Yesaya 1:2

Obedience, not Sacrifice

1:2 Listen, O heavens,

pay attention, O earth! ¹ 

For the Lord speaks:

“I raised children, ²  I brought them up, ³ 

but ⁴  they have rebelled ⁵  against me!

Yesaya 3:1

A Coming Leadership Crisis

3:1 Look, the sovereign Lord who commands armies ⁶ 

is about to remove from Jerusalem ⁷  and Judah

every source of security, including ⁸ 

all the food and water, ⁹ 

Yesaya 3:6

3:6 Indeed, a man will grab his brother

right in his father’s house ¹⁰  and say, ¹¹ 

‘You own a coat –

you be our leader!

This heap of ruins will be under your control.’ ¹² 

Yesaya 5:10

5:10 Indeed, a large vineyard ¹³  will produce just a few gallons, ¹⁴ 

and enough seed to yield several bushels ¹⁵  will produce less than a bushel.” ¹⁶ 

Yesaya 5:12

5:12 They have stringed instruments, ¹⁷  tambourines, flutes,

and wine at their parties.

So they do not recognize what the Lord is doing,

they do not perceive what he is bringing about. ¹⁸ 

Yesaya 7:14

7:14 For this reason the sovereign master himself will give you a confirming sign. ¹⁹  Look, this ²⁰  young woman ²¹  is about to conceive ²²  and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him ²³  Immanuel. ²⁴ 

Yesaya 10:2

10:2 to keep the poor from getting fair treatment,

and to deprive ²⁵  the oppressed among my people of justice,

so they can steal what widows own,

and loot what belongs to orphans. ²⁶ 

Yesaya 10:27

10:27 At that time ²⁷ 

the Lord will remove their burden from your shoulders, ²⁸ 

and their yoke from your neck;

the yoke will be taken off because your neck will be too large. ²⁹ 

Yesaya 11:6

11:6 A wolf will reside ³⁰  with a lamb,

and a leopard will lie down with a young goat;

an ox and a young lion will graze together, ³¹ 

as a small child leads them along.

Yesaya 11:13

11:13 Ephraim’s jealousy will end, ³² 

and Judah’s hostility ³³  will be eliminated.

Ephraim will no longer be jealous of Judah,

and Judah will no longer be hostile toward Ephraim.

Yesaya 13:13

13:13 So I will shake the heavens, ³⁴ 

and the earth will shake loose from its foundation, ³⁵ 

because of the fury of the Lord who commands armies,

in the day he vents his raging anger. ³⁶ 

Yesaya 13:22

13:22 Wild dogs will yip in her ruined fortresses,

jackals will yelp in the once-splendid palaces. ³⁷ 

Her time is almost up, ³⁸ 

her days will not be prolonged. ³⁹ 

Yesaya 14:13

14:13 You said to yourself, ⁴⁰ 

“I will climb up to the sky.

Above the stars of El ⁴¹ 

I will set up my throne.

I will rule on the mountain of assembly

on the remote slopes of Zaphon. ⁴² 

Yesaya 14:23

14:23 “I will turn her into a place that is overrun with wild animals ⁴³ 

and covered with pools of stagnant water.

I will get rid of her, just as one sweeps away dirt with a broom,” ⁴⁴ 

says the Lord who commands armies.

Yesaya 16:12

16:12 When the Moabites plead with all their might at their high places, ⁴⁵ 

and enter their temples to pray, their prayers will be ineffective! ⁴⁶ 

Yesaya 18:5

18:5 For before the harvest, when the bud has sprouted,

and the ripening fruit appears, ⁴⁷ 

he will cut off the unproductive shoots ⁴⁸  with pruning knives;

he will prune the tendrils. ⁴⁹ 

Yesaya 21:8-9

21:8 Then the guard ⁵⁰  cries out:

“On the watchtower, O sovereign master, ⁵¹ 

I stand all day long;

at my post

I am stationed every night.

21:9 Look what’s coming!

A charioteer,

a team of horses.” ⁵² 

When questioned, he replies, ⁵³ 

“Babylon has fallen, fallen!

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

Yesaya 24:20

24:20 The earth will stagger around ⁵⁴  like a drunk;

it will sway back and forth like a hut in a windstorm. ⁵⁵ 

Its sin will weigh it down,

and it will fall and never get up again.

