Yesaya 1:1

Heading

1:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem ¹  that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz during the time when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah reigned over Judah. ² 

Yesaya 1:6

1:6 From the soles of your feet to your head,

there is no spot that is unharmed. ³ 

There are only bruises, cuts,

and open wounds.

They have not been cleansed ⁴  or bandaged,

nor have they been treated ⁵  with olive oil. ⁶ 

Yesaya 1:21

Purifying Judgment

1:21 How tragic that the once-faithful city

has become a prostitute! ⁷ 

She was once a center of ⁸  justice,

fairness resided in her,

but now only murderers. ⁹ 

Yesaya 1:26

1:26 I will reestablish honest judges as in former times,

wise advisers as in earlier days. ¹⁰ 

Then you will be called, ‘The Just City,

Faithful Town.’”

Yesaya 4:4

4:4 At that time ¹¹  the sovereign master ¹²  will wash the excrement ¹³  from Zion’s women,

he will rinse the bloodstains from Jerusalem’s midst, ¹⁴ 

as he comes to judge

and to bring devastation. ¹⁵ 

Yesaya 5:9

5:9 The Lord who commands armies told me this: ¹⁶ 

“Many houses will certainly become desolate,

large, impressive houses will have no one living in them. ¹⁷ 

Yesaya 5:14

5:14 So Death ¹⁸  will open up its throat,

and open wide its mouth; ¹⁹ 

Zion’s dignitaries and masses will descend into it,

including those who revel and celebrate within her. ²⁰ 

Yesaya 7:3

7:3 So the Lord told Isaiah, “Go out with your son Shear-jashub ²¹  and meet Ahaz at the end of the conduit of the upper pool which is located on the road to the field where they wash and dry cloth. ²² 

Yesaya 7:19

7:19 All of them will come and make their home ²³  in the ravines between the cliffs, and in the crevices of the cliffs, in all the thorn bushes, and in all the watering holes. ²⁴ 

Yesaya 7:25

7:25 They will stay away from all the hills that were cultivated, for fear of the thorns and briers. ²⁵  Cattle will graze there and sheep will trample on them. ²⁶ 

Yesaya 9:8

God’s Judgment Intensifies

9:8 ²⁷ The sovereign master ²⁸  decreed judgment ²⁹  on Jacob,

and it fell on Israel. ³⁰ 

Yesaya 9:11-13

9:11 Then the Lord provoked ³¹  their adversaries to attack them, ³² 

he stirred up ³³  their enemies –

9:12 Syria from the east,

and the Philistines from the west,

they gobbled up Israelite territory. ³⁴ 

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ³⁵ 

9:13 The people did not return to the one who struck them,

they did not seek reconciliation ³⁶  with the Lord who commands armies.

Yesaya 9:18

9:18 For ³⁷  evil burned like a fire, ³⁸ 

it consumed thorns and briers;

it burned up the thickets of the forest,

and they went up in smoke. ³⁹ 

Yesaya 10:16

10:16 For this reason ⁴⁰  the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, will make his healthy ones emaciated. ⁴¹  His majestic glory will go up in smoke. ⁴² 

Yesaya 10:22

10:22 For though your people, Israel, are as numerous as ⁴³  the sand on the seashore, only a remnant will come back. ⁴⁴  Destruction has been decreed; ⁴⁵  just punishment ⁴⁶  is about to engulf you. ⁴⁷ 

Yesaya 10:26

10:26 The Lord who commands armies is about to beat them ⁴⁸  with a whip, similar to the way he struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb. ⁴⁹  He will use his staff against the sea, lifting it up as he did in Egypt. ⁵⁰ 

Yesaya 10:33

10:33 Look, the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies,

is ready to cut off the branches with terrifying power. ⁵¹ 

The tallest trees ⁵²  will be cut down,

the loftiest ones will be brought low.

Yesaya 12:2

12:2 Look, God is my deliverer! ⁵³ 

I will trust in him ⁵⁴  and not fear.

For the Lord gives me strength and protects me; ⁵⁵ 

he has become my deliverer.” ⁵⁶ 

Yesaya 13:3-4

13:3 I have given orders to my chosen soldiers; ⁵⁷ 

I have summoned the warriors through whom I will vent my anger, ⁵⁸ 

my boasting, arrogant ones. ⁵⁹ 

13:4 ⁶⁰ There is a loud noise on the mountains –

it sounds like a large army! ⁶¹ 

There is great commotion among the kingdoms ⁶²  –

nations are being assembled!

The Lord who commands armies is mustering

forces for battle.

Yesaya 13:19

13:19 Babylon, the most admired ⁶³  of kingdoms,

the Chaldeans’ source of honor and pride, ⁶⁴ 

will be destroyed by God

just as Sodom and Gomorrah were. ⁶⁵ 

Yesaya 15:9

15:9 Indeed, the waters of Dimon ⁶⁶  are full of blood!

Indeed, I will heap even more trouble on Dimon. ⁶⁷ 

A lion will attack ⁶⁸  the Moabite fugitives

and the people left in the land.

Yesaya 16:5

16:5 Then a trustworthy king will be established;

he will rule in a reliable manner,

this one from David’s family. ⁶⁹ 

He will be sure to make just decisions

and will be experienced in executing justice. ⁷⁰ 

Yesaya 17:8

17:8 They will no longer trust in ⁷¹  the altars their hands made,

or depend on the Asherah poles and incense altars their fingers made. ⁷² 

Yesaya 19:7-8

19:7 along with the plants by the mouth of the river. ⁷³ 

All the cultivated land near the river

will turn to dust and be blown away. ⁷⁴ 

19:8 The fishermen will mourn and lament,

all those who cast a fishhook into the river,

and those who spread out a net on the water’s surface will grieve. ⁷⁵ 

Yesaya 21:9-10

21:9 Look what’s coming!

A charioteer,

a team of horses.” ⁷⁶ 

When questioned, he replies, ⁷⁷ 

“Babylon has fallen, fallen!

All the idols of her gods lie shattered on the ground!”

21:10 O my downtrodden people, crushed like stalks on the threshing floor, ⁷⁸ 

what I have heard

from the Lord who commands armies,

the God of Israel,

I have reported to you.

Yesaya 22:2

22:2 The noisy city is full of raucous sounds;

the town is filled with revelry. ⁷⁹ 

Your slain were not cut down by the sword;

they did not die in battle. ⁸⁰ 

Yesaya 22:9

22:9 You saw the many breaks

in the walls of the city of David; ⁸¹ 

you stored up water in the lower pool.

Yesaya 23:4

23:4 Be ashamed, O Sidon,

for the sea ⁸²  says this, O fortress of the sea:

“I have not gone into labor

or given birth;

I have not raised young men

or brought up young women.” ⁸³ 

Yesaya 24:13

24:13 This is what will happen throughout ⁸⁴  the earth,

among the nations.

It will be like when they beat an olive tree,

and just a few olives are left at the end of the harvest. ⁸⁵ 

Yesaya 24:15-16

24:15 So in the east ⁸⁶  extol the Lord,

along the seacoasts extol ⁸⁷  the fame ⁸⁸  of the Lord God of Israel.

