2 Raja-raja 24:2
Konteks24:2 The Lord sent against him Babylonian, Syrian, Moabite, and Ammonite raiding bands; he sent them to destroy Judah, as he had warned he would do through his servants the prophets. 1
Yeremia 50:17-18
Konteks50:17 “The people of Israel are like scattered sheep
which lions have chased away.
First the king of Assyria devoured them. 2
Now last of all King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has gnawed their bones. 3
50:18 So I, the Lord God of Israel who rules over all, say: 4
‘I will punish the king of Babylon and his land
just as I punished the king of Assyria.
Yeremia 51:34-35
Konteks51:34 “King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon
devoured me and drove my people out.
Like a monster from the deep he swallowed me.
He filled his belly with my riches.
He made me an empty dish.
He completely cleaned me out.” 5
51:35 The person who lives in Zion says,
“May Babylon pay for the violence done to me and to my relatives.”
Jerusalem says,
“May those living in Babylonia pay for the bloodshed of my people.” 6
Yehezkiel 25:6-7
Konteks25:6 For this is what the sovereign Lord says: Because you clapped your hands, stamped your feet, and rejoiced with intense scorn 7 over the land of Israel, 25:7 take note, I have stretched out my hand against you, and I will hand you over as plunder 8 to the nations. I will cut you off from the peoples and make you perish from the lands. I will destroy you; then you will know that I am the Lord.’”
Yehezkiel 25:12
Konteks25:12 “This is what the sovereign Lord says: ‘Edom 9 has taken vengeance against the house of Judah; they have made themselves fully culpable 10 by taking vengeance 11 on them. 12
Yehezkiel 25:15
Konteks25:15 “This is what the sovereign Lord says: ‘The Philistines 13 have exacted merciless revenge, 14 showing intense scorn 15 in their effort to destroy Judah 16 with unrelenting hostility. 17
Yehezkiel 26:2
Konteks26:2 “Son of man, because Tyre 18 has said about Jerusalem, 19 ‘Aha, the gateway of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I will become rich, 20 now that she 21 has been destroyed,’
Yehezkiel 35:5
Konteks35:5 “‘You have shown unrelenting hostility and poured the people of Israel onto the blades of a sword 22 at the time of their calamity, at the time of their final punishment.
Yoel 3:2-8
Konteks3:2 Then I will gather all the nations,
and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat. 23
I will enter into judgment 24 against them there
concerning my people Israel who are my inheritance, 25
whom they scattered among the nations.
They partitioned my land,
3:3 and they cast lots for my people.
They traded 26 a boy for a prostitute;
they sold a little girl for wine so they could drink. 27
3:4 Why are you doing these things to me, Tyre and Sidon? 28
Are you trying to get even with me, land of Philistia? 29
I will very quickly repay you for what you have done! 30
3:5 For you took my silver and my gold
and brought my precious valuables to your own palaces. 31
3:6 You sold Judeans and Jerusalemites to the Greeks,
removing them far from their own country. 32
3:7 Look! I am rousing them from that place to which you sold them.
I will repay you for what you have done! 33
3:8 I will sell your sons and daughters to 34 the people of Judah. 35
They will sell them to the Sabeans, 36 a nation far away.
Indeed, the Lord has spoken!
Amos 1:3-5
Konteks1:3 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Damascus has committed three crimes 37 –
make that four! 38 – I will not revoke my
decree of judgment. 39
They ripped through Gilead like threshing sledges with iron teeth. 40
1:4 So I will set Hazael’s house 41 on fire;
fire 42 will consume Ben Hadad’s 43 fortresses.
1:5 I will break the bar 44 on the gate of Damascus.
I will remove 45 the ruler 46 from Wicked Valley, 47
the one who holds the royal scepter from Beth Eden. 48
The people of Aram will be deported to Kir.” 49
The Lord has spoken!
Amos 1:9
Konteks1:9 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Tyre has committed three crimes 50 –
make that four! 51 – I will not revoke my decree of judgment. 52
They sold 53 a whole community 54 to Edom;
they failed to observe 55 a treaty of brotherhood. 56
Amos 1:11
Konteks1:11 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Edom has committed three crimes 57 –
make that four! 58 – I will not revoke my decree of judgment. 59
He chased his brother 60 with a sword;
he wiped out his allies. 61
In his anger he tore them apart without stopping to rest; 62
in his fury he relentlessly attacked them. 63
Amos 1:13
Konteks1:13 This is what the Lord says:
“Because the Ammonites have committed three crimes 64 –
make that four! 65 – I will not revoke my decree of judgment. 66
They ripped open Gilead’s pregnant women 67
so they could expand their territory.
