT 117 s.v., citing an alleged Arabic cognate, suggests “wash away.”
845 tn Or “be quiet, inactive”; NIV “will remain quiet.”
846 tn Heb “like the glowing heat because of light.” The precise meaning of the line is uncertain.
847 tn Heb “a cloud of dew,” or “a cloud of light rain.”
848 tc Some medieval Hebrew
849 sn It is unclear how the comparisons in v. 4b relate to the preceding statement. How is waiting and watching similar to heat or a cloud? For a discussion of interpretive options, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:362.
850 tn Heb “and the unripe, ripening fruit is maturing.”
851 tn On the meaning of זַלְזַל (zalzal, “shoot [of the vine] without fruit buds”) see HALOT 272 s.v. *זַלְזַל.
852 tn Heb “the tendrils he will remove, he will cut off.”
853 tn Heb “they will be left together” (so NASB).
854 tn Heb “the beasts of the earth” (so KJV, NASB).
855 tn On the interpretive difficulties of this verse, see the notes at v. 2, where the same terminology is used.
856 tn The words “the tribute” are repeated here in the translation for clarity.
857 tn Heb “to the place of the name of the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts], Mount Zion.”
858 tn Heb “and the heart of Egypt melts within it.”
859 tn Heb I will provoke Egypt against Egypt” (NAB similar).
860 tn Heb “and they will fight, a man against his brother, and a man against his neighbor, city against city, kingdom against kingdom.” Civil strife will extend all the way from the domestic level to the provincial arena.
861 tn Heb “and the spirit of Egypt will be laid waste in its midst.”
862 tn The verb בָּלַע (bala’, “confuse”) is a homonym of the more common בָּלַע (bala’, “swallow”); see HALOT 135 s.v. I בלע.
863 tn Heb “they will inquire of the idols and of the spirits of the dead and of the ritual pits and of the magicians.” Hebrew אוֹב (’ov, “ritual pit”) refers to a pit used by a magician to conjure up underworld spirits. See the note on “incantations” in 8:19.
864 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
865 tn Heb “will dry up and be dry.” Two synonyms are joined for emphasis.
866 tn Heb “rivers” (so KJV, ASV); NAB, CEV “streams”; TEV “channels.”
867 tn The verb form appears as a Hiphil in the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa; the form in MT may be a so-called “mixed form,” reflecting the Hebrew Hiphil stem and the functionally corresponding Aramaic Aphel stem. See HALOT 276 s.v. I זנח.
868 tn Heb “the plants by the river, by the mouth of the river.”
869 tn Heb “will dry up, [being] scattered, and it will vanish.”
870 tn Or perhaps, “will disappear”; cf. TEV “will be useless.”
871 tn BDB 301 s.v. חוֹרִי suggests the meaning “white stuff” for חוֹרִי (khori); the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has חָוֵרוּ (khaveru), probably a Qal perfect, third plural form of חוּר, (khur, “be white, pale”). See HALOT 299 s.v. I חור. The latter reading is assumed in the translation above.
872 tn Some interpret שָׁתֹתֶיהָ (shatoteha) as “her foundations,” i.e., leaders, nobles. See BDB 1011 s.v. שָׁת. Others, on the basis of alleged cognates in Akkadian and Coptic, repoint the form שְׁתִיתֶיהָ (shÿtiteha) and translate “her weavers.” See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:370.
873 tn Heb “crushed.” Emotional distress is the focus of the context (see vv. 8-9, 10b).
874 tn Heb “sad of soul”; cf. NIV, NLT “sick at heart.”
875 tn Or “certainly the officials of Zoan are fools.” אַךְ (’akh) can carry the sense, “only, nothing but,” or “certainly, surely.”
876 tn Heb “A son of wise men am I, a son of ancient kings.” The term בֶּן (ben, “son of”) could refer to literal descent, but many understand the word, at least in the first line, in its idiomatic sense of “member [of a guild].” See HALOT 138 s.v. בֶּן and J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:371. If this is the case, then one can take the word in a figurative sense in the second line as well, the “son of ancient kings” being one devoted to their memory as preserved in their literature.
877 tn Heb “Where are they? Where are your wise men?” The juxtaposition of the interrogative pronouns is emphatic. See HALOT 38 s.v. אֶי.
878 tn Heb “Noph” (so KJV); most recent English versions substitute the more familiar “Memphis.”