24:16 From the ends of the earth we ⁸⁹  hear songs –

the Just One is majestic. ⁹⁰ 

But I ⁹¹  say, “I’m wasting away! I’m wasting away! I’m doomed!

Deceivers deceive, deceivers thoroughly deceive!” ⁹² 

Yesaya 25:1-2

25:1 O Lord, you are my God! ⁹³ 

I will exalt you in praise, I will extol your fame. ⁹⁴ 

For you have done extraordinary things,

and executed plans made long ago exactly as you decreed. ⁹⁵ 

25:2 Indeed, ⁹⁶  you have made the city ⁹⁷  into a heap of rubble,

the fortified town into a heap of ruins;

the fortress of foreigners ⁹⁸  is no longer a city,

it will never be rebuilt.

Yesaya 26:5

26:5 Indeed, ⁹⁹  the Lord knocks down those who live in a high place,

he brings down an elevated town;

he brings it down to the ground, ¹⁰⁰ 

he throws it down to the dust.

Yesaya 27:10

27:10 For the fortified city ¹⁰¹  is left alone;

it is a deserted settlement

and abandoned like the desert.

Calves ¹⁰²  graze there;

they lie down there

and eat its branches bare. ¹⁰³ 

Yesaya 28:22

28:22 So now, do not mock,

or your chains will become heavier!

For I have heard a message about decreed destruction,

from the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, against the entire land. ¹⁰⁴ 

Yesaya 28:28

28:28 Grain is crushed,

though one certainly does not thresh it forever.

The wheel of one’s wagon rolls over it,

but his horses do not crush it.

Yesaya 29:5

29:5 But the horde of invaders will be like fine dust,

the horde of tyrants ¹⁰⁵  like chaff that is blown away.

It will happen suddenly, in a flash.

Yesaya 29:14

29:14 Therefore I will again do an amazing thing for these people –

an absolutely extraordinary deed. ¹⁰⁶ 

Wise men will have nothing to say,

the sages will have no explanations.” ¹⁰⁷ 

Yesaya 30:8

30:8 Now go, write it ¹⁰⁸  down on a tablet in their presence, ¹⁰⁹ 

inscribe it on a scroll,

so that it might be preserved for a future time

as an enduring witness. ¹¹⁰ 

Yesaya 30:33

30:33 For ¹¹¹  the burial place is already prepared; ¹¹² 

it has been made deep and wide for the king. ¹¹³ 

The firewood is piled high on it. ¹¹⁴ 

The Lord’s breath, like a stream flowing with brimstone,

will ignite it.

Yesaya 32:14

32:14 For the fortress is neglected;

the once-crowded ¹¹⁵  city is abandoned.

Hill ¹¹⁶  and watchtower

are permanently uninhabited. ¹¹⁷ 

Wild donkeys love to go there,

and flocks graze there. ¹¹⁸ 

Yesaya 33:8

33:8 Highways are empty, ¹¹⁹ 

there are no travelers. ¹²⁰ 

Treaties are broken, ¹²¹ 

witnesses are despised, ¹²² 

human life is treated with disrespect. ¹²³ 

Yesaya 33:19

33:19 You will no longer see a defiant ¹²⁴  people

whose language you do not comprehend, ¹²⁵ 

whose derisive speech you do not understand. ¹²⁶ 

Yesaya 34:13

34:13 Her fortresses will be overgrown with thorns;

thickets and weeds will grow ¹²⁷  in her fortified cities.

Jackals will settle there;

ostriches will live there. ¹²⁸ 

Yesaya 35:9

35:9 No lions will be there,

no ferocious wild animals will be on it ¹²⁹  –

they will not be found there.

Those delivered from bondage will travel on it,

Yesaya 37:12

37:12 Were the nations whom my predecessors ¹³⁰  destroyed – the nations of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Telassar – rescued by their gods? ¹³¹ 

Yesaya 37:19

37:19 They have burned the gods of the nations, ¹³²  for they are not really gods, but only the product of human hands manufactured from wood and stone. That is why the Assyrians could destroy them. ¹³³ 

Yesaya 39:1

Messengers from Babylon Visit Hezekiah

39:1 At that time Merodach-Baladan son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a gift to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been ill and had recovered.

Yesaya 39:6

39:6 ‘Look, a time is coming when everything in your palace and the things your ancestors ¹³⁴  have accumulated to this day will be carried away to Babylon; nothing will be left,’ says the Lord.

Yesaya 40:15

40:15 Look, the nations are like a drop in a bucket;

they are regarded as dust on the scales.

He lifts ¹³⁵  the coastlands ¹³⁶  as if they were dust.

Yesaya 40:24

40:24 Indeed, they are barely planted;

yes, they are barely sown;

yes, they barely take root in the earth,

and then he blows on them, causing them to dry up,

and the wind carries them away like straw.

Yesaya 40:28

40:28 Do you not know?

Have you not heard?

The Lord is an eternal God,

the creator of the whole earth. ¹³⁷ 

He does not get tired or weary;

there is no limit to his wisdom. ¹³⁸ 

Yesaya 41:14

41:14 Don’t be afraid, despised insignificant Jacob, ¹³⁹ 

men of ¹⁴⁰  Israel.

I am helping you,” says the Lord,

your protector, ¹⁴¹  the Holy One of Israel. ¹⁴² 

Yesaya 42:1

The Lord Commissions His Special Servant

42:1 ¹⁴³ “Here is my servant whom I support,

my chosen one in whom I take pleasure.

I have placed my spirit on him;

he will make just decrees ¹⁴⁴  for the nations. ¹⁴⁵ 

Yesaya 44:14

44:14 He cuts down cedars

and acquires a cypress ¹⁴⁶  or an oak.

He gets ¹⁴⁷  trees from the forest;

he plants a cedar ¹⁴⁸  and the rain makes it grow.

Yesaya 45:4

45:4 For the sake of my servant Jacob,

Israel, my chosen one,

I call you by name

and give you a title of respect, even though you do not recognize ¹⁴⁹  me.

Yesaya 46:1

The Lord Carries His People

46:1 Bel ¹⁵⁰  kneels down,

Nebo ¹⁵¹  bends low.

Their images weigh down animals and beasts. ¹⁵² 

Your heavy images are burdensome to tired animals. ¹⁵³ 

Yesaya 46:11

46:11 who summons an eagle ¹⁵⁴  from the east,

from a distant land, one who carries out my plan.

Yes, I have decreed, ¹⁵⁵ 

yes, I will bring it to pass;

I have formulated a plan,

yes, I will carry it out.

Yesaya 48:3

48:3 “I announced events beforehand, ¹⁵⁶ 

I issued the decrees and made the predictions; ¹⁵⁷ 

suddenly I acted and they came to pass.

Yesaya 48:6

48:6 You have heard; now look at all the evidence! ¹⁵⁸ 

Will you not admit that what I say is true? ¹⁵⁹ 

From this point on I am announcing to you new events

that are previously unrevealed and you do not know about. ¹⁶⁰ 

Yesaya 51:9

51:9 Wake up! Wake up!

Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the Lord! ¹⁶¹ 

Wake up as in former times, as in antiquity!

Did you not smash ¹⁶²  the Proud One? ¹⁶³ 

Did you not ¹⁶⁴  wound the sea monster? ¹⁶⁵ 

Yesaya 53:3

53:3 He was despised and rejected by people, ¹⁶⁶ 

one who experienced pain and was acquainted with illness;

people hid their faces from him; ¹⁶⁷ 

he was despised, and we considered him insignificant. ¹⁶⁸ 

Yesaya 54:5-6

54:5 For your husband is the one who made you –

the Lord who commands armies is his name.

He is your protector, ¹⁶⁹  the Holy One of Israel. ¹⁷⁰ 

He is called “God of the entire earth.”

54:6 “Indeed, the Lord will call you back

like a wife who has been abandoned and suffers from depression, ¹⁷¹ 

like a young wife when she has been rejected,” says your God.

Yesaya 54:8

54:8 In a burst ¹⁷²  of anger I rejected you ¹⁷³  momentarily,

but with lasting devotion I will have compassion on you,”

says your protector, ¹⁷⁴  the Lord.

Yesaya 54:14

54:14 You will be reestablished when I vindicate you. ¹⁷⁵ 

You will not experience oppression; ¹⁷⁶ 

indeed, you will not be afraid.

You will not be terrified, ¹⁷⁷ 

for nothing frightening ¹⁷⁸  will come near you.

Yesaya 55:3

55:3 Pay attention and come to me!

Listen, so you can live! ¹⁷⁹ 

Then I will make an unconditional covenantal promise to ¹⁸⁰  you,

just like the reliable covenantal promises I made to David. ¹⁸¹ 

Yesaya 56:10

56:10 All their watchmen ¹⁸²  are blind,

they are unaware. ¹⁸³ 

All of them are like mute dogs,

unable to bark.

They pant, ¹⁸⁴  lie down,

and love to snooze.

Yesaya 56:12

56:12 Each one says, ¹⁸⁵ 

‘Come on, I’ll get some wine!

Let’s guzzle some beer!

Tomorrow will be just like today!

We’ll have everything we want!’ ¹⁸⁶ 

Yesaya 60:6

60:6 Camel caravans will cover your roads, ¹⁸⁷ 

young camels from Midian and Ephah.

All the merchants of Sheba ¹⁸⁸  will come,

bringing gold and incense

and singing praises to the Lord. ¹⁸⁹ 

Yesaya 60:16

60:16 You will drink the milk of nations;

you will nurse at the breasts of kings. ¹⁹⁰ 

Then you will recognize that I, the Lord, am your deliverer,

your protector, ¹⁹¹  the powerful ruler of Jacob. ¹⁹² 

Yesaya 60:21

60:21 All of your people will be godly; ¹⁹³ 

they will possess the land permanently.

I will plant them like a shoot;

they will be the product of my labor,

through whom I reveal my splendor. ¹⁹⁴ 

Yesaya 62:11

62:11 Look, the Lord announces to the entire earth: ¹⁹⁵ 

“Say to Daughter Zion,

‘Look, your deliverer comes!

Look, his reward is with him

and his reward goes before him!’” ¹⁹⁶ 

Yesaya 63:16

63:16 For you are our father,

though Abraham does not know us

and Israel does not recognize us.

You, Lord, are our father;

you have been called our protector from ancient times. ¹⁹⁷ 

Yesaya 65:2

65:2 I spread out my hands all day long

to my rebellious people,

who lived in a way that is morally unacceptable,

and who did what they desired. ¹⁹⁸ 

Yesaya 65:15

65:15 Your names will live on in the curse formulas of my chosen ones. ¹⁹⁹ 

The sovereign Lord will kill you,

but he will give his servants another name.

[1:1]  ¹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:1]  ² tn Heb “The vision of Isaiah son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, [and] Hezekiah, kings of Judah.”

[1:1]  sn Isaiah’s prophetic career probably began in the final year of Uzziah’s reign (ca. 740 b.c., see Isa 6:1) and extended into the later years of Hezekiah’s reign, which ended in 686 b.c.

[1:6]  ³ tn Heb “there is not in it health”; NAB “there is no sound spot.”

[1:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “pressed out.”

[1:6]  ⁵ tn Heb “softened” (so NASB, NRSV); NIV “soothed.”

[1:6]  ⁶ sn This verse describes wounds like those one would receive in battle. These wounds are comprehensive and without remedy.

[1:21]  ⁷ tn Heb “How she has become a prostitute, the faithful city!” The exclamatory אֵיכָה (’ekhah, “how!”) is used several times as the beginning of a lament (see Lam 1:1; 2;1; 4:1-2). Unlike a number of other OT passages that link references to Israel’s harlotry to idolatry, Isaiah here makes the connection with social and moral violations.

[1:21]  ⁸ tn Heb “filled with.”

[1:21]  ⁹ tn Or “assassins.” This refers to the oppressive rich and/or their henchmen. R. Ortlund (Whoredom, 78) posits that it serves as a synecdoche for all varieties of criminals, the worst being mentioned to imply all lesser ones. Since Isaiah often addressed his strongest rebuke to the rulers and leaders of Israel, he may have in mind the officials who bore the responsibility to uphold justice and righteousness.

[1:26]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “I will restore your judges as in the beginning; and your counselors as in the beginning.” In this context, where social injustice and legal corruption are denounced (see v. 23), the “judges” are probably government officials responsible for making legal decisions, while the “advisers” are probably officials who helped the king establish policies. Both offices are also mentioned in 3:2.

[4:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “when” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); CEV “after”; NRSV “once.”

[4:4]  ¹² tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonai).

[4:4]  ¹³ tn The word refers elsewhere to vomit (Isa 28:8) and fecal material (Isa 36:12). Many English versions render this somewhat euphemistically as “filth” (e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV). Ironically in God’s sight the beautiful jewelry described earlier is nothing but vomit and feces, for it symbolizes the moral decay of the city’s residents (cf. NLT “moral filth”).

[4:4]  ¹⁴ sn See 1:21 for a related concept.

[4:4]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of burning.” The precise meaning of the second half of the verse is uncertain. רוּחַ (ruakh) can be understood as “wind” in which case the passage pictures the Lord using a destructive wind as an instrument of judgment. However, this would create a mixed metaphor, for the first half of the verse uses the imagery of washing and rinsing to depict judgment. Perhaps the image would be that of a windstorm accompanied by heavy rain. רוּחַ can also mean “spirit,” in which case the verse may be referring to the Lord’s Spirit or, more likely, to a disposition that the Lord brings to the task of judgment. It is also uncertain if בָּעַר (ba’ar) here means “burning” or “sweeping away, devastating.”

[5:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “in my ears, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].”

[5:9]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “great and good [houses], without a resident.”

[5:14]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Sheol” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV); the underworld, the land of the dead, according to the OT world view. Cf. NAB “the nether world”; TEV, CEV “the world of the dead”; NLT “the grave.”

[5:14]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “so Sheol will make wide its throat, and open its mouth without limit.”