Obaja 1:10-16
Konteks1:10 “Because 68 you violently slaughtered 69 your relatives, 70 the people of Jacob, 71
shame will cover you, and you will be destroyed 72 forever.
1:11 You stood aloof 73 while strangers took his army 74 captive,
and foreigners advanced to his gates. 75
When they cast lots 76 over Jerusalem, 77
you behaved as though you were in league 78 with them.
1:12 You should not 79 have gloated 80 when your relatives 81 suffered calamity. 82
You should not have rejoiced over the people of Judah when they were destroyed. 83
You should not have boasted 84 when they suffered adversity. 85
1:13 You should not have entered the city 86 of my people when they experienced distress. 87
You should not have joined 88 in gloating over their misfortune when they suffered distress. 89
You should not have looted 90 their wealth when they endured distress. 91
1:14 You should not have stood at the fork in the road 92 to slaughter 93 those trying to escape. 94
You should not have captured their refugees when they suffered adversity. 95
1:15 “For the day of the Lord 96 is approaching 97 for all the nations! 98
Just as you have done, so it will be done to you.
You will get exactly what your deeds deserve. 99
1:16 For just as you 100 have drunk 101 on my holy mountain,
so all the nations will drink continually. 102
They will drink, and they will gulp down;
they will be as though they had never been.
Mikha 4:11
Konteks4:11 Many nations have now assembled against you.
They say, “Jerusalem must be desecrated, 103
so we can gloat over Zion!” 104
Mikha 5:6
Konteks5:6 They will rule 105 the land of Assyria with the sword,
the land of Nimrod 106 with a drawn sword. 107
Our king 108 will rescue us from the Assyrians
should they attempt to invade our land
and try to set foot in our territory.
Mikha 7:10
Konteks7:10 When my enemies see this, they will be covered with shame.
They say 109 to me, “Where is the Lord your God?”
I will gloat over them. 110
Then they will be trampled down 111
like mud in the streets.
Habakuk 2:8
Konteks2:8 Because you robbed many countries, 112
all who are left among the nations 113 will rob you.
You have shed human blood
and committed violent acts against lands, cities, 114 and those who live in them.
Habakuk 2:17
Konteks2:17 For you will pay in full for your violent acts against Lebanon; 115
terrifying judgment will come upon you because of the way you destroyed the wild animals living there. 116
You have shed human blood
and committed violent acts against lands, cities, and those who live in them.
Zefanya 2:8
Konteks2:8 “I have heard Moab’s taunts
and the Ammonites’ insults.
They 117 taunted my people
and verbally harassed those living in Judah. 118
[24:2] 1 tn Heb “he sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the
[50:17] 2 sn The king of Assyria devoured them. This refers to the devastation wrought on northern Israel by the kings of Assyria beginning in 738
[50:17] 3 tn The verb used here only occurs this one time in the Hebrew Bible. It is a denominative from the Hebrew word for “bones” (עֶצֶם, ’etsem). BDB 1126 s.v. עֶָצַם, denom Pi, define it as “break his bones.” HALOT 822 s.v. II עָצַם Pi defines it as “gnaw on his bones.”