879 tn Heb “the cornerstone.” The singular form should be emended to a plural.
880 tn Heb “the Lord has mixed into her midst a spirit of blindness.”
881 tn Heb “like the going astray of a drunkard in his vomit.”
882 tn Heb “And there will not be for Egypt a deed, which head and tail, shoot and stalk can do.” In 9:14-15 the phrase “head or tail” refers to leaders and prophets, respectively. This interpretation makes good sense in this context, where both leaders and advisers (probably including prophets and diviners) are mentioned (vv. 11-14). Here, as in 9:14, “shoots and stalk” picture a reed, which symbolizes the leadership of the nation in its entirety.
883 tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV), likewise at the beginning of vv. 18 and 19.
884 tn Heb “Egypt,” which stands by metonymy for the country’s inhabitants.
885 sn As the rest of the verse indicates, the point of the simile is that the Egyptians will be relatively weak physically and will wilt in fear before the Lord’s onslaught.
886 tn Heb “and he will tremble and be afraid because of the brandishing of the hand of the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts], which he brandishes against him.” Since according to the imagery here the Lord’s “hand” is raised as a weapon against the Egyptians, the term “fist” has been used in the translation.
887 tn Heb “and the land of Judah will become [a source of] shame to Egypt, everyone to whom one mentions it [i.e., the land of Judah] will fear because of the plan of the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] which he is planning against him.”
888 sn The significance of the number “five” in this context is uncertain. For a discussion of various proposals, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:376-77.
889 tc The Hebrew text has עִיר הַהֶרֶס (’ir haheres, “City of Destruction”; cf. NASB, NIV) but this does not fit the positive emphasis of vv. 18-22. The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa and some medieval Hebrew
890 tn This word is sometimes used of a sacred pillar associated with pagan worship, but here it is associated with the worship of the Lord.
891 tn The masculine noun מִזְבֵּחַ (mizbbeakh, “altar”) in v. 19 is probably the subject of the masculine singular verb הָיָה (hayah) rather than the feminine noun מַצֵּבָה (matsevah, “sacred pillar”), also in v. 19.
892 tn Heb “a sign and a witness to the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] in the land of Egypt.”
893 tn רָב (rav) is a substantival participle (from רִיב, riv) meaning “one who strives, contends.”
894 tn Heb “Egypt.” For stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy, the present translation uses the pronoun (“they”) here.
895 tn Heb “will know the Lord.”
896 tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV), likewise at the beginning of vv. 23 and 24.
897 tn Heb “he will be entreated.” The Niphal has a tolerative sense here, “he will allow himself to be entreated.”
898 tn The text could be translated, “and Egypt will serve Assyria” (cf. NAB), but subjugation of one nation to the other does not seem to be a theme in vv. 23-25. Rather the nations are viewed as equals before the Lord (v. 25). Therefore it is better to take אֶת (’et) in v. 23b as a preposition, “together with,” rather than the accusative sign. The names of the two countries are understood to refer by metonymy to their respective inhabitants.
899 tn Heb “will be a blessing” (so NCV).
900 tn Or “land” (KJV, NAB).
901 tn Heb “which the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] will bless [it], saying.” The third masculine singular suffix on the form בֵּרֲכוֹ (berakho) should probably be emended to a third feminine singular suffix בֵּרֲכָהּ (berakhah), for its antecedent would appear to be the feminine noun אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”) at the end of v. 24.
902 tn Or “my inheritance” (NAB, NASB, NIV).
903 tn Heb “In the year the commanding general came to Ashdod, when Sargon king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and captured it.”
sn This probably refers to the Assyrian campaign against Philistia in 712 or 711
904 tn Heb “spoke by the hand of.”
905 tn The word used here (עָרוֹם, ’arom) sometimes means “naked,” but here it appears to mean simply “lightly dressed,” i.e., stripped to one’s undergarments. See HALOT 883 s.v. עָרוֹם. The term also occurs in vv. 3, 4.
906 tn Heb “lightly dressed and barefoot, and bare with respect to the buttocks, the nakedness of Egypt.”
907 tn Heb “and they will be afraid and embarrassed because of Cush their hope and Egypt their beauty.”
908 tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV).
909 sn This probably refers to the coastal region of Philistia (cf. TEV).
