Mazmur 147:3

147:3 He heals ¹  the brokenhearted,

and bandages their wounds.

Yesaya 30:26

30:26 The light of the full moon will be like the sun’s glare

and the sun’s glare will be seven times brighter,

like the light of seven days, ² 

when the Lord binds up his people’s fractured bones ³ 

and heals their severe wound. ⁴ 

Yeremia 8:22

8:22 There is still medicinal ointment ⁵  available in Gilead!

There is still a physician there! ⁶ 

Why then have my dear people ⁷ 

not been restored to health? ⁸ 

[147:3]  ¹ tn Heb “the one who heals.”

[30:26]  ² sn Light here symbolizes restoration of divine blessing and prosperity. The number “seven” is used symbolically to indicate intensity. The exact meaning of the phrase “the light of seven days” is uncertain; it probably means “seven times brighter” (see the parallel line).

[30:26]  ³ tn Heb “the fracture of his people” (so NASB).

[30:26]  sn The Lord is here compared to a physician setting a broken bone in a bandage or cast.

[30:26]  ⁴ tn Heb “the injury of his wound.” The joining of synonyms emphasizes the severity of the wound. Another option is to translate, “the wound of his blow.” In this case the pronominal suffix might refer to the Lord, not the people, yielding the translation, “the wound which he inflicted.”

[8:22]  ⁵ tn Heb “balm.” The more familiar “ointment” has been used in the translation, supplemented with the adjective “medicinal.”

[8:22]  sn This medicinal ointment (Heb “balm”) consisted of the gum or resin from a tree that grows in Egypt and Palestine and was thought to have medicinal value (see also Jer 46:11).

[8:22]  ⁶ tn Heb “Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there?” In this context the questions are rhetorical and expect a positive answer, which is made explicit in the translation.

[8:22]  sn The prophet means by this metaphor that there are still means available for healing the spiritual ills of his people, mainly repentance, obedience to the law, and sole allegiance to God, and still people available who will apply this medicine to them, namely prophets like himself.

[8:22]  ⁷ tn Heb “daughter of my people.” For the translation given here see 4:11 and the note on the phrase “dear people” there.

[8:22]  ⁸ tn Or more clearly, “restored to spiritual health”; Heb “Why then has healing not come to my dear people?”

[8:22]  sn Jeremiah is lamenting that though there is a remedy available for the recovery of his people they have not availed themselves of it.