[50:17] sn If the prophecies which are referred to in Jer 51:59-64 refer to all that is contained in Jer 50–51 (as some believe), this would have referred to the disasters of 605
[50:18] 4 tn Heb “Therefore thus says Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.” The first person is again adopted because the
[51:34] 5 tn This verse is extremely difficult to translate because of the shifting imagery, the confusion over the meaning of one of the verbs, and the apparent inconsistency of the pronominal suffixes here with those in the following verse which everyone agrees is connected with it. The pronominal suffixes are first common plural but the versions all read them as first common singular which the Masoretes also do in the Qere. That reading has been followed here for consistency with the next verse which identifies the speaker as the person living in Zion and the personified city of Jerusalem. The Hebrew text reads: “Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon devoured me [cf. 50:7, 17] and threw me into confusion. He set me down an empty dish. He swallowed me like a monster from the deep [cf. BDB 1072 s.v. תַּנִּין 3 and compare usage in Isa 27:1; Ezek 29:3; 32:2]. He filled his belly with my dainties. He rinsed me out [cf. BDB s.v. דּוּח Hiph.2 and compare the usage in Isa 4:4].” The verb “throw into confusion” has proved troublesome because its normal meaning does not seem appropriate. Hence various proposals have been made to understand it in a different sense. The present translation has followed W. L. Holladay (Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 2:428) in understanding the verb to mean “disperse” or “route” (see NAB). The last line has seemed out of place and has often been emended to read “he has spewed me out” (so NIV, NRSV, a reading that presupposes הִדִּיחָנִי [hiddikhani] for הֱדִיחָנִי [hedikhani]). The reading of the MT is not inappropriate if it is combined with the imagery of an empty jar and hence is retained here (see F. B. Huey, Jeremiah, Lamentations [NAC], 425, n. 59; H. Freedman, Jeremiah [SoBB], 344; NJPS). The lines have been combined to keep the imagery together.
[51:34] sn The speaker in this verse and the next is the personified city of Jerusalem. She laments her fate at the hands of the king of Babylon and calls down a curse on Babylon and the people who live in Babylonia. Here Nebuchadnezzar is depicted as a monster of the deep who has devoured Jerusalem, swallowed her down, and filled its belly with her riches, leaving her an empty dish, which has been rinsed clean.
[51:35] 6 tn Heb “‘The violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,’ says the one living in Zion. ‘My blood be upon those living in Chaldea,’ says Jerusalem.” For the usage of the genitive here in the phrase “violence done to me and my relatives” see GKC 414 §128.a (a construct governing two objects) and IBHS 303 §16.4d (an objective genitive). For the nuance of “pay” in the sense of retribution see BDB 756 s.v. עַל 7.a(b) and compare the usage in Judg 9:24. For the use of שְׁאֵר (shÿ’er) in the sense of “relatives” see BDB 985 s.v. שְׁאֵר 2 and compare NJPS. For the use of “blood” in this idiom see BDB 197 s.v. דָּם 2.k and compare the usage in 2 Sam 4:11; Ezek 3:18, 20. The lines have been reversed for better English style.
[25:6] 7 tn Heb “with all your scorn in (the) soul.”
[25:7] 8 tc The translation here follows the marginal reading (Qere) of the Hebrew text. The consonantal text (Kethib) is meaningless.
[25:12] 9 sn Edom was located south of Moab.
[25:12] 10 tn Heb “and they have become guilty, becoming guilty.” The infinitive absolute following the finite verb makes the statement emphatic and draws attention to the degree of guilt incurred by Edom due to its actions.
[25:12] 11 tn Heb “and they have taken vengeance.”
[25:12] 12 sn Edom apparently in some way assisted in the destruction of Jerusalem in 587/6
[25:15] 13 sn The Philistines inhabited the coastal plain by the Mediterranean Sea, west of Judah.
[25:15] 14 tn Heb “have acted with vengeance and taken vengeance with vengeance.” The repetition emphasizes the degree of vengeance which they exhibited, presumably toward Judah.
[25:15] 15 tn Heb “with scorn in (the) soul.”
[25:15] 16 tn The object is not specified in the Hebrew text, but has been clarified as “Judah” in the translation.
[25:15] 17 tn Heb “to destroy (with) perpetual hostility.” Joel 3:4-8 also speaks of the Philistines taking advantage of the fall of Judah.
[26:2] 18 sn Tyre was located on the Mediterranean coast north of Israel.
[26:2] 19 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[26:2] 20 tn Heb “I will be filled.”
[26:2] 21 sn That is, Jerusalem.
[35:5] 22 tn Or “gave over…to the power of the sword.” This phrase also occurs in Jer 18:21 and Ps 63:10.
[3:2] 23 sn There is a play on words here. Jehoshaphat in Hebrew means “the Lord has judged,” and the next line in v. 2 further explicates this thought. The location of this valley is uncertain (cf. v. 12). Many interpreters have understood the Valley of Jehoshaphat to be the Kidron Valley, located on the east side of old Jerusalem. Since this is described as a scene of future messianic activity and judgment, many Jews and Muslims have desired to be buried in the vicinity, a fact attested to in modern times by the presence of many graves in the area. A variation of this view is mentioned by Eusebius, Onomasticon 1:10. According to this view, the Valley of Jehoshaphat is located in the Hinnom Valley, on the south side of the old city. Yet another view is held by many modern scholars, who understand the reference to this valley to be one of an idealized and nonliteral scene of judgment.