910 sn The phrase is quite cryptic, at least to the modern reader. Verse 9 seems to indicate that this message pertains to Babylon. Southern Mesopotamia was known as the Sealand in ancient times, because of its proximity to the Persian Gulf. Perhaps the reference to Babylon as a “desert” foreshadows the destruction that would overtake the city, making it like a desolate desert.
911 tn Or “in the Negev” (NASB).
912 tn Heb “a severe revelation has been related to me.”
913 sn This is often interpreted to mean “all the groaning” that Babylon has caused others.
914 tn Heb “my waist is filled with shaking [or “anguish”].”
915 tn Or perhaps, “bent over [in pain]”; cf. NRSV “I am bowed down.”
916 tn Heb “wanders,” perhaps here, “is confused.”
917 tn Heb “shuddering terrifies me.”
918 tn The precise meaning of the verb in this line is debated. Some prefer to derive the form from the homonymic צָפֹה (tsafoh, “keep watch”) and translate “post a guard” (cf. KJV “watch in the watchtower”; ASV “set the watch”).
919 tn The verbal forms in the first three lines are infinitives absolute, which are functioning here as finite verbs. It is uncertain if the forms should have an imperatival or indicative/descriptive force here.
920 sn Smearing the shields with oil would make them more flexible and effective in battle. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:394.
921 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 8, 16 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
922 tn Or “a pair of horsemen.”
923 tn The Hebrew text has, “the lion,” but this makes little sense here. אַרְיֵה (’aryeh, “lion”) is probably a corruption of an original הָרֹאֶה (haro’eh, “the one who sees”), i.e., the guard mentioned previously in v. 6.
924 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay). Some translations take this to refer to the Lord (cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV), while others take it to refer to the guard’s human master (“my lord”; cf. NIV, NLT).
925 tn Or “[with] teams of horses,” or perhaps, “with a pair of horsemen.”
926 tn Heb “and he answered and said” (so KJV, ASV).
927 tn Heb “My trampled one, and the son of the threshing floor.”
928 tn The noun דּוּמָה (dumah) means “silence,” but here it is a proper name, probably referring to a site in northern Arabia or to the nation of Edom. See BDB 189 s.v. II דּוּמָה. If Dumah was an area in northern Arabia, it would be of interest to the Edomites because of its strategic position on trade routes which they used. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:398.
929 sn Seir is another name for Edom. See BDB 973 s.v. שֵׂעִיר.
930 sn The “night” probably here symbolizes distress and difficult times. See BDB 539 s.v. לַיְלָה.
931 sn Dumah will experience some relief, but it will be short-lived as night returns.
932 sn The point of the watchman’s final instructions (“if you want to ask, ask; come again”) is unclear. Perhaps they are included to add realism to the dramatic portrayal. The watchman sends the questioner away with the words, “Feel free to come back and ask again.”
933 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
934 tn Heb “in still a year, like the years of a hired worker.” See the note at 16:14.
935 tn Heb “and the remnant of the number of the bow, the mighty men of the sons of Kedar, will be few.”
936 tn Or “for” (KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).
937 sn The following message pertains to Jerusalem. The significance of referring to the city as the Valley of Vision is uncertain. Perhaps the Hinnom Valley is in view, but why it is associated with a prophetic revelatory “vision” is not entirely clear. Maybe the Hinnom Valley is called this because the destruction that will take place there is the focal point of this prophetic message (see v. 5).
938 tn Heb “What to you, then?”
939 tn Heb “the boisterous town.” The phrase is parallel to “the noisy city” in the preceding line.
940 sn Apparently they died from starvation during the siege that preceded the final conquest of the city. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:409.
941 tn Verse 3 reads literally, “All your leaders ran away, apart from a bow they were captured, all your found ones were captured together, to a distant place they fled.” J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:403, n. 3) suggests that the lines of the verse are arranged chiastically; lines 1 and 4 go together, while lines 2 and 3 are parallel. To translate the lines in the order they appear in the Hebrew text is misleading to the English reader, who is likely unfamiliar with, or at least insensitive to, chiastic parallelism. Consequently, the translation above arranges the lines as follows: line 1 (Hebrew) = line 1 (in translation); line 2 (Hebrew) = line 4 (in translation); line 3 (Hebrew) = line 3 (in translation); line 4 (Hebrew) = line 2 (in translation).