[5:14]  sn Death is portrayed in both the OT (Prov 1:12; Hab 2:5) and Canaanite myth as voraciously swallowing up its prey. In the myths Death is portrayed as having “a lip to the earth, a lip to the heavens … and a tongue to the stars.” (G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 69, text 5 ii 2-3.) Death describes his own appetite as follows: “But my appetite is the appetite of lions in the waste…If it is in very truth my desire to consume ‘clay’ [a reference to his human victims], then in truth by the handfuls I must eat it, whether my seven portions [indicating fullness and completeness] are already in the bowl or whether Nahar [the god of the river responsible for ferrying victims from the land of the living to the land of the dead] has to mix the cup.” (Driver, 68-69, text 5 i 14-22).

[5:14]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and her splendor and her masses will go down, and her tumult and the one who exults in her.” The antecedent of the four feminine singular pronominal suffixes used in v. 14b is unclear. The likely referent is personified Zion/Jerusalem (see 3:25-26; 4:4-5).

[7:3]  ²¹ tn The name means “a remnant will return.” Perhaps in this context, where the Lord is trying to encourage Ahaz, the name suggests that only a few of the enemy invaders will return home; the rest will be defeated.

[7:3]  ²² tn Heb “the field of the washer”; traditionally “the fuller’s field” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “the Washerman’s Field.”

[7:19]  ²³ tn Heb “and shall rest” (so KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “and settle.”

[7:19]  ²⁴ tn The meaning of this word (נַהֲלֹל, nahalol) is uncertain; some understand this as referring to another type of thorn bush. For bibliography, see HALOT 676 s.v. I *נַהֲלֹל.

[7:25]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and all the hills which were hoed with a hoe, you will not go there [for] fear of the thorns and briers.”

[7:25]  ²⁶ tn Heb “and it will become a pasture for cattle and a trampling place for sheep.”

[7:25]  sn At this point one is able to summarize the content of the “sign” (vv. 14-15) as follows: A young woman known to be present when Isaiah delivered this message to Ahaz (perhaps a member of the royal family or the prophetess mentioned in 8:3) would soon give birth to a boy whom the mother would name Immanuel, “God is with us.” Eventually Immanuel would be forced to eat sour milk and honey, which would enable him to make correct moral decisions. How would this situation come about and how would it constitute a sign? Before this situation developed, the Israelites and Syrians would be defeated. But then the Lord would usher in a period of time unlike any since the division of the kingdom almost 200 years before. The Assyrians would overrun the land, destroy the crops, and force the people to subsist on goats’ milk and honey. At that time, as the people saw Immanuel eating his sour milk and honey, the Davidic family would be forced to acknowledge that God was indeed with them. He was present with them in the Syrian-Israelite crisis, fully capable of rescuing them; but he was also present with them in judgment, disciplining them for their lack of trust. The moral of the story is quite clear: Failure to appropriate God’s promises by faith can turn potential blessing into disciplinary judgment.

[9:8]  ²⁷ sn The following speech (9:8-10:4) assumes that God has already sent judgment (see v. 9), but it also announces that further judgment is around the corner (10:1-4). The speech seems to describe a series of past judgments on the northern kingdom which is ready to intensify further in the devastation announced in 10:1-4. It may have been written prior to the Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom in 734-733 b.c., or sometime between that invasion and the downfall of Samaria in 722 b.c. The structure of the speech displays four panels, each of which ends with the refrain, “Through all this, his anger did not subside; his hand remained outstretched” (9:12b; 17b; 21b; 10:4b): Panel I: (A) Description of past judgment (9:8); (B) Description of the people’s attitude toward past judgment (9:9-10); (C) Description of past judgment (9:11-12a); (D) Refrain (9:12b); Panel II: (A) Description of the people’s attitude toward past judgment (9:13); (B) Description of past judgment (9:14-17a); (C) Refrain (9:17b); Panel III: (A) Description of past judgment (9:18-21a); (B) Refrain (9:21b); Panel IV: (A) Woe oracle announcing future judgment (10:1-4a); (B) Refrain (10:4b).

[9:8]  ²⁸ tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in v. 17 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[9:8]  ²⁹ tn Heb “sent a word” (so KJV, ASV, NRSV); NASB “sends a message.”

[9:8]  ³⁰ tn The present translation assumes that this verse refers to judgment that had already fallen. Both verbs (perfects) are taken as indicating simple past; the vav (ו) on the second verb is understood as a simple vav conjunctive. Another option is to understand the verse as describing a future judgment (see 10:1-4). In this case the first verb is a perfect of certitude; the vav on the second verb is a vav consecutive.

[9:11]  ³¹ tn The translation assumes that the prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive continues the narrative of past judgment.

[9:11]  ³² tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “adversaries of Rezin against him [i.e., them].” The next verse describes how the Syrians (over whom Rezin ruled, see 7:1, 8) and the Philistines encroached on Israel’s territory. Since the Syrians and Israelites were allies by 735 b.c. (see 7:1), the hostilities described probably occurred earlier, while Israel was still pro-Assyrian. In this case one might understand the phrase צָרֵי רְצִין (tsare rÿtsin, “adversaries of Rezin”) as meaning “adversaries sent from Rezin.” However, another option, the one chosen in the translation above, is to emend the phrase to צָרָיו (tsarayv, “his [i.e., their] adversaries”). This creates tighter parallelism with the next line (note “his [i.e., their] enemies”). The phrase in the Hebrew text may be explained as virtually dittographic.

[9:11]  ³³ tn The prefixed verbal form is understood as a preterite, used, as is often the case in poetry, without vav consecutive. Note that prefixed forms with vav consecutive both precede (וַיְשַׂגֵּב, vaysaggev, “and he provoked”) and follow in v. 12 (וַיֹּאכְלוּ, vayyo’khÿlu, “and they devoured”) this verb.

[9:12]  ³⁴ tn Heb “and they devoured Israel with all the mouth”; NIV “with open mouth”; NLT “With bared fangs.”

[9:12]  ³⁵ tn Heb “in all this his anger is not turned, and still his hand is outstretched.” One could translate in the past tense here (and in 9:17b and 21b), but the appearance of the refrain in 10:4b, where it follows a woe oracle prophesying a future judgment, suggests it is a dramatic portrait of the judge which did not change throughout this period of past judgment and will remain unchanged in the future. The English present tense is chosen to best reflect this dramatic mood. (See also 5:25b, where the refrain appears following a dramatic description of coming judgment.)

[9:13]  ³⁶ tn This verse describes the people’s response to the judgment described in vv. 11-12. The perfects are understood as indicating simple past.

[9:18]  ³⁷ tn Or “Indeed” (cf. NIV “Surely”). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[9:18]  ³⁸ sn Evil was uncontrollable and destructive, and so can be compared to a forest fire.

[9:18]  ³⁹ tn Heb “and they swirled [with] the rising of the smoke” (cf. NRSV).

[10:16]  ⁴⁰ sn The irrational arrogance of the Assyrians (v. 15) will prompt the judgment about to be described.

[10:16]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “will send leanness against his healthy ones”; NASB, NIV “will send a wasting disease.”