[3:2] 24 tn Heb “I will execute judgment.”
[3:2] 25 tn Heb “concerning my people and my inheritance Israel.”
[3:3] 27 sn Heb “and they drank.” Joel vividly refers to a situation where innocent human life has little value; its only worth is its use in somehow satisfying selfish appetites of wicked people who have control over others (cf. Amos 2:6 and 8:6).
[3:4] 28 tn Heb “What [are] you [doing] to me, O Tyre and Sidon?”
[3:4] 30 tn Heb “quickly, speedily, I will return your recompense on your head.” This is an idiom for retributive justice and an equitable reversal of situation.
[3:5] 31 tn Or perhaps, “temples.”
[3:7] 33 tn Heb “I will return your recompense on your head.”
[3:8] 34 tn Heb “into the hand of.”
[3:8] 35 tn Heb “the sons of Judah.”
[3:8] 36 sn The Sabeans were Arabian merchants who were influential along the ancient caravan routes that traveled through Arabia. See also Job 1:15; Isa 43:3; 45:14; Ps 72:10.
[1:3] 37 tn Traditionally, “transgressions” or “sins.” The word refers to rebellion against authority and is used in the international political realm (see 1 Kgs 12:19; 2 Kgs 1:1; 3:5, 7; 8:22). There is debate over its significance in this context. Some relate the “rebellion” of the foreign nations to God’s mandate to Noah (Gen 9:5-7). This mandate is viewed as a treaty between God and humankind, whereby God holds humans accountable to populate the earth and respect his image as it is revealed in all people. While this option is a possible theological explanation of the message in light of the Old Testament as a whole, nothing in these oracles alludes to that Genesis passage. J. Barton suggests that the prophet is appealing to a common morality shared across the ancient Near East regarding the conduct of war since all of the oracles can be related to activities and atrocities committed in warfare (Amos’s Oracles against the Nations [SOTSMS], 39-61). The “transgression” then would be a violation of what all cultures would take as fundamental human decency. Some argue that the nations cited in Amos 1-2 had been members of the Davidic empire. Their crime would consist of violating the mutual agreements that all should have exhibited toward one another (cf. M. E. Polley, Amos and the Davidic Empire). This interpretation is connected to the notion that Amos envisions a reconstituted Davidic empire for Israel and the world (9:11-15). Ultimately, we can only speculate what lay behind Amos’ thinking. He does not specify the theological foundation of his universal moral vision, but it is clear that Amos believes that all nations are responsible before the Lord for their cruelty toward other human beings. He also assumes that even those who did not know his God would recognize their inhumane treatment of others as inherently wrong. The translation “crimes” is general enough to communicate that a standard (whether human or divine) has been breached. For a survey of the possible historical events behind each oracle, see S. M. Paul, Amos (Hermeneia).
[1:3] 38 tn Heb “Because of three violations of Damascus, even because of four.”
[1:3] sn The three…four style introduces each of the judgment oracles of chaps. 1-2. Based on the use of a similar formula in wisdom literature (see Prov 30:18-19, 29-31), one expects to find in each case a list of four specific violations. However, only in the eighth oracle (against Israel) does one find the expected fourfold list. Through this adaptation and alteration of the normal pattern the
[1:3] 39 tn Heb “I will not bring it [or “him”] back.” The pronominal object (1) refers to the decree of judgment that follows; the referent (the decree) has been specified in the translation for clarity. See S. M. Paul, Amos (Hermeneia), 46-47. Another option (2) is to understand the suffix as referring to the particular nation mentioned in the oracle and to translate, “I will not take him [i.e., that particular nation] back.” In this case the
[1:3] 40 tn Heb “they threshed [or “trampled down”] Gilead with sharp iron implements” (NASB similar).
[1:3] sn Like threshing sledges with iron teeth. A threshing sledge was made of wooden boards embedded with sharp stones or iron teeth. As the sledge was pulled over the threshing floor the stones or iron teeth would separate the grain from the stalks. See O. Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, 64-65. Here the threshing metaphor is used to emphasize how violently and inhumanely the Arameans (the people of Damascus) had treated the people of Gilead (located east of the Jordan River).