942 tn Heb “all your found ones.” To achieve tighter parallelism (see “your leaders”) some prefer to emend the form to אַמִּיצַיִךְ (’ammitsayikh, “your strong ones”) or to נֶאֱמָצַיִךְ (ne’ematsayikh, “your strengthened ones”).
943 tn Heb “apart from [i.e., without] a bow they were captured”; cf. NAB, NRSV “without the use of a bow.”
944 tn Heb “look away from me” (so KJV, ASV, NRSV).
945 tn Heb “don’t hurry” (so NCV).
946 tn Heb “the daughter of my people.” “Daughter” is here used metaphorically to express the speaker’s emotional attachment to his people, as well as their vulnerability and weakness.
947 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 12, 14, 15 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
948 tn Heb “For [there is] a day of panic, and trampling, and confusion for the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].”
949 tn The traditional accentuation of the Hebrew text suggests that this phrase goes with what precedes.
950 tn The precise meaning of this statement is unclear. Some take קִר (qir) as “wall” and interpret the verb to mean “tear down.” However, tighter parallelism (note the reference to crying for help in the next line) is achieved if one takes both the verb and noun from a root, attested in Ugaritic and Arabic, meaning “make a sound.” See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:404, n. 5.
951 sn Perhaps “the hill” refers to the temple mount.
952 tn Heb “[with] the chariots of men, horsemen.”
953 sn A distant region in the direction of Mesopotamia; see Amos 1:5; 9:7.
954 tn Heb “Kir uncovers” (so NAB, NIV).
955 sn The Elamites and men of Kir may here symbolize a fierce army from a distant land. If this oracle anticipates a Babylonian conquest of the city (see 39:5-7), then the Elamites and men of Kir are perhaps viewed here as mercenaries in the Babylonian army. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:410.
956 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
957 tn Heb “taking a stand, take their stand.” The infinitive absolute emphasizes the following finite verb. The translation attempts to bring out this emphasis with the adverb “confidently.”
958 tn Heb “he,” i.e., the enemy invader. NASB, by its capitalization of the pronoun, takes this to refer to the Lord.
959 tn Heb “covering.”
960 tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV), likewise at the beginning of v. 12.
961 sn Perhaps this refers to a royal armory, or to Solomon’s “House of the Forest of Lebanon,” where weapons may have been kept (see 1 Kgs 10:16-17).
962 tn Heb “the breaks of the city of David, you saw that they were many.”
963 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
964 tn Heb “you demolished the houses to fortify the wall.”
965 tn Heb “look at”; NAB, NRSV “did not look to.”
966 tn The antecedent of the third feminine singular suffix here and in the next line is unclear. The closest feminine noun is “pool” in the first half of the verse. Perhaps this “old pool” symbolizes the entire city, which had prospered because of God’s provision and protection through the years.
967 tn Heb “did not see.”
968 tn Heb “for baldness and the wearing of sackcloth.” See the note at 15:2.
969 tn Heb “happiness and joy.”
970 tn The prophet here quotes what the fatalistic people are saying. The introductory “you say” is supplied in the translation for clarification; the concluding verb “we die” makes it clear the people are speaking. The six verbs translated as imperatives are actually infinitives absolute, functioning here as finite verbs.
971 tn Heb “it was revealed in my ears [by?] the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].”
972 tn Heb “Certainly this sin will not be atoned for until you die.” This does not imply that their death will bring atonement; rather it emphasizes that their sin is unpardonable. The statement has the form of an oath.
973 tn Heb “who is over the house” (so ASV); NASB “who is in charge of the royal household.”
974 tn The words “and tell him” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
975 tn Heb “What to you here? And who to you here?” The point of the second question is not entirely clear. The interpretation reflected in the translation is based on the following context, which suggests that Shebna has no right to think of himself so highly and arrange such an extravagant burial place for himself.
976 tn Heb “that you chisel out.”
977 tn Heb “will throw you with a throwing.”
978 tn Heb “O man” (so NASB); NAB “mortal man”; NRSV “my fellow.”
979 tn Heb “and the one who wraps you [will] wrap.”
980 tn Heb “and he will tightly [or “surely”] wind you [with] winding like a ball, to a land broad of hands [i.e., “sides”].”
981 tn Heb “and there the chariots of your splendor.”
982 sn Apparently the reference to chariots alludes to Shebna’s excessive pride, which in turn brings disgrace to the royal family.
983 tn Heb “I will push you away from.”