Yesaya 25:11

25:11 Moab ⁵⁶  will spread out its hands in the middle of it, ⁵⁷ 

just as a swimmer spreads his hands to swim;

the Lord ⁵⁸  will bring down Moab’s ⁵⁹  pride as it spreads its hands. ⁶⁰ 

Yesaya 28:19

28:19 Whenever it sweeps by, it will overtake you;

indeed, ⁶¹  every morning it will sweep by,

it will come through during the day and the night.” ⁶² 

When this announcement is understood,

it will cause nothing but terror.

Yesaya 29:4

29:4 You will fall;

while lying on the ground ⁶³  you will speak;

from the dust where you lie, your words will be heard. ⁶⁴ 

Your voice will sound like a spirit speaking from the underworld; ⁶⁵ 

from the dust you will chirp as if muttering an incantation. ⁶⁶ 

Yesaya 29:18

29:18 At that time ⁶⁷  the deaf will be able to hear words read from a scroll,

and the eyes of the blind will be able to see through deep darkness. ⁶⁸ 

Yesaya 30:21

30:21 You ⁶⁹  will hear a word spoken behind you, saying,

“This is the correct ⁷⁰  way, walk in it,”

whether you are heading to the right or the left.

Yesaya 34:7

34:7 Wild oxen will be slaughtered ⁷¹  along with them,

as well as strong bulls. ⁷² 

Their land is drenched with blood,

their soil is covered with fat.

Yesaya 34:17

34:17 He assigns them their allotment; ⁷³ 

he measures out their assigned place. ⁷⁴ 

They will live there ⁷⁵  permanently;

they will settle in it through successive generations.

Yesaya 36:18

36:18 Hezekiah is misleading you when he says, “The Lord will rescue us.” Has any of the gods of the nations rescued his land from the power of the king of Assyria? ⁷⁶ 

Yesaya 38:17

38:17 “Look, the grief I experienced was for my benefit. ⁷⁷ 

You delivered me ⁷⁸  from the pit of oblivion. ⁷⁹ 

For you removed all my sins from your sight. ⁸⁰ 

Yesaya 48:21

48:21 They do not thirst as he leads them through dry regions;

he makes water flow out of a rock for them;

he splits open a rock and water flows out.’ ⁸¹ 

Yesaya 49:15

49:15 Can a woman forget her baby who nurses at her breast? ⁸² 

Can she withhold compassion from the child she has borne? ⁸³ 

Even if mothers ⁸⁴  were to forget,

I could never forget you! ⁸⁵ 

Yesaya 52:14

52:14 (just as many were horrified by the sight of you) ⁸⁶ 

he was so disfigured ⁸⁷  he no longer looked like a man; ⁸⁸ 

Yesaya 56:12

56:12 Each one says, ⁸⁹ 

‘Come on, I’ll get some wine!

Let’s guzzle some beer!

Tomorrow will be just like today!

We’ll have everything we want!’ ⁹⁰ 

Yesaya 58:4

58:4 Look, your fasting is accompanied by ⁹¹  arguments, brawls,

and fistfights. ⁹² 

Do not fast as you do today,

trying to make your voice heard in heaven.

Yesaya 59:18

59:18 He repays them for what they have done,

dispensing angry judgment to his adversaries

and punishing his enemies. ⁹³ 

He repays the coastlands. ⁹⁴ 

Yesaya 60:15

60:15 You were once abandoned

and despised, with no one passing through,

but I will make you ⁹⁵  a permanent source of pride

and joy to coming generations.

Yesaya 63:10

63:10 But they rebelled and offended ⁹⁶  his holy Spirit, ⁹⁷ 

so he turned into an enemy

and fought against them.

[1:2]  ¹ sn The personified heavens and earth are summoned to God’s courtroom as witnesses against God’s covenant people. Long before this Moses warned the people that the heavens and earth would be watching their actions (see Deut 4:26; 30:19; 31:28; 32:1).

[1:2]  ² tn Or “sons” (NAB, NASB).

[1:2]  sn “Father” and “son” occur as common terms in ancient Near Eastern treaties and covenants, delineating the suzerain and vassal as participants in the covenant relationship. The prophet uses these terms, the reference to heavens and earth as witnesses, and allusions to deuteronomic covenant curses (1:7-9, 19-20) to set his prophecy firmly against the backdrop of Israel’s covenantal relationship with Yahweh.