[1:4] 41 tn “Hazael’s house” (“the house of Hazael”) refers to the dynasty of Hazael.
[1:4] sn Hazael took the throne of Aram in 843
[1:4] 42 tn Heb “it”; the referent (the fire mentioned in the previous line) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[1:4] 43 sn Ben-hadad may refer to Hazael’s son and successor (2 Kgs 13:3, 24) or to an earlier king (see 1 Kgs 20), perhaps the ruler whom Hazael assassinated when he assumed power.
[1:5] 44 sn The bar on the city gate symbolizes the city’s defenses and security.
[1:5] 46 tn Heb “the one who sits.” Some English versions take the Hebrew term in a collective sense as “inhabitants” (e.g., KJV, NKJV, NASB, NRSV). The context and the parallel in the next clause (“the one who holds the royal scepter”), however, suggest that the royal house is in view. For this term (יוֹשֵׁב, yoshev), see N. K. Gottwald, The Tribes of Yahweh, 512-30.
[1:5] 47 tn Heb “valley of wickedness.” Though many English versions take the Hebrew phrase בִקְעַת־אָוֶן (biq’-at ’aven) as a literal geographical place name (“Valley of Aven,” so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT), it appears to be a derogatory epithet for Damascus and the kingdom of Aram.
[1:5] 48 tn Many associate the name “Beth Eden” with Bit Adini, an Aramean state located near the Euphrates River, but it may be a sarcastic epithet meaning “house of pleasure.”
[1:5] 49 sn According to Amos 9:7, the Arameans originally came from Kir. The
[1:9] 50 tn Traditionally, “transgressions” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV) or “sins” (NIV). For an explanation of the atrocities outlined in this oracle as treaty violations of God’s mandate to Noah in Gen 9:5-7, see the note on the word “violations” in 1:3.
[1:9] 51 tn Heb “Because of three violations of Tyre, even because of four.”
[1:9] sn On the three…four style that introduces each of the judgment oracles of chaps. 1-2 see the note on the word “four” in 1:3.
[1:9] 52 tn Heb “I will not bring it [or “him”] back.” The translation understands the pronominal object to refer to the decree of judgment that follows; the referent (the decree) has been specified in the translation for clarity. For another option see the note on the word “judgment” in 1:3.
[1:9] 53 tn Heb “handed over.”
[1:9] 54 tn Heb “[group of] exiles.” A similar phrase occurs in v. 6.
[1:9] 55 tn Heb “did not remember.”
[1:9] 56 sn A treaty of brotherhood. In the ancient Near Eastern world familial terms were sometimes used to describe treaty partners. In a treaty between superior and inferior parties, the lord would be called “father” and the subject “son.” The partners in a treaty between equals referred to themselves as “brothers.” For biblical examples, see 1 Kgs 9:13; 20:32-33.
[1:11] 57 tn Traditionally, “transgressions” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV) or “sins” (NIV). For an explanation of the atrocities outlined in this oracle as treaty violations of God’s mandate to Noah in Gen 9:5-7, see the note on the word “violations” in 1:3.
[1:11] 58 tn Heb “Because of three violations of Edom, even because of four.”
[1:11] sn On the three…four style that introduces each of the judgment oracles of chaps. 1-2 see the note on the word “four” in 1:3.
[1:11] 59 tn Heb “I will not bring it [or “him”] back.” The translation understands the pronominal object to refer to the decree of judgment that follows; the referent (the decree) has been specified in the translation for clarity. For another option see the note on the word “judgment” in 1:3.
[1:11] 60 sn It is likely that “brother” refers here to a treaty partner (see the note on the word “brotherhood” in 1:9). However, it is possible, if Israel is in view, that Edom’s ancient blood relationship to God’s people is alluded to here. Cf. NCV, NLT “their relatives, the Israelites.”
[1:11] 61 tn Or “He stifled his compassion.” The Hebrew term רָחֲמָיו (rakhamayv) is better understood here (parallel to “brother/treaty partner”) as a reference to “allies” which Edom betrayed. An Aramaic cognate is attested (see DNWSI 2:1069-70). See M. Fishbane, “The Treaty Background of Amos 1:11 and Related Matters,” JBL 89 (1970): 313-18; idem, “Critical Note: Additional Remarks on rh£myw (Amos 1:11),” JBL 91 (1972): 391-93; and M. Barré, “Amos 1:11 reconsidered,” CBQ 47 (1985) 420-27. Some argue that the clause is best translated as “and destroyed his womenfolk.” רַחַם (rakham) means “womb”; the plural here would be a metonymy for “women” and could establish a parallel with the atrocity of 1:13. See S. M. Paul, Amos (Hermeneia), 64-65.