[10:16]  ⁴² tc Heb “and in the place of his glory burning will burn, like the burning of fire.” The highly repetitive text (יֵקַד יְקֹד כִּיקוֹד אֵשׁ, yeqad yiqod kiqod ’esh) may be dittographic; if the second consonantal sequence יקד is omitted, the text would read “and in the place of his glory, it will burn like the burning of fire.”

[10:22]  ⁴³ tn Heb “are like.”

[10:22]  ⁴⁴ sn The twofold appearance of the statement “a remnant will come back” (שְׁאָר יָשׁוּב, she’ar yashuv) in vv. 21-22 echoes and probably plays off the name of Isaiah’s son Shear-jashub (see 7:3). In its original context the name was meant to encourage Ahaz (see the note at 7:3), but here it has taken on new dimensions. In light of Ahaz’s failure and the judgment it brings down on the land, the name Shear-jashub now foreshadows the destiny of the nation. According to vv. 21-22, there is good news and bad news. The good news is that a remnant of God’s people will return; the bad news is that only a remnant will be preserved and come back. Like the name Immanuel, this name foreshadows both judgment (see the notes at 7:25 and 8:8) and ultimate restoration (see the note at 8:10).

[10:22]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “predetermined”; cf. ASV, NASB “is determined”; TEV “is in store.”

[10:22]  ⁴⁶ tn צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah) often means “righteousness,” but here it refers to God’s just judgment.

[10:22]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “is about to overflow.”

[10:26]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “him” (so KJV, ASV, NASB); the singular refers to the leader or king who stands for the entire nation. This is specified by NCV, CEV as “the Assyrians.”

[10:26]  ⁴⁹ sn According to Judg 7:25, the Ephraimites executed the Midianite general Oreb at a rock which was subsequently named after the executed enemy.

[10:26]  ⁵⁰ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and his staff [will be] against the sea, and he will lift it in the way [or “manner”] of Egypt.” If the text is retained, “the sea” symbolizes Assyria’s hostility, the metaphor being introduced because of the reference to Egypt. The translation above assumes an emendation of עַל הַיָּם (’al hayyam, “against the sea”) to עַלֵיהֶם (’alehem, “against them”). The proposed shift from the third singular pronoun (note “beat him” earlier in the verse) to the plural is not problematic, for the singular is collective. Note that a third plural pronoun is used at the end of v. 25 (“their destruction”). The final phrase, “in the way/manner of Egypt,” probably refers to the way in which God used the staff of Moses to bring judgment down on Egypt.

[10:33]  ⁵¹ tc The Hebrew text reads “with terrifying power,” or “with a crash.” מַעֲרָצָה (ma’aratsah, “terrifying power” or “crash”) occurs only here. Several have suggested an emendation to מַעֲצָד (ma’atsad, “ax”) parallel to “ax” in v. 34; see HALOT 615 s.v. מַעֲצָד and H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:448.

[10:33]  sn As in vv. 12 (see the note there) and 18, the Assyrians are compared to a tree/forest in vv. 33-34.

[10:33]  ⁵² tn Heb “the exalted of the height.” This could refer to the highest branches (cf. TEV) or the tallest trees (cf. NIV, NRSV).

[12:2]  ⁵³ tn Or “salvation” (KJV, NIV, NRSV).

[12:2]  ⁵⁴ tn The words “in him” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[12:2]  ⁵⁵ tc The Hebrew text has, “for my strength and protection [is] the Lord, the Lord (Heb “Yah, Yahweh).” The word יְהוָה (yehvah) is probably dittographic or explanatory here (note that the short form of the name [יָהּ, yah] precedes, and that the graphically similar וַיְהִי [vayÿhi] follows). Exod 15:2, the passage from which the words of v. 2b are taken, has only יָהּ. The word זִמְרָת (zimrat) is traditionally understood as meaning “song,” in which case one might translate, “for the Lord gives me strength and joy” (i.e., a reason to sing); note that in v. 5 the verb זָמַר (zamar, “sing”) appears. Many recent commentators, however, have argued that the noun is here instead a homonym, meaning “protection” or “strength.” See HALOT 274 s.v. III *זמר.

[12:2]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “salvation” (so many English versions, e.g., KJV, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “my savior.”

[13:3]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “my consecrated ones,” i.e., those who have been set apart by God for the special task of carrying out his judgment.

[13:3]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “my warriors with respect to my anger.”

[13:3]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “the boasting ones of my pride”; cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV “my proudly exulting ones.”

[13:4]  ⁶⁰ sn In vv. 4-10 the prophet appears to be speaking, since the Lord is referred to in the third person. However, since the Lord refers to himself in the third person later in this chapter (see v. 13), it is possible that he speaks throughout the chapter.

[13:4]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “a sound, a roar [is] on the mountains, like many people.”

[13:4]  ⁶² tn Heb “a sound, tumult of kingdoms.”

[13:19]  ⁶³ tn Or “most beautiful” (NCV, TEV).

[13:19]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “the beauty of the pride of the Chaldeans.”

[13:19]  sn The Chaldeans were a group of tribes who lived in southern Mesopotamia. The established the so-called neo-Babylonian empire in the late seventh century b.c. Their most famous king, Nebuchadnezzar, conquered Judah in 605 b.c. and destroyed Jerusalem in 586 b.c.

[13:19]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “and Babylon…will be like the overthrow by God of Sodom and Gomorrah.” On מַהְפֵּכַת (mahpekhat, “overthrow”) see the note on the word “destruction” in 1:7.

[15:9]  ⁶⁶ tc The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a reads “Dibon” instead of “Dimon” in this verse.

[15:9]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “Indeed I will place on Dimon added things.” Apparently the Lord is speaking.

[15:9]  ⁶⁸ tn The words “will attack” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[16:5]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “and a throne will be established in faithfulness, and he will sit on it in reliability, in the tent of David.”

[16:5]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “one who judges and seeks justice, and one experienced in fairness.” Many understand מְהִר (mÿhir) to mean “quick, prompt” (see BDB 555 s.v. מָהִיר), but HALOT 552 s.v. מָהִיר offers the meaning “skillful, experienced,” and translates the phrase in v. 5 “zealous for what is right.”

[17:8]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “he will not gaze toward.”

[17:8]  ⁷² tn Heb “and that which his fingers made he will not see, the Asherah poles and the incense altars.”

[19:7]  ⁷³ tn Heb “the plants by the river, by the mouth of the river.”

[19:7]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “will dry up, [being] scattered, and it will vanish.”

[19:8]  ⁷⁵ tn Or perhaps, “will disappear”; cf. TEV “will be useless.”

[21:9]  ⁷⁶ tn Or “[with] teams of horses,” or perhaps, “with a pair of horsemen.”

[21:9]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “and he answered and said” (so KJV, ASV).

[21:10]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “My trampled one, and the son of the threshing floor.”

[22:2]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “the boisterous town.” The phrase is parallel to “the noisy city” in the preceding line.

[22:2]  ⁸⁰ sn Apparently they died from starvation during the siege that preceded the final conquest of the city. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:409.

[22:9]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “the breaks of the city of David, you saw that they were many.”

