Yesaya 32:15

32:15 This desolation will continue until new life is poured out on us from heaven. ¹ 

Then the desert will become an orchard

and the orchard will be considered a forest. ² 

Yesaya 44:3-4

44:3 For I will pour water on the parched ground ³ 

and cause streams to flow ⁴  on the dry land.

I will pour my spirit on your offspring

and my blessing on your children.

44:4 They will sprout up like a tree in the grass, ⁵ 

like poplars beside channels of water.

Yesaya 59:19-21

59:19 In the west, people respect ⁶  the Lord’s reputation; ⁷ 

in the east they recognize his splendor. ⁸ 

For he comes like a rushing ⁹  stream

driven on by wind sent from the Lord. ¹⁰ 

59:20 “A protector ¹¹  comes to Zion,

to those in Jacob who repent of their rebellious deeds,” ¹²  says the Lord.

59:21 “As for me, this is my promise to ¹³  them,” says the Lord. “My spirit, who is upon you, and my words, which I have placed in your mouth, will not depart from your mouth or from the mouths of your children and descendants from this time forward,” ¹⁴  says the Lord.

[32:15]  ¹ tn Heb “until a spirit is emptied out on us from on high.” The words “this desolation will continue” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic purposes. The verb עָרָה (’arah), used here in the Niphal, normally means “lay bare, expose.” The term רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) is often understood here as a reference to the divine spirit (cf. 44:3 and NASB, NIV, CEV, NLT), but it appears here without an article (cf. NRSV “a spirit”), pronominal suffix, or a genitive (such as “of the Lord”). The translation assumes that it carries an impersonal nuance “vivacity, vigor” in this context.

[32:15]  ² sn The same statement appears in 29:17b, where, in conjunction with the preceding line, it appears to picture a reversal. Here it seems to depict supernatural growth. The desert will blossom into an orchard, and the trees of the orchard will multiply and grow tall, becoming a forest.

[44:3]  ³ tn Heb “the thirsty.” Parallelism suggests that dry ground is in view (see “dry land” in the next line.)

[44:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “and streams”; KJV “floods.” The verb “cause…to flow” is supplied in the second line for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[44:4]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew term בֵין (ven) is usually taken as a preposition, in which case one might translate, “among the grass.” But בֵין is probably the name of a tree (cf. C. R. North, Second Isaiah, 133). If one alters the preposition bet (בְּ) to kaf (כְּ), one can then read, “like a binu-tree.” (The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a supports this reading.) This forms a nice parallel to “like poplars” in the next line. חָצִיר (khatsir) is functioning as an adverbial accusative of location.

[59:19]  ⁶ tc Heb “fear.” A few medieval Hebrew mss read “see.”

[59:19]  ⁷ tn Heb “and they fear from the west the name of the Lord.”

[59:19]  ⁸ tn Heb “and from the rising of the sun his splendor.”

[59:19]  ⁹ tn Heb “narrow”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “pent-up.”

[59:19]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the wind of the Lord drives it on.” The term רוּחַ (ruakh) could be translated “breath” here (see 30:28).

[59:20]  ¹¹ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[59:20]  ¹² tn Heb “and to those who turn from rebellion in Jacob.”

[59:21]  ¹³ tn Or “my covenant with” (so many English versions); NCV “my agreement with.”

[59:21]  sn The Lord promises the repentant (note “to them”) that they and their offspring will possess his spirit and function as his spokesmen. In this regard they follow in the footsteps of the Lord’s special servant. See 42:1; 49:2; 51:16.

[59:21]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “from now and on into the future.”