[1:11] 62 tn Heb “his anger tore continually.” The Hebrew verb טָרַף (taraf, “tear apart”) is often used of an animal tearing apart its prey. The word picture here is that of a vicious predator’s feeding frenzy.
[1:11] 63 tn Traditionally, “he kept his fury continually.” The Hebrew term שְׁמָרָה (shÿmarah) could be taken as a Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular with 3rd person feminine singular suffix (with mappiq omitted), “he kept it” (NASB, NKJV, NRSV). It is also possible in light of the parallelism that שָׁמַר (shamar) is a rare homonym cognate to an Akkadian verb meaning “to rage; to be furious.” Repointing the verb as שָׁמְרָה (shamÿrah, third person feminine singular), one could translate literally, “his fury raged continually” (NIV, NJPS).
[1:13] 64 tn Traditionally, “transgressions” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV) or “sins” (NIV). For an explanation of the atrocities outlined in this oracle as treaty violations of God’s mandate to Noah in Gen 9:5-7, see the note on the word “violations” in 1:3.
[1:13] 65 tn Heb “Because of three violations of the Ammonites, even because of four.”
On the three…four style that introduces each of the judgment oracles of chaps. 1-2 see the note on the word “four” in 1:3.
[1:13] 66 tn Heb “I will not bring it [or “him”] back.” The translation understands the pronominal object to refer to the decree of judgment that follows; the referent (the decree) has been specified in the translation for clarity. For another option see the note on the word “judgment” in 1:3.
[1:13] 67 sn The Ammonites ripped open Gilead’s pregnant women in conjunction with a military invasion designed to expand their territory. Such atrocities, although repugnant, were not uncommon in ancient Near Eastern warfare.
[1:10] 68 tn Heb “from.” The preposition is used here with a causal sense.
[1:10] 69 tn Heb “because of the slaughter and because of the violence.” These two expressions form a hendiadys meaning “because of the violent slaughter.” Traditional understanding connects the first phrase “because of the slaughter” with the end of v. 9 (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NLT). It is preferable, however, to regard it as parallel to the reference to violence at the beginning of v. 11. Both the parallel linguistic structure of the two phrases and the metrical structure of the verse favor connecting this phrase with the beginning of v. 10 (cf. NRSV, TEV).
[1:10] 70 tn Heb “the violence of your brother.” The genitive construction is to be understood as an objective genitive. The meaning is not that Jacob has perpetrated violence (= subjective genitive), but that violence has been committed against him (= objective genitive).
[1:10] 71 tn Heb “your brother Jacob” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NCV “your relatives, the Israelites.”
[1:10] 72 tn Heb “be cut off” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV).
[1:11] 73 tn Heb “in the day of your standing”; NAB “On the day when you stood by.”
[1:11] 74 tn Or perhaps, “wealth” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). The Hebrew word is somewhat ambiguous here. This word also appears in v. 13, where it clearly refers to wealth.
[1:11] 75 tc The present translation follows the Qere which reads the plural (“gates”) rather than the singular.
[1:11] 76 sn Casting lots seems to be a way of deciding who would gain control over material possessions and enslaved peoples following a military victory.
[1:11] 77 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[1:11] 78 tn Heb “like one from them”; NASB “You too were as one of them.”
[1:12] 79 tn In vv. 12-14 there are eight prohibitions which summarize the nature of the Lord’s complaint against Edom. Each prohibition alludes to something that Edom did to Judah that should not have been done by one “brother” to another. It is because of these violations that the Lord has initiated judgment against Edom. In the Hebrew text these prohibitions are expressed by אַל (’al, “not”) plus the jussive form of the verb, which is common in negative commands of immediate urgency. Such constructions would normally have the sense of prohibiting something either not yet begun (i.e., “do not start to …”) or something already in process at the time of speaking (i.e., “stop…”). Here, however, it seems more likely that the prohibitions refer to a situation in past rather than future time (i.e., “you should not have …”). If so, the verbs are being used in a rhetorical fashion, as though the prophet were vividly projecting himself back into the events that he is describing and urging the Edomites not to do what in fact they have already done.