[23:4]  ⁸² tn J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:430-31) sees here a reference to Yam, the Canaanite god of the sea. He interprets the phrase מָעוֹז הַיָּם (ma’oz hayyam, “fortress of the sea”) as a title of Yam, translating “Mighty One of the Sea.” A more traditional view is that the phrase refers to Sidon.

[23:4]  ⁸³ tn Or “virgins” (KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB).

[23:4]  sn The sea is personified here as a lamenting childless woman. The foreboding language anticipates the following announcement of Tyre’s demise, viewed here as a child of the sea, as it were.

[24:13]  ⁸⁴ tn Heb “in the midst of” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).

[24:13]  ⁸⁵ sn The judgment will severely reduce the earth’s population. See v. 6.

[24:15]  ⁸⁶ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “in the lights,” interpreted by some to mean “in the region of light,” referring to the east. Some scholars have suggested the emendation of בָּאֻרִים (ba’urim) to בְּאִיֵּי הַיָּם (bÿ’iyyey hayyam, “along the seacoasts”), a phrase that is repeated in the next line. In this case, the two lines form synonymous parallelism. If one retains the MT reading (as above), “in the east” and “along the seacoasts” depict the two ends of the earth to refer to all the earth (as a merism).

[24:15]  ⁸⁷ tn The word “extol” is supplied in the translation; the verb in the first line does double duty in the parallelism.

[24:15]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “name,” which here stands for God’s reputation achieved by his mighty deeds.

[24:16]  ⁸⁹ sn The identity of the subject is unclear. Apparently in vv. 15-16a an unidentified group responds to the praise they hear in the west by exhorting others to participate.

[24:16]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “Beauty belongs to the just one.” These words may summarize the main theme of the songs mentioned in the preceding line.

[24:16]  ⁹¹ sn The prophet seems to contradict what he hears the group saying. Their words are premature because more destruction is coming.

[24:16]  ⁹² tn Heb “and [with] deception deceivers deceive.”

[24:16]  tn Verse 16b is a classic example of Hebrew wordplay. In the first line (“I’m wasting away…”) four consecutive words end with hireq yod ( ִי); in the second line all forms are derived from the root בָּגַד (bagad). The repetition of sound draws attention to the prophet’s lament.

[25:1]  ⁹³ sn The prophet speaks here as one who has observed the coming judgment of the proud.

[25:1]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “name.” See the note at 24:15.

[25:1]  ⁹⁵ tn Heb “plans from long ago [in] faithfulness, trustworthiness.” The feminine noun אֱמוּנָה (’emunah, “faithfulness”) and masculine noun אֹמֶן (’omen, “trustworthiness”), both of which are derived from the root אָמַן (’aman), are juxtaposed to emphasize the basic idea conveyed by the synonyms. Here they describe the absolute reliability of the divine plans.

[25:2]  ⁹⁶ tn Or “For” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[25:2]  ⁹⁷ tn The Hebrew text has “you have made from the city.” The prefixed mem (מ) on עִיר (’ir, “city”) was probably originally an enclitic mem suffixed to the preceding verb. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:456, n. 3.

[25:2]  ⁹⁸ tc Some with support from the LXX emend זָרִים (zarim, “foreigners”) to זֵדִים (zedim, “the insolent”).

[26:5]  ⁹⁹ tn Or “For” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[26:5]  ¹⁰⁰ tn The translation assumes that יַשְׁפִּילֶנָּה (yashpilennah) goes with the preceding words “an elevated town,” and that יַשְׁפִּילָהּ (yashpilah) belongs with the following words, “to the ground.” See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:469, n. 7.

[27:10]  ¹⁰¹ sn The identity of this city is uncertain. The context suggests that an Israelite city, perhaps Samaria or Jerusalem, is in view. For discussions of interpretive options see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:496-97, and Paul L. Redditt, “Once Again, the City in Isaiah 24-27,” HAR 10 (1986), 332.

[27:10]  ¹⁰² tn The singular form in the text is probably collective.

[27:10]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “and destroy her branches.” The city is the antecedent of the third feminine singular pronominal suffix. Apparently the city is here compared to a tree. See also v. 11.

[28:22]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Or “the whole earth” (KJV, ASV, NAB, NCV).

[29:5]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Or “violent men”; cf. NASB “the ruthless ones.”

[29:14]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “Therefore I will again do something amazing with these people, an amazing deed, an amazing thing.” This probably refers to the amazing transformation predicted in vv. 17-24, which will follow the purifying judgment implied in vv. 15-16.

[29:14]  ¹⁰⁷ tn Heb “the wisdom of their wise ones will perish, the discernment of their discerning ones will keep hidden.”

[30:8]  ¹⁰⁸ tn The referent of the third feminine singular pronominal suffix is uncertain. Perhaps it refers to the preceding message, which accuses the people of rejecting the Lord’s help in favor of an alliance with Egypt.

[30:8]  ¹⁰⁹ tn Heb “with them.” On the use of the preposition here, see BDB 86 s.v. II אֵת.

[30:8]  ¹¹⁰ sn Recording the message will enable the prophet to use it in the future as evidence that God warned his people of impending judgment and clearly spelled out the nation’s guilt. An official record of the message will also serve as proof of the prophet’s authority as God’s spokesman.

[30:33]  ¹¹¹ tn Or “indeed.”

[30:33]  ¹¹² tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “for arranged from before [or “yesterday”] is [?].” The meaning of תָּפְתֶּה (tafÿteh), which occurs only here, is unknown. The translation above (as with most English versions) assumes an emendation to תֹּפֶת (tofet, “Topheth”; cf. NASB, NIV, NLT) and places the final hey (ה) on the beginning of the next word as an interrogative particle. Topheth was a place near Jerusalem used as a burial ground (see Jer 7:32; 19:11).

[30:33]  ¹¹³ tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “Also it is made ready for the king, one makes it deep and wide.” If one takes the final hey (ה) on תָּפְתֶּה (tafÿteh) and prefixes it to גָּם (gam) as an interrogative particle (see the preceding note), one can translate, “Is it also made ready for the king?” In this case the question is rhetorical and expects an emphatic affirmative answer, “Of course it is!”

[30:33]  ¹¹⁴ tn Heb “its pile of wood, fire and wood one makes abundant.”

[30:33]  sn Apparently this alludes to some type of funeral rite.

[32:14]  ¹¹⁵ tn Or “noisy” (NAB, NIV, NCV).

[32:14]  ¹¹⁶ tn Hebrew עֹפֶל (’ofel), probably refers here to a specific area within the city of Jerusalem. See HALOT 861 s.v. II עֹפֶל.

[32:14]  ¹¹⁷ tn The Hebrew text has בְעַד מְעָרוֹת (vÿ’ad mÿ’arot). The force of בְעַד, which usually means “behind, through, round about,” or “for the benefit of,” is uncertain here. HALOT 616 s.v. *מְעָרָה takes מְעָרוֹת (mÿ’arot) as a homonym of “cave” and define it here as “cleared field.” Despite these lexical problems, the general point of the statement seems clear – the city will be uninhabited.

[32:14]  ¹¹⁸ tn Heb “the joy of wild donkeys, a pasture for flocks.”

