Yesaya 3:25--4:1
Konteks3:25 Your 1 men will fall by the sword,
your strong men will die in battle. 2
3:26 Her gates will mourn and lament;
deprived of her people, she will sit on the ground. 3
4:1 Seven women will grab hold of
one man at that time. 4
They will say, “We will provide 5 our own food,
we will provide 6 our own clothes;
but let us belong to you 7 –
take away our shame!” 8
[3:25] 1 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.
[3:25] 2 tn Heb “your strength in battle.” The verb in the first clause provides the verbal idea for the second clause.
[3:26] 3 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.
[4:1] 4 tn Or “in that day” (ASV).
[4:1] 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.
[4:1] 5 tn Heb “eat” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); CEV “buy.”
[4:1] 6 tn Heb “wear” (so NASB, NRSV); NCV “make.”
[4:1] 7 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.
[4:1] 8 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.