[1:12] 80 tn The Hebrew expression “to look upon” often has the sense of “to feast the eyes upon” or “to gloat over” (cf. v. 13).
[1:12] 81 tn Heb “your brother” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV); NCV “your brother Israel.”
[1:12] 82 tn Heb “in the day of your brother, in the day of his calamity.” This expression is probably a hendiadys meaning, “in the day of your brother’s calamity.” The Hebrew word נָכְרוֹ (nokhro, “his calamity”)_is probably a word-play on נָכְרִים (nokherim, “foreigners”) in v. 11.
[1:12] 83 tn Heb “in the day of their destruction” (so KJV, NASB, NIV); NAB, NRSV “on the day of their ruin.”
[1:12] 84 tn Or “boasted with your mouth.” The Hebrew text includes the phrase “with your mouth,” which is redundant in English and has been left untranslated.
[1:12] 85 tn Heb “in the day of adversity”; NASB “in the day of their distress.”
[1:13] 86 tn Heb “the gate.” The term “gate” here functions as a synecdoche for the city as a whole, which the Edomites plundered.
[1:13] 87 tn Heb “in the day of their distress.” The phrase is used three times in this verse; the Hebrew word translated “distress” (אֵידָם, ’edam) is a wordplay on the name Edom. For stylistic reasons and to avoid monotony, in the present translation this phrase is rendered: “when they experienced distress,” “when they suffered distress,” and “when they endured distress.”
[1:13] 88 tn Heb “you, also you.”
[1:13] 89 tn Heb “in the day of his distress.” In this and the following phrase at the end of v. 13 the suffix is 3rd person masculine singular. As collective singulars both occurrences have been translated as plurals (“they suffered distress…endured distress” rather than “he suffered distress…endured distress”).
[1:13] 90 tc In the MT the verb is feminine plural, but the antecedent is unclear. The Hebrew phrase תִּשְׁלַחְנָה (tishlakhnah) here should probably be emended to read תִּשְׁלַח יָד (tishlakh yad), although yad (“hand”) is not absolutely essential to this idiom.
[1:13] 91 tn See the note on the phrase “suffered distress” in the previous line.
[1:14] 92 tn The meaning of the Hebrew word פֶּרֶק (pereq; here translated “fork in the road”) is uncertain. The word is found in the Hebrew Bible only here and in Nah 3:1, where it means “plunder.” In the present context it seems to refer to a strategic intersection or fork in a road where bands of Edomites apprehended Israelites who were fleeing from the attack on Jerusalem. Cf. NAB, NIV, NLT “crossroads”; NRSV “crossings.”
[1:14] 93 tn Heb “to cut off” (so KJV, NRSV); NASB, NIV “to cut down.”
[1:14] 94 tn Heb “his fugitives”; NAB, CEV “refugees.”
[1:14] 95 tn Heb “in the day of distress” (so KJV, ASV).
[1:15] 96 sn The term יוֹם (yom, “day”) is repeated ten times in vv. 11-14 referring to the time period when Judah/Jerusalem suffered calamity which Edom exploited for its own sinful gain. In each of those cases יוֹם was qualified by a following genitive to describe Judah’s plight, e.g., “in the day of your brother’s calamity” (v. 12). Here it appears again but now followed by the divine name to describe the time of God’s judgment against Edom for its crimes against humanity: “the day of the
[1:15] 97 tn Heb “near” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NCV “is coming soon.”
[1:15] 98 sn God’s judgment would not be confined to Edom. Edom would certainly be punished in just measure for its wrongdoing, but “the day of the Lord” would also encompass judgment of the nations (v. 15).
[1:15] 99 tn Heb “your deed will return on your own head.” Verses 15 and 16 provide an example of ironic reversal, whereby the tables are turned and poetic justice is served. This is a motif that is common in prophetic oracles against foreign nations.
