Yeremia 4:28

4:28 Because of this the land will mourn

and the sky above will grow black. ¹ 

For I have made my purpose known ² 

and I will not relent or turn back from carrying it out.” ³ 

Ayub 9:7

9:7 he who commands the sun and ⁴  it does not shine ⁵ 

and seals up ⁶  the stars;

Ayub 30:26

30:26 But when I hoped for good, trouble came;

when I expected light, then darkness came.

Yesaya 5:30

5:30 At that time ⁷  they will growl over their prey, ⁸ 

it will sound like sea waves crashing against rocks. ⁹ 

One will look out over the land and see the darkness of disaster,

clouds will turn the light into darkness. ¹⁰ 

Yesaya 59:9

Israel Confesses its Sin

59:9 For this reason deliverance ¹¹  is far from us ¹² 

and salvation does not reach us.

We wait for light, ¹³  but see only darkness; ¹⁴ 

we wait for ¹⁵  a bright light, ¹⁶  but live ¹⁷  in deep darkness. ¹⁸ 

Ratapan 3:2

3:2 He drove me into captivity ¹⁹  and made me walk ²⁰ 

in darkness and not light.

[4:28]  ¹ sn The earth and the heavens are personified here and depicted in the act of mourning and wearing black clothes because of the destruction of the land of Israel.

[4:28]  ² tn Heb “has spoken and purposed.” This is an example of hendiadys where two verbs are joined by “and” but one is meant to serve as a modifier of the other.

[4:28]  ³ tn Heb “will not turn back from it.”

[9:7]  ⁴ tn The form could also be subordinated, “that it shine not” (see further GKC 323 §109.g).

[9:7]  ⁵ tn The verb זָרַח (zarakh) means “rise.” This is the ordinary word for the sunrise. But here it probably has the idea of “shine; glisten,” which is also attested in Hebrew and Aramaic.

[9:7]  sn There are various views on the meaning of this line in this verse. Some think it refers to some mysterious darkness like the judgment in Egypt (Exod 10:21-23), or to clouds building (3:5), often in accompaniment of earthquakes (see Joel 2:10, 3:15-16; Isa 13:10-13). It could also refer to an eclipse. All this assumes that the phenomenon here is limited to the morning or the day; but it could simply be saying that God controls light and darkness.

[9:7]  ⁶ tn The verb חָתַם (khatam) with בְּעַד (bÿ’ad) before its complement, means “to seal; to wall up; to enclose.” This is a poetic way of saying that God prevents the stars from showing their light.

[5:30]  ⁷ tn Or “in that day” (KJV).

[5:30]  ⁸ tn Heb “over it”; the referent (the prey) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:30]  ⁹ tn Heb “like the growling of the sea.”

[5:30]  ¹⁰ 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.”

[5:30]  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).

[59:9]  ¹¹ tn מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat), which refers to “justice” in the earlier verses, here refers to “justice from God,” or “vindication.” Because the people are unjust, God refuses to vindicate them before their enemies. See v. 11.

[59:9]  ¹² sn The prophet speaks on behalf of the sinful nation and confesses its sins.

[59:9]  ¹³ sn Light here symbolizes prosperity and blessing.

[59:9]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “but, look, darkness”; NIV “but all is darkness.”

[59:9]  ¹⁵ tn The words “we wait for” are supplied in the translation; the verb is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[59:9]  ¹⁶ tn The plural noun form may indicate degree here.

[59:9]  ¹⁷ tn Or “walk about”; NCV “all we have is darkness.”

[59:9]  ¹⁸ tn The plural noun form may indicate degree here.

[3:2]  ¹⁹ tn The verb נָהַג (nahag) describes the process of directing (usually a group of) something along a route, hence commonly “to drive,” when describing flocks, caravans, or prisoners and spoils of war (1 Sam 23:5; 30:2). But with people it may also have a positive connotation “to shepherd” or “to guide” (Ps 48:14; 80:1). The line plays on this through the reversal of expectations. Rather than being safely shepherded by the Lord their king, he has driven them away into captivity.

[3:2]  ²⁰ tn The Hiphil of הָלַךְ (halakh, “to walk”) may be nuanced either “brought” (BDB 236 s.v. 1) or “caused to walk” (BDB 237 s.v. 5.a).