984 tn Heb “he will throw you down.” The shift from the first to third person is peculiar and abrupt, but certainly not unprecedented in Hebrew poetry. See GKC 462 §144.p. The third person may be indefinite (“one will throw you down”), in which case the passive translation is justified.
985 tn Or “in that day.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
986 tn Heb “and your dominion I will place in his hand.”
987 tn Heb “a father to.” The Hebrew term אָב (’av, “father”) is here used metaphorically of one who protects and supports those under his care and authority, like a father does his family. For another example of this metaphorical use of the word, see Job 29:16.
988 tn Heb “house.”
989 sn This may refer to a literal insignia worn by the chief administrator. Even so, it would still symbolize the administrator’s authority to grant or exclude access to the king. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:422.
990 sn The metaphor depicts how secure his position will be.
991 tn Heb “and he will become a glorious throne for the house of his father.”
992 tn Heb “and all the glory of the house of his father they will hang on him.” The Lord returns to the peg metaphor of v. 23a. Eliakim’s secure position of honor will bring benefits and jobs to many others in the family.
993 tn The precise meaning and derivation of this word are uncertain. Cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV “the issue”; CEV “relatives.”
994 tn Heb “all the small vessels, from the vessels that are bowls to all the vessels that are jars.” The picture is that of a single peg holding the weight of all kinds of containers hung from it.
995 tn Or “In that day” (KJV).
996 sn Eliakim’s authority, though seemingly secure, will eventually be removed, and with it his family’s prominence.
997 tn Or “for” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).
998 tn Heb “ships of Tarshish.” This probably refers to large ships either made in or capable of traveling to the distant western port of Tarshish.
999 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “for it is destroyed, from a house, from entering.” The translation assumes that the mem (מ) on בַּיִת (bayit) was originally an enclitic mem suffixed to the preceding verb. This assumption allows one to take בַּיִת as the subject of the preceding verb. It is used in a metaphorical sense for the port city of Tyre. The preposition min (מִן) prefixed to בּוֹא (bo’) indicates negative consequence: “so that no one can enter.” See BDB 583 s.v. מִן 7.b.
1000 tn Heb “the Kittim,” a designation for the people of Cyprus. See HALOT 504-05 s.v. כִּתִּיִּים.
1001 tn Or “keep quiet”; NAB “Silence!”
1002 map For location see Map1 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.
1003 tc The Hebrew text (23:2b-3a) reads literally, “merchant of Sidon, the one who crosses the sea, they filled you, and on the deep waters.” Instead of מִלְאוּךְ (mil’ukh, “they filled you”) the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa reads מלאכיך (“your messengers”). The translation assumes an emendation of מִלְאוּךְ to מַלְאָכָו (mal’akhav, “his messengers”), taking the vav (ו) on וּבְמַיִם (uvÿmayim) as improperly placed; instead it should be the final letter of the preceding word.
1004 tn Heb “seed of Shihor.” “Shihor” probably refers to the east branch of the Nile. See Jer 2:18 and BDB 1009 s.v. שִׁיחוֹר.
1005 tn Heb “the harvest of the Nile.”
1006 tn Heb “[is] her revenue.”
1007 tn Heb “merchandise”; KJV, ASV “a mart of nations”; NLT “the merchandise mart of the world.”
1008 tn J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:430-31) sees here a reference to Yam, the Canaanite god of the sea. He interprets the phrase מָעוֹז הַיָּם (ma’oz hayyam, “fortress of the sea”) as a title of Yam, translating “Mighty One of the Sea.” A more traditional view is that the phrase refers to Sidon.
1009 tn Or “virgins” (KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB).
sn The sea is personified here as a lamenting childless woman. The foreboding language anticipates the following announcement of Tyre’s demise, viewed here as a child of the sea, as it were.
1010 tn Heb “they will be in pain at the report of Tyre.”
1011 tn Heb “Is this to you, boisterous one?” The pronoun “you” is masculine plural, like the imperatives in v. 6, so it is likely addressed to the Egyptians and residents of the coast. “Boisterous one” is a feminine singular form, probably referring to the personified city of Tyre.
1012 tn Heb “in the days of antiquity [is] her beginning.”