[1:16] 100 tn The identification of the referent of “you” in v. 16a is uncertain. There are three major options: (1) On the surface, it would appear to be Edom, which is addressed in v. 15b and throughout the prophecy. However, when Edom is addressed, second person singular forms are normally used in the Hebrew. In v. 16a the Hebrew verb “you drank” is a plural form שְׁתִיתֶם (shÿtitem), perhaps suggesting that Edom is no longer addressed, at least solely. Perhaps Edom and the nations, mentioned in v. 15a, are both addressed in v. 16a. However, since the nations are referred to in the third person in v. 16b, it seems unlikely that they are addressed here. (2) Another option is to take the final mem (ם) on the Hebrew verb form (שְׁתִיתֶם) as an enclitic particle and revocalize the form as a singular verb (שָׁתִיתָ, shatita) addressed to Edom. In this case v. 16a would allude to the time when Edom celebrated Jerusalem’s defeat on Mount Zion, God’s “holy hill.” Verse 16b would then make the ironic point that just as Edom once drank in victory, so the nations (Edom included) would someday drink the cup of judgment. However, this interpretation is problematic for it necessitates taking the drinking metaphor in different ways (as signifying celebration and then judgment) within the same verse. (3) Another option is that the exiled people of Judah are addressed. Just as God’s people were forced to drink the intoxicating wine of divine judgment, so the nations, including those who humiliated Judah, would be forced to drink this same wine. However, the problem here is that God’s people are never addressed elsewhere in the prophecy, making this approach problematic as well.
[1:16] 101 sn This reference to drinking portrays the profane activities of those who had violated Jerusalem’s sanctity. The following reference to drinking on the part of the nations portrays God’s judgment upon them. They will drink, as it were, from the cup of divine retribution.
[1:16] 102 sn The judgment is compared here to intoxicating wine, which the nations are forced to keep drinking (v. 16). Just as an intoxicating beverage eventually causes the one drinking it to become disoriented and to stagger, so God’s judgment would cause the panic-stricken nations to stumble around in confusion. This extended metaphor is paralleled in Jer 49:12 which describes God’s imminent judgment on Edom, “If even those who did not deserve to drink from the cup of my wrath have to drink from it, do you think you will go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, but you also will certainly drink from the cup of my wrath.” There are numerous parallels between Obadiah and the oracle against Edom in Jer 49:1-22, so perhaps the latter should be used to help understand the enigmatic metaphor here in v. 16.
[4:11] 103 tn Heb “let her be desecrated.” the referent (Jerusalem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[4:11] 104 tn Heb “and let our eye look upon Zion.”
[5:6] 105 tn Or perhaps “break”; or “defeat.”
[5:6] 106 sn According to Gen 10:8-12, Nimrod, who was famous as a warrior and hunter, founded Assyria.
[5:6] 107 tc The MT reads “in her gates,” but the text should be emended to בַּפְּתִיחָה (baptikhah, “with a drawn sword”).
[5:6] 108 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the coming king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:10] 109 tn Heb “who say.” A new sentence was begun here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[7:10] 110 tn Heb “My eyes will look on them.”
[7:10] 111 tn Heb “a trampled-down place.”
[2:8] 114 tn Heb “because of the shed blood of humankind and violence against land, city.” The singular forms אֶרֶץ (’erets, “land”) and קִרְיָה (qiryah, “city”) are collective, referring to all the lands and cities terrorized by the Babylonians.
[2:17] 115 tn Heb “for the violence against Lebanon will cover you.”
[2:17] 116 tc The Hebrew appears to read literally, “and the violence against the animals [which] he terrified.” The verb form יְחִיתַן (yÿkhitan) appears to be a Hiphil imperfect third masculine singular with third feminine plural suffix (the antecedent being the animals) from חָתַת (khatat, “be terrified”). The translation above follows the LXX and assumes a reading יְחִתֶּךָ (yÿkhittekha, “[the violence against the animals] will terrify you”; cf. NRSV “the destruction of the animals will terrify you”; NIV “and your destruction of animals will terrify you”). In this case the verb is a Hiphil imperfect third masculine singular with second masculine singular suffix (the antecedent being Babylon). This provides better symmetry with the preceding line, where Babylon’s violence is the subject of the verb “cover.”
[2:17] sn The language may anticipate Nebuchadnezzar’s utilization of trees from the Lebanon forest in building projects. Lebanon and its animals probably represent the western Palestinian states conquered by the Babylonians.
[2:8] 117 tn Heb “who.” A new sentence was begun here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[2:8] 118 tn Heb “and they made great [their mouth?] against their territory.” Other possible translation options include (1) “they enlarged their own territory” (cf. NEB) and (2) “they bragged about [the size] of their own territory.”
