Kejadian 4:13

4:13 Then Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment ¹  is too great to endure! ² 

Imamat 19:8

19:8 and the one who eats it will bear his punishment for iniquity ³  because he has profaned ⁴  what is holy to the Lord. ⁵  That person will be cut off from his people. ⁶ 

Bilangan 5:31

5:31 Then the man will be free from iniquity, but that woman will bear the consequences ⁷  of her iniquity.’” ⁸ 

Mazmur 38:4

38:4 For my sins overwhelm me; ⁹ 

like a heavy load, they are too much for me to bear.

Yesaya 53:11

53:11 Having suffered, he will reflect on his work,

he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. ¹⁰ 

“My servant ¹¹  will acquit many, ¹² 

for he carried their sins. ¹³ 

[4:13]  ¹ tn The primary meaning of the Hebrew word עָוֹן (’avon) is “sin, iniquity.” But by metonymy it can refer to the “guilt” of sin, or to “punishment” for sin. The third meaning applies here. Just before this the Lord announces the punishment for Cain’s actions, and right after this statement Cain complains of the severity of the punishment. Cain is not portrayed as repenting of his sin.

[4:13]  ² tn Heb “great is my punishment from bearing.” The preposition מִן (min, “from”) is used here in a comparative sense.

[19:8]  ³ tn See the note on Lev 17:16 above.

[19:8]  ⁴ sn Regarding “profaned,” see the note on Lev 10:10 above.

[19:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “the holiness of the Lord.”

[19:8]  ⁶ sn On the “cut off” penalty see the note on Lev 7:20.

[5:31]  ⁷ sn The text does not say what the consequences are. Presumably the punishment would come from God, and not from those administering the test.

[5:31]  ⁸ tn The word “iniquity” can also mean the guilt for the iniquity as well as the punishment of consequences for the iniquity. These categories of meanings grew up through figurative usage (metonymies). Here the idea is that if she is guilty then she must “bear the consequences.”

[38:4]  ⁹ tn Heb “pass over my head.”

[53:11]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “he will be satisfied by his knowledge,” i.e., “when he knows.” The preposition is understood as temporal and the suffix as a subjective genitive. Some take בְּדַעְתּוֹ (bÿda’to, “by his knowledge”) with what follows and translate “by knowledge of him,” understanding the preposition as instrumental and the suffix as objective.

[53:11]  ¹¹ sn The song ends as it began (cf. 52:13-15), with the Lord announcing the servant’s vindication and exaltation.

[53:11]  ¹² tn Heb “he will acquit, a righteous one, my servant, many.” צַדִּיק (tsadiq) may refer to the servant, but more likely it is dittographic (note the preceding verb יַצְדִּיק, yatsdiq). The precise meaning of the verb (the Hiphil of צָדַק, tsadaq) is debated. Elsewhere the Hiphil is used at least six times in the sense of “make righteous” in a legal sense, i.e., “pronounce innocent, acquit” (see Exod 23:7; Deut 25:1; 1 Kgs 8:32 = 2 Chr 6:23; Prov 17:15; Isa 5:23). It can also mean “render justice” (as a royal function, see 2 Sam 15:4; Ps 82:3), “concede” (Job 27:5), “vindicate” (Isa 50:8), and “lead to righteousness” (by teaching and example, Dan 12:3). The preceding context and the next line suggest a legal sense here. Because of his willingness to carry the people’s sins, the servant is able to “acquit” them.

[53:11]  sn Some (e.g., H. M. Orlinsky, “The So-called ‘Suffering Servant’ in Isaiah 53,22,” VTSup 14 [1967]: 3-133) object to this legal interpretation of the language, arguing that it would be unjust for the righteous to suffer for the wicked and for the wicked to be declared innocent. However, such a surprising development is consistent with the ironic nature of this song. It does seem unfair for the innocent to die for the guilty. But what is God to do when all have sinned and wandered off like stray sheep (cf. v. 6)? Covenant law demands punishment, but punishment in this case would mean annihilation of what God has created. God’s justice, as demanded by the law, must be satisfied. To satisfy his justice, he does something seemingly unjust. He punishes his sinless servant, the only one who has not strayed off! In the progress of biblical revelation, we discover that the sinless servant is really God in the flesh, who offers himself because he is committed to the world he has created. If his justice can only be satisfied if he himself endures the punishment, then so be it. What appears to be an act of injustice is really love satisfying the demands of justice!

[53:11]  ¹³ tn The circumstantial clause (note the vav [ו] + object + subject + verb pattern) is understood as causal here. The prefixed verb form is either a preterite or an imperfect used in a customary manner.