[1:2]  ³ sn The normal word pair for giving birth to and raising children is יָלַד (yalad, “to give birth to”) and גָּדַל (gadal, “to grow, raise”). The pair גָּדַל and רוּם (rum, “to raise up”) probably occur here to highlight the fact that Yahweh made something important of Israel (cf. R. Mosis, TDOT 2:403).

[1:2]  ⁴ sn Against the backdrop of Yahweh’s care for his chosen people, Israel’s rebellion represents abhorrent treachery. The conjunction prefixed to a nonverbal element highlights the sad contrast between Yahweh’s compassionate care for His people and Israel’s thankless rebellion.

[1:2]  ⁵ sn To rebel carries the idea of “covenant treachery.” Although an act of פֶּשַׁע (pesha’, “rebellion”) often signifies a breach of the law, the legal offense also represents a violation of an existing covenantal relationship (E. Carpenter and M. Grisanti, NIDOTTE 3:707).

[3:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” On the title “the Lord who commands armies,” see the note at 1:9.

[3:1]  ⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “support and support.” The masculine and feminine forms of the noun are placed side-by-side to emphasize completeness. See GKC 394 §122.v.

[3:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “all the support of food, and all the support of water.”

[3:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “[in] the house of his father” (so ASV); NIV “at his father’s home.”

[3:6]  ¹¹ tn The words “and say” are supplied for stylistic reasons.

[3:6]  ¹² tn Heb “your hand”; NASB “under your charge.”

[3:6]  sn The man’s motives are selfish. He tells his brother to assume leadership because he thinks he has some wealth to give away.

[5:10]  ¹³ tn Heb “a ten-yoke vineyard.” The Hebrew term צֶמֶד (tsemed, “yoke”) is here a unit of square measure. Apparently a ten-yoke vineyard covered the same amount of land it would take ten teams of oxen to plow in a certain period of time. The exact size is unknown.

[5:10]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “one bath.” A bath was a liquid measure. Estimates of its modern equivalent range from approximately six to twelve gallons.

[5:10]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “a homer.” A homer was a dry measure, the exact size of which is debated. Cf. NCV “ten bushels”; CEV “five bushels.”

[5:10]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “an ephah.” An ephah was a dry measure; there were ten ephahs in a homer. So this verse envisions major crop failure, where only one-tenth of the anticipated harvest is realized.

[5:12]  ¹⁷ tn Two types of stringed instruments are specifically mentioned in the Hebrew text, the כִּנּוֹר (kinnor, “zither”) and נֶבֶל (nevel, “harp”).

[5:12]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the work of the Lord they do not look at, and the work of his hands they do not see.” God’s “work” can sometimes be his creative deeds, but in this context it is the judgment that he is planning to bring upon his people (cf. vv. 19, 26; 10:12; 28:21).

[7:14]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew term אוֹת (’ot, “sign”) can refer to a miraculous event (see v. 11), but it does not carry this sense inherently. Elsewhere in Isaiah the word usually refers to a natural occurrence or an object/person vested with special significance (see 8:18; 19:20; 20:3; 37:30; 55:13; 66:19). Only in 38:7-8, 22 does it refer to a miraculous deed that involves suspending or overriding natural laws. The sign outlined in vv. 14-17 involves God’s providential control over events and their timing, but not necessarily miraculous intervention.

[7:14]  ²⁰ tn Heb “the young woman.” The Hebrew article has been rendered as a demonstrative pronoun (“this”) in the translation to bring out its force. It is very likely that Isaiah pointed to a woman who was present at the scene of the prophet’s interview with Ahaz. Isaiah’s address to the “house of David” and his use of second plural forms suggests other people were present, and his use of the second feminine singular verb form (“you will name”) later in the verse is best explained if addressed to a woman who is present.