[33:8]  ¹¹⁹ tn Or “desolate” (NAB, NASB); NIV, NRSV, NLT “deserted.”

[33:8]  ¹²⁰ tn Heb “the one passing by on the road ceases.”

[33:8]  ¹²¹ tn Heb “one breaks a treaty”; NAB “Covenants are broken.”

[33:8]  ¹²² tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “he despises cities.” The term עָרִים (’arim, “cities”) is probably a corruption of an original עֵדִים (’edim, “[legal] witnesses”), a reading that is preserved in the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a. Confusion of dalet (ד) and resh (ר) is a well-attested scribal error.

[33:8]  ¹²³ tn Heb “he does not regard human beings.”

[33:19]  ¹²⁴ tn The Hebrew form נוֹעָז (no’az) is a Niphal participle derived from יָעַז (ya’az, an otherwise unattested verb) or from עָזָז (’azaz, “be strong,” unattested elsewhere in the Niphal). Some prefer to emend the form to לוֹעֵז (lo’ez) which occurs in Ps 114:1 with the meaning “speak a foreign language.” See HALOT 809 s.v. עזז, 533 s.v. לעז. In this case, one might translate “people who speak a foreign language.”

[33:19]  ¹²⁵ tn Heb “a people too deep of lip to hear.” The phrase “deep of lip” must be an idiom meaning “lips that speak words that are unfathomable [i.e., incomprehensible].”

[33:19]  ¹²⁶ tn Heb “derision of tongue there is no understanding.” The Niphal of לָעַג (la’ag) occurs only here. In the Qal and Hiphil the verb means “to deride, mock.” A related noun is used in 28:11.

[34:13]  ¹²⁷ tn The words “will grow” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[34:13]  ¹²⁸ tc Heb “and she will be a settlement for wild dogs, a dwelling place for ostriches.” The translation assumes an emendation of חָצִיר (khatsir, “grass”) to חָצֵר (khatser, “settlement”). One of the Qumran scrolls of Isaiah (1QIsa^a) supports this emendation (cf. HALOT 344 s.v. II חָצִיר)

[35:9]  ¹²⁹ tn Heb “will go up on it”; TEV “will pass that way.”

[37:12]  ¹³⁰ tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “forefathers”; NCV “ancestors.”

[37:12]  ¹³¹ tn Heb “Did the gods of the nations whom my fathers destroyed rescue them – Gozan and Haran, and Rezeph and the sons of Eden who are in Telassar?”

[37:19]  ¹³² tn Heb “and they put their gods in the fire.”

[37:19]  ¹³³ tn Heb “so they destroyed them” (NASB similar).

[39:6]  ¹³⁴ tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV).

[40:15]  ¹³⁵ tn Or “weighs” (NIV); NLT “picks up.”

[40:15]  ¹³⁶ tn Or “islands” (NASB, NIV, NLT).

[40:28]  ¹³⁷ tn Heb “the ends of the earth,” but this is a merism, where the earth’s extremities stand for its entirety, i.e., the extremities and everything in between them.

[40:28]  ¹³⁸ sn Exiled Israel’s complaint (v. 27) implies that God might be limited in some way. Perhaps he, like so many of the pagan gods, has died. Or perhaps his jurisdiction is limited to Judah and does not include Babylon. Maybe he is unable to devise an adequate plan to rescue his people, or is unable to execute it. But v. 28 affirms that he is not limited temporally or spatially nor is his power and wisdom restricted in any way. He can and will deliver his people, if they respond in hopeful faith (v. 31a).

[41:14]  ¹³⁹ tn Heb “O worm Jacob” (NAB, NIV). The worm metaphor suggests that Jacob is insignificant and despised.

[41:14]  ¹⁴⁰ tn On the basis of the parallelism (note “worm”) and an alleged Akkadian cognate, some read “louse” or “weevil.” Cf. NAB “O maggot Israel”; NRSV “you insect Israel.”

[41:14]  ¹⁴¹ tn Heb “your kinsman redeemer.” A גָּאַל (ga’al, “kinsman redeemer”) was a protector of the extended family’s interests.

[41:14]  ¹⁴² sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[42:1]  ¹⁴³ sn Verses 1-7 contain the first of Isaiah’s “servant songs,” which describe the ministry of a special, ideal servant who accomplishes God’s purposes for Israel and the nations. This song depicts the servant as a just king who brings justice to the earth and relief for the oppressed. The other songs appear in 49:1-13; 50:4-11; and 52:13-53:12.

[42:1]  ¹⁴⁴ tn Heb “he will bring out justice” (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[42:1]  ¹⁴⁵ sn Like the ideal king portrayed in Isa 11:1-9, the servant is energized by the divine spirit and establishes justice on the earth.

[44:14]  ¹⁴⁶ tn It is not certain what type of tree this otherwise unattested noun refers to. Cf. ASV “a holm-tree” (NRSV similar).

[44:14]  ¹⁴⁷ tn Heb “strengthens for himself,” i.e., “secures for himself” (see BDB 55 s.v. אָמֵץ Pi.2).

[44:14]  ¹⁴⁸ tn Some prefer to emend אֹרֶן (’oren) to אֶרֶז (’erez, “cedar”), but the otherwise unattested noun appears to have an Akkadian cognate, meaning “cedar.” See H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 44-45. HALOT 90 s.v. I אֹרֶן offers the meaning “laurel.”

[45:4]  ¹⁴⁹ tn Or “know” (NCV, NRSV, TEV, NLT); NIV “acknowledge.”

[46:1]  ¹⁵⁰ sn Bel was the name of a Babylonian god. The name was originally associated with Enlil, but later was applied to Marduk. See HALOT 132 s.v. בֵּל.

[46:1]  ¹⁵¹ sn Nebo is a variation of the name of the Babylonian god Nabu.

[46:1]  ¹⁵² tn Heb “their images belong to animals and beasts”; NIV “their idols are borne by beasts of burden”; NLT “are being hauled away.”

[46:1]  ¹⁵³ tn Heb “your loads are carried [as] a burden by a weary [animal].”

[46:11]  ¹⁵⁴ tn Or, more generally, “a bird of prey” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV; see 18:6).

[46:11]  ¹⁵⁵ tn Heb “spoken”; KJV “I have spoken it.”

[48:3]  ¹⁵⁶ tn Heb “the former things beforehand I declared.”

[48:3]  ¹⁵⁷ tn Heb “and from my mouth they came forth and I caused them to be heard.”

[48:6]  ¹⁵⁸ tn Heb “gaze [at] all of it”; KJV “see all this.”

[48:6]  ¹⁵⁹ tn Heb “[as for] you, will you not declare?”

[48:6]  ¹⁶⁰ tn Heb “and hidden things, and you do not know them.”

[51:9]  ¹⁶¹ tn The arm of the Lord is a symbol of divine military power. Here it is personified and told to arouse itself from sleep and prepare for action.