1013 tn The precise meaning of הַמַּעֲטִירָה (hamma’atirah) is uncertain. The form is a Hiphil participle from עָטַר (’atar), a denominative verb derived from עֲטָרָה (’atarah, “crown, wreath”). The participle may mean “one who wears a crown” or “one who distributes crowns.” In either case, Tyre’s prominence in the international political arena is in view.
1014 tn Heb “the honored” (so NASB, NRSV); NIV “renowned.”
1015 tn Heb “the pride of all the beauty.”
1016 tc This meaning of this verse is unclear. The Hebrew text reads literally, “Cross over your land, like the Nile, daughter of Tarshish, there is no more waistband.” The translation assumes an emendation of מֵזַח (mezakh, “waistband”) to מָחֹז (makhoz, “harbor, marketplace”; see Ps 107:30). The term עָבַר (’avar, “cross over”) is probably used here of traveling over the water (as in v. 6). The command is addressed to personified Tarshish, who here represents her merchants. The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has עבדי (“work, cultivate”) instead of עִבְרִי (’ivri, “cross over”). In this case one might translate “Cultivate your land, like they do the Nile region” (cf. NIV, CEV). The point would be that the people of Tarshish should turn to agriculture because they will no longer be able to get what they need through the marketplace in Tyre.
1017 tn Heb “his hand he stretched out over the sea.”
1018 tn Heb “the Lord.” For stylistic reasons the pronoun (“he”) has been used in the translation here.
1019 tn Heb “concerning Canaan, to destroy her fortresses.” NIV, NLT translate “Canaan” as “Phoenicia” here.
1020 tn Or “violated, raped,” the point being that Daughter Sidon has lost her virginity in the most brutal manner possible.
1021 tn Heb “[to the] Kittim, get up, cross over; even there there will be no rest for you.” On “Kittim” see the note on “Cyprus” at v. 1.
1022 tn Heb “this people [that] is not.”
1023 tn For the meaning of this word, see HALOT 118 s.v. *בַּחוּן.
1024 tn Or “laid bare.” For the meaning of this word, see HALOT 889 s.v. ערר.
1025 sn This verse probably refers to the Assyrian destruction of Babylon.
1026 tn Heb “ships of Tarshish.” See the note at v. 1.
1027 tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
1028 sn The number seventy is probably used in a stereotypical, nonliteral sense here to indicate a long period of time that satisfies completely the demands of God’s judgment.
1029 tn Heb “like the days of a king.”
1030 tn Heb “At the end of seventy years it will be for Tyre like the song of the prostitute.”
1031 tn Heb “so you will be remembered.”
1032 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
1033 tn Heb “visit [with favor]” (cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “will deal with.”
1034 tn Heb “and she will return to her [prostitute’s] wages and engage in prostitution with all the kingdoms of the earth on the face of the earth.”
1035 tn Heb “for eating to fullness and for beautiful covering[s].”
sn The point of this verse, which in its blatant nationalism comes precariously close to comparing the Lord to one who controls or manages a prostitute, is that Tyre will become a subject of Israel and her God. Tyre’s commercial profits will be used to enrich the Lord’s people.
1036 tn Heb “and it will be like the people, like the priest.”
1037 tn Heb “like the servant, like his master.”
1038 tn Heb “like the female servant, like her mistress.”
1039 tn Heb “like the buyer, like the seller.”
1040 tn Heb “like the lender, like the borrower.”
1041 tn Heb “like the creditor, just as the one to whom he lends.”
1042 tn Heb “for the Lord has spoken this word.”
1043 tn Some prefer to read “land” here, but the word pair אֶרֶץ/תֵּבֵל (erets/tevel [see the corresponding term in the parallel line]) elsewhere clearly designates the earth/world (see 1 Sam 2:8; 1 Chr 16:30; Job 37;12; Pss 19:4; 24:1; 33:8; 89:11; 90:2; 96:13; 98:9; Prov 8:26, 31; Isa 14:16-17; 34:1; Jer 10:12; 51:15; Lam 4:12). According to L. Stadelmann, תבל designates “the habitable part of the world” (The Hebrew Conception of the World [AnBib], 130).
1044 tn Or “mourns” (BDB 5 s.v. אָבַל). HALOT 6-7 lists the homonyms I אבל (“mourn”) and II אבל (“dry up”). They propose the second here on the basis of parallelism.
1045 tn Heb “the height of the people of the earth.” The translation assumes an emendation of the singular form מְרוֹם (mÿrom, “height of”) to the plural construct מְרֹמֵי (mÿrome, “high ones of”; note the plural verb at the beginning of the line), and understands the latter as referring to the prominent people of human society.