[7:14]  ²¹ tn Traditionally, “virgin.” Because this verse from Isaiah is quoted in Matt 1:23 in connection with Jesus’ birth, the Isaiah passage has been regarded since the earliest Christian times as a prophecy of Christ’s virgin birth. Much debate has taken place over the best way to translate this Hebrew term, although ultimately one’s view of the doctrine of the virgin birth of Christ is unaffected. Though the Hebrew word used here (עַלְמָה, ’almah) can sometimes refer to a woman who is a virgin (Gen 24:43), it does not carry this meaning inherently. The word is simply the feminine form of the corresponding masculine noun עֶלֶם (’elem, “young man”; cf. 1 Sam 17:56; 20:22). The Aramaic and Ugaritic cognate terms are both used of women who are not virgins. The word seems to pertain to age, not sexual experience, and would normally be translated “young woman.” The LXX translator(s) who later translated the Book of Isaiah into Greek sometime between the second and first century b.c., however, rendered the Hebrew term by the more specific Greek word παρθένος (parqenos), which does mean “virgin” in a technical sense. This is the Greek term that also appears in the citation of Isa 7:14 in Matt 1:23. Therefore, regardless of the meaning of the term in the OT context, in the NT Matthew’s usage of the Greek term παρθένος clearly indicates that from his perspective a virgin birth has taken place.

[7:14]  ²² tn Elsewhere the adjective הָרָה (harah), when used predicatively, refers to a past pregnancy (from the narrator’s perspective, 1 Sam 4:19), to a present condition (Gen 16:11; 38:24; 2 Sam 11:5), and to a conception that is about to occur in the near future (Judg 13:5, 7). (There is some uncertainty about the interpretation of Judg 13:5, 7, however. See the notes to those verses.) In Isa 7:14 one could translate, “the young woman is pregnant.” In this case the woman is probably a member of the royal family. Another option, the one followed in the present translation, takes the adjective in an imminent future sense, “the young woman is about to conceive.” In this case the woman could be a member of the royal family, or, more likely, the prophetess with whom Isaiah has sexual relations shortly after this (see 8:3).

[7:14]  ²³ tn Heb “and you will call his name.” The words “young lady” are supplied in the translation to clarify the identity of the addressee. The verb is normally taken as an archaic third feminine singular form here, and translated, “she will call.” However the form (קָרָאת, qara’t) is more naturally understood as second feminine singular, in which case the words would be addressed to the young woman mentioned just before this. In the three other occurrences of the third feminine singular perfect of I קָרָא (qara’, “to call”), the form used is קָרְאָה (qar’ah; see Gen 29:35; 30:6; 1 Chr 4:9). A third feminine singular perfect קָרָאת does appear in Deut 31:29 and Jer 44:23, but the verb here is the homonym II קָרָא (“to meet, encounter”). The form קָרָאת (from I קָרָא, “to call”) appears in three other passages (Gen 16:11; Isa 60:18; Jer 3:4 [Qere]) and in each case is second feminine singular.

[7:14]  ²⁴ sn The name Immanuel means “God [is] with us.”

[10:2]  ²⁵ tn Or “rob” (ASV, NASB, NCV, NRSV); KJV “take away the right from the poor.”

[10:2]  ²⁶ tn Heb “so that widows are their plunder, and they can loot orphans.”

[10:2]  sn On the socio-economic background of vv. 1-2, see the note at 1:23.

[10:27]  ²⁷ tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[10:27]  ²⁸ tn Heb “he [i.e., the Lord] will remove his [i.e, Assyria’s] burden from upon your shoulder.”

[10:27]  ²⁹ tc The meaning of this line is uncertain. The Hebrew text reads literally, “and the yoke will be destroyed (or perhaps, “pulled down”) because of fatness.” Perhaps this is a bizarre picture of an ox growing so fat that it breaks the yoke around its neck or can no longer fit into its yoke. Fatness would symbolize the Lord’s restored blessings; the removal of the yoke would symbolize the cessation of Assyrian oppression. Because of the difficulty of the metaphor, many prefer to emend the text at this point. Some emend וְחֻבַּל (vÿkhubbal, “and it will be destroyed,” a perfect with prefixed vav), to יִחְבֹּל (yikhbol, “[it] will be destroyed,” an imperfect), and take the verb with what precedes, “and their yoke will be destroyed from your neck.” Proponents of this view (cf. NAB, NRSV) then emend עֹל (’ol, “yoke”) to עָלָה (’alah, “he came up”) and understand this verb as introducing the following description of the Assyrian invasion (vv. 28-32). מִפְּנֵי־שָׁמֶן (mippÿney-shamen, “because of fatness”) is then emended to read “from before Rimmon” (NAB, NRSV), “from before Samaria,” or “from before Jeshimon.” Although this line may present difficulties, it appears best to regard the line as a graphic depiction of God’s abundant blessings on his servant nation.