[51:9]  ¹⁶² tn Heb “Are you not the one who smashed?” The feminine singular forms agree grammatically with the feminine noun “arm.” The Hebrew text has ַהמַּחְצֶבֶת (hammakhtsevet), from the verbal root חָצַב (khatsav, “hew, chop”). The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has, probably correctly, המחצת, from the verbal root מָחַץ (makhats, “smash”) which is used in Job 26:12 to describe God’s victory over “the Proud One.”

[51:9]  ¹⁶³ tn This title (רַהַב, rahav, “proud one”) is sometimes translated as a proper name: “Rahab” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). It is used here of a symbolic sea monster, known elsewhere in the Bible and in Ugaritic myth as Leviathan. This sea creature symbolizes the forces of chaos that seek to destroy the created order. In the Bible “the Proud One” opposes God’s creative work, but is defeated (see Job 26:12; Ps 89:10). Here the title refers to Pharaoh’s Egyptian army that opposed Israel at the Red Sea (see v. 10, and note also Isa 30:7 and Ps 87:4, where the title is used of Egypt).

[51:9]  ¹⁶⁴ tn The words “did you not” are understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line). The rhetorical questions here and in v. 10 expect the answer, “Yes, you certainly did!”

[51:9]  ¹⁶⁵ tn Hebrew תַּנִּין (tannin) is another name for the symbolic sea monster. See the note at 27:1. In this context the sea creature represents Egypt. See the note on the title “Proud One” earlier in this verse.

[53:3]  ¹⁶⁶ tn Heb “lacking of men.” If the genitive is taken as specifying (“lacking with respect to men”), then the idea is that he lacked company because he was rejected by people. Another option is to take the genitive as indicating genus or larger class (i.e., “one lacking among men”). In this case one could translate, “he was a transient” (cf. the use of חָדֵל [khadel] in Ps 39:5 HT [39:4 ET]).

[53:3]  ¹⁶⁷ tn Heb “like a hiding of the face from him,” i.e., “like one before whom the face is hidden” (see BDB 712 s.v. מַסְתֵּר).

[53:3]  ¹⁶⁸ sn The servant is likened to a seriously ill person who is shunned by others because of his horrible disease.

[54:5]  ¹⁶⁹ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[54:5]  ¹⁷⁰ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[54:6]  ¹⁷¹ tn Heb “like a woman abandoned and grieved in spirit.”

[54:8]  ¹⁷² tn According to BDB 1009 s.v. שֶׁטֶף the noun שֶׁצֶף here is an alternate form of שֶׁטֶף (shetef, “flood”). Some relate the word to an alleged Akkadian cognate meaning “strength.”

[54:8]  ¹⁷³ tn Heb “I hid my face from you.”

[54:8]  ¹⁷⁴ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[54:14]  ¹⁷⁵ tn Heb “in righteousness [or “vindication”] you will be established.” The precise meaning of צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah) here is uncertain. It could mean “righteousness, justice,” indicating that the city will be a center for justice. But the context focuses on deliverance, suggesting that the term means “deliverance, vindication” here.

[54:14]  ¹⁷⁶ tn Heb “Be far from oppression!” The imperative is used here in a rhetorical manner to express certainty and assurance. See GKC 324 §110.c.

[54:14]  ¹⁷⁷ tn Heb “from terror.” The rhetorical command, “be far” is understood by ellipsis here. Note the preceding context.

[54:14]  ¹⁷⁸ tn Heb “it,” i.e., the “terror” just mentioned.

[55:3]  ¹⁷⁹ tn The jussive with vav (ו) conjunctive following the imperative indicates purpose/result.

[55:3]  sn To live here refers to covenantal blessing, primarily material prosperity and national security (see vv. 4-5, 13, and Deut 30:6, 15, 19-20).

[55:3]  ¹⁸⁰ tn Or “an eternal covenant with.”

[55:3]  ¹⁸¹ tn Heb “the reliable expressions of loyalty of David.” The syntactical relationship of חַסְדֵי (khasde, “expressions of loyalty”) to the preceding line is unclear. If the term is appositional to בְּרִית (bÿrit, “covenant”), then the Lord here transfers the promises of the Davidic covenant to the entire nation. Another option is to take חַסְדֵי (khasde) as an adverbial accusative and to translate “according to the reliable covenantal promises.” In this case the new covenantal arrangement proposed here is viewed as an extension or perhaps fulfillment of the Davidic promises. A third option, the one reflected in the above translation, is to take the last line as comparative. In this case the new covenant being proposed is analogous to the Davidic covenant. Verses 4-5, which compare David’s international prominence to what Israel will experience, favors this view. In all three of these interpretations, “David” is an objective genitive; he is the recipient of covenantal promises. A fourth option would be to take David as a subjective genitive and understand the line as giving the basis for the preceding promise: “Then I will make an unconditional covenantal promise to you, because of David’s faithful acts of covenantal loyalty.”

[56:10]  ¹⁸² sn The “watchmen” are probably spiritual leaders, most likely prophets and priests, responsible for giving the people moral direction.

[56:10]  ¹⁸³ tn Heb “they do not know”; KJV “they are all ignorant”; NIV “they all lack knowledge.”

[56:10]  ¹⁸⁴ tn The Hebrew text has הֹזִים (hozim), which appears to be derived from an otherwise unattested verbal root הָזָה (hazah). On the basis of alleged cognates, BDB 223 s.v. הָזָה offers the definition “dream, rave” while HALOT 243 s.v. הזה lists “pant.” In this case the dog metaphor of the preceding lines continues. The reference to dogs at the beginning of v. 11 favors the extension of the metaphor. The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has חזים (“seers”) here. In this case the “watchmen” are directly identified as prophets and depicted as lazy.

[56:12]  ¹⁸⁵ tn The words “each one says” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[56:12]  ¹⁸⁶ tn Heb “great, [in] abundance, very much,” i.e., “very great indeed.” See HALOT 452 s.v. יֶתֶר.

[60:6]  ¹⁸⁷ tn Heb “an abundance of camels will cover you.”

[60:6]  ¹⁸⁸ tn Heb “all of them, from Sheba.”

[60:6]  ¹⁸⁹ tn Heb “and they will announce the praises of the Lord.”

[60:16]  ¹⁹⁰ sn The nations and kings are depicted as a mother nursing her children. Restored Zion will be nourished by them as she receives their wealth as tribute.

[60:16]  ¹⁹¹ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[60:16]  ¹⁹² sn See 1:24 and 49:26.

[60:21]  ¹⁹³ tn Or “righteous” (NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “just.”

[60:21]  ¹⁹⁴ tn Heb “a shoot of his planting, the work of my hands, to reveal splendor.”

[62:11]  ¹⁹⁵ tn Heb “to the end of the earth” (so NASB, NRSV).

[62:11]  ¹⁹⁶ sn As v. 12 indicates, the returning exiles are the Lord’s reward/prize. See also 40:10 and the note there.

[63:16]  ¹⁹⁷ tn Heb “our protector [or “redeemer”] from antiquity [is] your name.”

[65:2]  ¹⁹⁸ tn Heb “who walked [in] the way that is not good, after their thoughts.”

[65:15]  ¹⁹⁹ tn Heb “you will leave your name for an oath to my chosen ones.”

[65:15]  sn For an example of such a curse formula see Jer 29:22.