1046 tn Heb “beneath”; cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV “under”; NAB “because of.”
1047 sn Isa 26:21 suggests that the earth’s inhabitants defiled the earth by shedding the blood of their fellow human beings. See also Num 35:33-34, which assumes that bloodshed defiles a land.
1048 tn Heb “moved past [the?] regulation.”
1049 tn Or “everlasting covenant” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “the ancient covenant”; CEV “their agreement that was to last forever.”
sn For a lengthy discussion of the identity of this covenant/treaty, see R. Chisholm, “The ‘Everlasting Covenant’ and the ‘City of Chaos’: Intentional Ambiguity and Irony in Isaiah 24,” CTR 6 (1993): 237-53. In this context, where judgment comes upon both the pagan nations and God’s covenant community, the phrase “permanent treaty” is intentionally ambiguous. For the nations this treaty is the Noahic mandate of Gen 9:1-7 with its specific stipulations and central regulation (Gen 9:7). By shedding blood, the warlike nations violated this treaty, which promotes population growth and prohibits murder. For Israel, which was also guilty of bloodshed (see Isa 1:15, 21; 4:4), this “permanent treaty” would refer more specifically to the Mosaic Law and its regulations prohibiting murder (Exod 20:13; Num 35:6-34), which are an extension of the Noahic mandate.
1050 sn Ancient Near Eastern treaties often had “curses,” or threatened judgments, attached to them. (See Deut 28 for a biblical example of such curses.) The party or parties taking an oath of allegiance acknowledged that disobedience would activate these curses, which typically threatened loss of agricultural fertility as depicted in the following verses.
1051 tn The verb אָשַׁם (’asham, “be guilty”) is here used metonymically to mean “pay, suffer for one’s guilt” (see HALOT 95 s.v. אשׁם).
1052 tn BDB 359 s.v. חָרַר derives the verb חָרוּ (kharu) from חָרַר (kharar, “burn”), but HALOT 351 s.v. II חרה understands a hapax legomenon חָרָה (kharah, “to diminish in number,” a homonym of חָרָה) here, relating it to an alleged Arabic cognate meaning “to decrease.” The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has חורו, perhaps understanding the root as חָוַר (khavar, “grow pale”; see Isa 29:22 and HALOT 299 s.v. I חור).
1053 tn Heb “and mankind is left small [in number].”
1054 tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “all the joyful in heart,” but the context specifies the context as parties and drinking bouts.
1055 tn Heb “the joy” (again later in this verse).
1056 tn Heb “with a song they do not drink wine.”
1057 tn Heb “the city of chaos” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV). Isaiah uses the term תֹּהוּ (tohu) rather frequently of things (like idols) that are empty and worthless (see BDB 1062 s.v.), so the word might characterize the city as rebellious or morally worthless. However, in this context, which focuses on the effects of divine judgment, it probably refers to the ruined or worthless condition in which the city is left (note the use of the word in Isa 34:11). For a discussion of the identity of this city, see R. Chisholm, “The ‘Everlasting Covenant’ and the ‘City of Chaos’: Intentional Ambiguity and Irony in Isaiah 24,” CTR 6 (1993): 237-53. In the context of universal judgment depicted in Isa 24, this city represents all the nations and cities of the world which, like Babylon of old and the powers/cities mentioned in chapters 13-23, rebel against God’s authority. Behind the stereotypical language one can detect various specific manifestations of this symbolic and paradigmatic city, including Babylon, Moab, and Jerusalem, all of which are alluded or referred to in chapters 24-27.
1058 tn Heb “every house is closed up from entering.”
1059 tn Heb “[there is] an outcry over the wine in the streets.”
1060 tn Heb “all joy turns to evening,” the darkness of evening symbolizing distress and sorrow.
1061 tn Heb “the joy of the earth disappears.”
1062 tn Heb “and there is left in the city desolation.”
1063 tn Heb “and [into] rubble the gate is crushed.”
1064 tn Heb “in the midst of” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).
1065 sn The judgment will severely reduce the earth’s population. See v. 6.
1066 sn The remnant of the nations (see v. 13) may be the unspecified subject. If so, then those who have survived the judgment begin to praise God.
1067 tn Heb “they yell out concerning.”