[11:6]  ³⁰ tn The verb גּוּר (gur) normally refers to living as a dependent, resident alien in another society.

[11:6]  ³¹ tc The Hebrew text reads, “and an ox, and a young lion, and a fatling together.” Since the preceding lines refer to two animals and include a verb, many emend וּמְרִיא (umÿri’, “and the fatling”) to an otherwise unattested verb יִמְרְאוּ (yimrÿ’u, “they will graze”); cf. NAB, TEV, CEV. One of the Qumran copies of Isaiah confirms this suggestion (1QIsa^a). The present translation assumes this change.

[11:13]  ³² tn Heb “turn aside”; KJV, NASB, NRSV “depart.”

[11:13]  ³³ tn Heb “hostile ones of Judah.” Elsewhere when the substantival participle of צָרָר (tsarar) takes a pronominal suffix or appears in a construct relationship, the following genitive is objective. (For a list of texts see BDB 865 s.v. III צָרַר) In this case the phrase “hostile ones of Judah” means “those who are hostile toward Judah,” i.e., Judah’s enemies. However, the parallel couplet that follows suggests that Judah’s hostility toward Ephraim is in view. In this case “hostile ones of Judah” means “hostile ones from Judah.” The translation above assumes the latter, giving the immediate context priority over general usage.

[13:13]  ³⁴ tn Or “the sky.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

[13:13]  ³⁵ tn Heb “from its place” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NCV).

[13:13]  ³⁶ tn Heb “and in the day of the raging of his anger.”

[13:22]  ³⁷ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “wild dogs will yip among his widows, and jackals in the palaces of pleasure.” The verb “yip” is supplied in the second line; it does double duty in the parallel structure. “His widows” makes little sense in this context; many emend the form (אַלְמנוֹתָיו, ’almnotayv) to the graphically similar אַרְמְנוֹתֶיהָ (’armÿnoteha, “her fortresses”), a reading that is assumed in the present translation. The use of “widows” may represent an intentional wordplay on “fortresses,” indicating that the fortresses are like dejected widows (J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:308, n. 1).

[13:22]  ³⁸ tn Heb “near to come is her time.”

[13:22]  ³⁹ sn When was the prophecy of Babylon’s fall fulfilled? Some argue that the prophecy was fulfilled in 689 b.c. when the Assyrians under Sennacherib sacked and desecrated the city (this event is alluded to in 23:13). This may have been an initial phase in the fulfillment of the prophecy, but the reference to the involvement of the Medes (v. 17) and the suggestion that Babylon’s demise will bring about the restoration of Israel (14:1-2) indicate that the fall of Babylon to the Medes and Persians in 538 b.c. is the primary focus of the prophecy. (After all, the Lord did reveal to Isaiah that the Chaldeans [not the Assyrians] would someday conquer Jerusalem and take the people into exile [see 39:5-7].) However, the vivid picture of destruction in vv. 15-22 raises a problem. The Medes and Persians did not destroy the city; in fact Cyrus’ takeover of Babylon, though preceded by a military campaign, was relatively peaceful and even welcomed by some Babylonian religious officials. How then does one explain the prophecy’s description of the city’s violent fall? As noted above, the events of 689 b.c. and 538 b.c. may have been merged in the prophecy. However, it is more likely that the language is stylized and exaggerated for rhetorical effect. See Isa 34:11-15; Jer 50:39-40 (describing Babylon’s fall in 538 b.c.); 51:36-37 (describing Babylon’s fall in 538 b.c.); Zeph 2:13-15; the extra-biblical Sefire treaty curses; and Ashurbanipal’s description of the destruction of Elam in his royal annals. In other words, the events of 538 b.c. essentially, though not necessarily literally, fulfill the prophecy.

[14:13]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “you, you said in your heart.”

[14:13]  ⁴¹ sn In Canaanite mythology the stars of El were astral deities under the authority of the high god El.

[14:13]  ⁴² sn Zaphon, the Canaanite version of Olympus, was the “mountain of assembly” where the gods met.

[14:23]  ⁴³ tn Heb “I will make her into a possession of wild animals.” It is uncertain what type of animal קִפֹּד (qippod) refers to. Some suggest a rodent (cf. NASB, NRSV “hedgehog”), others an owl (cf, NAB, NIV, TEV).

