Yesaya 18:1

The Lord Will Judge a Distant Land in the South

18:1 The land of buzzing wings is as good as dead, ¹ 

the one beyond the rivers of Cush,

Yesaya 37:13

37:13 Where are the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, and the kings of Lair, ²  Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?’”

Yesaya 42:2

42:2 He will not cry out or shout;

he will not publicize himself in the streets. ³ 

[18:1]  ¹ tn Heb “Woe [to] the land of buzzing wings.” On הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) see the note on the first phrase of 1:4.

[18:1]  sn The significance of the qualifying phrase “buzzing wings” is uncertain. Some suggest that the designation points to Cush as a land with many insects. Another possibility is that it refers to the swiftness with which this land’s messengers travel (v. 2a); they move over the sea as swiftly as an insect flies through the air. For a discussion of the options, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:359-60.

[37:13]  ² sn Lair was a city located in northeastern Babylon. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 235.

[42:2]  ³ tn Heb “he will not cause his voice to be heard in the street.”