1068 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “in the lights,” interpreted by some to mean “in the region of light,” referring to the east. Some scholars have suggested the emendation of בָּאֻרִים (ba’urim) to בְּאִיֵּי הַיָּם (bÿ’iyyey hayyam, “along the seacoasts”), a phrase that is repeated in the next line. In this case, the two lines form synonymous parallelism. If one retains the MT reading (as above), “in the east” and “along the seacoasts” depict the two ends of the earth to refer to all the earth (as a merism).
1069 tn The word “extol” is supplied in the translation; the verb in the first line does double duty in the parallelism.
1070 tn Heb “name,” which here stands for God’s reputation achieved by his mighty deeds.
1071 sn The identity of the subject is unclear. Apparently in vv. 15-16a an unidentified group responds to the praise they hear in the west by exhorting others to participate.
1072 tn Heb “Beauty belongs to the just one.” These words may summarize the main theme of the songs mentioned in the preceding line.
1073 sn The prophet seems to contradict what he hears the group saying. Their words are premature because more destruction is coming.
1074 tn Heb “and [with] deception deceivers deceive.”
tn Verse 16b is a classic example of Hebrew wordplay. In the first line (“I’m wasting away…”) four consecutive words end with hireq yod ( ִי); in the second line all forms are derived from the root בָּגַד (bagad). The repetition of sound draws attention to the prophet’s lament.
1075 tn Heb “[are] upon you, O inhabitant of the earth.” The first line of v. 17 provides another classic example of Hebrew wordplay. The names of the three instruments of judgment (פָח,פַחַת,פַּחַד [pakhad, fakhat, fakh]) all begin with the letters פח (peh-khet) and the first two end in dental consonants (ת/ד, tet/dalet). Once again the repetition of sound draws attention to the statement and contributes to the theme of the inescapability of judgment. As their similar-sounding names suggest, terror, pit, and snare are allies in destroying the objects of divine wrath.
1076 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
1077 tn Heb “from the height”; KJV “from on high.”
1078 sn The language reflects the account of the Noahic Flood (see Gen 7:11).
1079 tn Once more repetition is used to draw attention to a statement. In the Hebrew text each lines ends with אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”). Each line also uses a Hitpolel verb form from a geminate root preceded by an emphatic infinitive absolute.
1080 tn Heb “staggering, staggers.” The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute before the finite verb for emphasis and sound play.
1081 tn The words “in a windstorm” are supplied in the translation to clarify the metaphor.
1082 tn Or “in that day” (so KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
1083 tn Heb “visit [in judgment].”
1084 tn Heb “the host of the height in the height.” The “host of the height/heaven” refers to the heavenly luminaries (stars and planets, see, among others, Deut 4:19; 17:3; 2 Kgs 17:16; 21:3, 5; 23:4-5; 2 Chr 33:3, 5) that populate the divine/heavenly assembly in mythological and prescientific Israelite thought (see Job 38:7; Isa 14:13).
1085 tn Heb “they will be gathered [in] a gathering [as] a prisoner in a cistern.” It is tempting to eliminate אֲסֵפָה (’asefah, “a gathering”) as dittographic or as a gloss, but sound repetition is one of the main characteristics of the style of this section of the chapter.
1086 tn Heb “and after a multitude of days.”
1087 tn Heb “visited” (so KJV, ASV). This verse can mean to visit for good or for evil. The translation assumes the latter, based on v. 21a. However, BDB 823 s.v. פָּקַד B.Niph.2 suggests the meaning “visit graciously” here, in which case one might translate “they will be released.”
1088 tn Heb “will be ashamed.”
1089 tn Or “glow of the sun.”
1090 tn Heb “will be ashamed” (so NCV).
1091 tn Or “take his throne,” “become king.”
1092 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
1093 tn Heb “and before his elders [in] splendor.”
1094 sn The prophet speaks here as one who has observed the coming judgment of the proud.
1095 tn Heb “name.” See the note at 24:15.
1096 tn Heb “plans from long ago [in] faithfulness, trustworthiness.” The feminine noun אֱמוּנָה (’emunah, “faithfulness”) and masculine noun אֹמֶן (’omen, “trustworthiness”), both of which are derived from the root אָמַן (’aman), are juxtaposed to emphasize the basic idea conveyed by the synonyms. Here they describe the absolute reliability of the divine plans.