Yesaya 1:18

1:18 ¹ Come, let’s consider your options,” ²  says the Lord.

“Though your sins have stained you like the color red,

you can become ³  white like snow;

though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet,

you can become ⁴  white like wool. ⁵ 

Yesaya 3:14

3:14 The Lord comes to pronounce judgment

on the leaders of his people and their officials.

He says, ⁶  “It is you ⁷  who have ruined ⁸  the vineyard! ⁹ 

You have stashed in your houses what you have stolen from the poor. ¹⁰ 

Yeremia 2:9

The Lord Charges Contemporary Israel with Spiritual Adultery

2:9 “So, once more I will state my case ¹¹  against you,” says the Lord.

“I will also state it against your children and grandchildren. ¹² 

Yeremia 25:31

25:31 The sounds of battle ¹³  will resound to the ends of the earth.

For the Lord will bring charges against the nations. ¹⁴ 

He will pass judgment on all humankind

and will hand the wicked over to be killed in war.’ ¹⁵ 

The Lord so affirms it! ¹⁶ 

Yehezkiel 17:20

17:20 I will throw my net over him and he will be caught in my snare; I will bring him to Babylon and judge him there because of the unfaithfulness he committed against me.

Yehezkiel 20:35

20:35 I will bring you into the wilderness of the nations, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face.

Mikha 6:1-5

The Lord Demands Justice, not Ritual

6:1 Listen to what the Lord says:

“Get up! Defend yourself ¹⁷  before the mountains! ¹⁸ 

Present your case before the hills!” ¹⁹ 

6:2 Hear the Lord’s accusation, you mountains,

you enduring foundations of the earth!

For the Lord has a case against his people;

he has a dispute with Israel! ²⁰ 

6:3 “My people, how have I wronged you? ²¹ 

How have I wearied you? Answer me!

6:4 In fact, I brought you up from the land of Egypt,

I delivered you from that place of slavery.

I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to lead you. ²² 

6:5 My people, recall how King Balak of Moab planned to harm you, ²³ 

how Balaam son of Beor responded to him.

Recall how you journeyed from Shittim to Gilgal,

so you might acknowledge that the Lord has treated you fairly.” ²⁴ 

[1:18]  ¹ sn The Lord concludes his case against Israel by offering them the opportunity to be forgiven and by setting before them the alternatives of renewed blessing (as a reward for repentance) and final judgment (as punishment for persistence in sin).

[1:18]  ² tn Traditionally, “let us reason together,” but the context suggests a judicial nuance. The Lord is giving the nation its options for the future.

[1:18]  ³ tn The imperfects must be translated as modal (indicating capability or possibility) to bring out the conditional nature of the offer. This purification will only occur if the people repent and change their ways.

[1:18]  ⁴ tn The imperfects must be translated as modal (indicating capability or possibility) to bring out the conditional nature of the offer. This purification will only occur if the people repent and change their ways.

[1:18]  ⁵ tn Heb “though your sins are like red, they will become white like snow; though they are red like scarlet, they will be like wool.” The point is not that the sins will be covered up, though still retained. The metaphorical language must be allowed some flexibility and should not be pressed into a rigid literalistic mold. The people’s sins will be removed and replaced by ethical purity. The sins that are now as obvious as the color red will be washed away and the ones who are sinful will be transformed.

[3:14]  ⁶ tn The words “he says” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[3:14]  ⁷ tn The pronominal element is masculine plural; the leaders are addressed.

[3:14]  ⁸ tn The verb בָּעַר (ba’ar, “graze, ruin”; HALOT 146 s.v. II בער) is a homonym of the more common בָּעַר (ba’ar, “burn”; see HALOT 145 s.v. I בער).

[3:14]  ⁹ sn The vineyard is a metaphor for the nation here. See 5:1-7.

[3:14]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the plunder of the poor [is] in your houses” (so NASB).

[2:9]  ¹¹ tn Or “bring charges against you.”

[2:9]  sn The language used here is that of the law court. In international political contexts it was the language of a great king charging his subject with breach of covenant. See for examples in earlier prophets, Isa 1:2-20; Mic 6:1-8.

[2:9]  ¹² tn The words “your children and” are supplied in the translation to bring out the idea of corporate solidarity implicit in the passage.

[2:9]  sn The passage reflects the Hebrew concept of corporate solidarity: The actions of parents had consequences for their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. Compare the usage in the ten commandments, Deut 5:10, and note the execution of the children of Dathan and Abiram, Deut 11:6, and of Achan, Josh 7:24-25.

[25:31]  ¹³ tn For the use of this word see Amos 2:2; Hos 10:14; Ps 74:23. See also the usage in Isa 66:6 which is very similar to the metaphorical usage here.

[25:31]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “the Lord has a lawsuit against the nations.” For usage of the term see Hos 4:1; Mic 6:2, and compare the usage of the related verb in Jer 2:9; 12:1.

[25:31]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “give the wicked over to the sword.”

[25:31]  sn There is undoubtedly a deliberate allusion here to the reference to the “wars” (Heb “sword”) that the Lord had said he would send raging through the nations (vv. 16, 27) and the “war” (Heb “sword”) that he is proclaiming against them (v. 29).

[25:31]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[6:1]  ¹⁷ tn Or “plead your case” (NASB, NIV, NRSV); NAB “present your plea”; NLT “state your case.”

[6:1]  sn Defend yourself. The Lord challenges Israel to defend itself against the charges he is bringing.

[6:1]  ¹⁸ sn As in some ancient Near Eastern treaties, the mountains are personified as legal witnesses that will settle the dispute between God and Israel.

[6:1]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “let the hills hear your voice.”

[6:2]  ²⁰ tn This verse briefly interrupts the Lord’s statement (see vv. 1, 3) as the prophet summons the mountains as witnesses. Because of this v. 2 has been placed in parentheses in the translation.

[6:3]  ²¹ tn Heb “My people, what have I done to you?”

[6:4]  ²² tn Heb “before you.”

[6:5]  ²³ tn Heb “remember what Balak…planned.”

[6:5]  ²⁴ tn Heb “From Shittim to Gilgal, in order to know the just acts of the Lord.” Something appears to be missing at the beginning of the line. The present translation supplies the words, “Recall how you went.” This apparently refers to how Israel crossed the Jordan River (see Josh 3:1; 4:19-24).