[14:23]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “I will sweep her away with the broom of destruction.”

[16:12]  ⁴⁵ tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[16:12]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “when he appears, when he grows tired, Moab on the high places, and enters his temple to pray, he will not prevail.” It is possible that “when he grows tired” is an explanatory gloss for the preceding “when he appears.”

[18:5]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “and the unripe, ripening fruit is maturing.”

[18:5]  ⁴⁸ tn On the meaning of זַלְזַל (zalzal, “shoot [of the vine] without fruit buds”) see HALOT 272 s.v. *זַלְזַל.

[18:5]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “the tendrils he will remove, he will cut off.”

[21:8]  ⁵⁰ tn The Hebrew text has, “the lion,” but this makes little sense here. אַרְיֵה (’aryeh, “lion”) is probably a corruption of an original הָרֹאֶה (haro’eh, “the one who sees”), i.e., the guard mentioned previously in v. 6.

[21:8]  ⁵¹ tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay). Some translations take this to refer to the Lord (cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV), while others take it to refer to the guard’s human master (“my lord”; cf. NIV, NLT).

[21:9]  ⁵² tn Or “[with] teams of horses,” or perhaps, “with a pair of horsemen.”

[21:9]  ⁵³ tn Heb “and he answered and said” (so KJV, ASV).

[24:20]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “staggering, staggers.” The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute before the finite verb for emphasis and sound play.

[24:20]  ⁵⁵ tn The words “in a windstorm” are supplied in the translation to clarify the metaphor.

[25:11]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:11]  ⁵⁷ tn The antecedent of the third masculine singular pronominal suffix is probably the masculine noun מַתְבֵּן (matben, “heap of straw”) in v. 10 rather than the feminine noun מַדְמֵנָה (madmenah, “manure pile”), also in v. 10.

[25:11]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:11]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Moab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:11]  ⁶⁰ tn The Hebrew text has, “he will bring down his pride along with the [?] of his hands.” The meaning of אָרְבּוֹת (’arbot), which occurs only here in the OT, is unknown. Some (see BDB 70 s.v. אָרְבָּה) translate “artifice, cleverness,” relating the form to the verbal root אָרָב (’arav, “to lie in wait, ambush”), but this requires some convoluted semantic reasoning. HALOT 83 s.v. *אָרְבָּה suggests the meaning “[nimble] movements.” The translation above, which attempts to relate the form to the preceding context, is purely speculative.

[28:19]  ⁶¹ tn Or “for” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[28:19]  ⁶² tn The words “it will come through” are supplied in the translation. The verb “will sweep by” does double duty in the parallel structure.

[29:4]  ⁶³ tn Heb “from the ground” (so NIV, NCV).

[29:4]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “and from the dust your word will be low.”

[29:4]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “and your voice will be like a ritual pit from the earth.” The Hebrew אוֹב (’ov, “ritual pit”) refers to a pit used by a magician to conjure up underworld spirits. See the note on “incantations” in 8:19. Here the word is used metonymically for the voice that emerges from such a pit.

[29:4]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “and from the dust your word will chirp.” The words “as if muttering an incantation” are supplied in the translation for clarification. See the parallelism and 8:19.

[29:18]  ⁶⁷ tn Or “In that day” (KJV).

[29:18]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.”

[29:18]  sn Perhaps this depicts the spiritual transformation of the once spiritually insensitive nation (see vv. 10-12, cf. also 6:9-10).

[30:21]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “your ears” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[30:21]  ⁷⁰ tn The word “correct’ is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[34:7]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “will go down”; NAB “shall be struck down.”

[34:7]  ⁷² tn Heb “and bulls along with strong ones.” Perhaps this refers to the leaders.

[34:17]  ⁷³ tn Heb “and he causes the lot to fall for them.” Once again the pronominal suffix (“them”) is feminine plural, referring to the birds mentioned in v. 15b or to all of the creatures listed in vv. 14b-15 (all of which are identified with feminine nouns).

[34:17]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “and his hand divides for them with a measuring line.” The pronominal suffix (“them”) now switches to masculine plural, referring to all the animals and birds mentioned in vv. 11-15, some of which were identified with masculine nouns. This signals closure for this portion of the speech, which began in v. 11. The following couplet (v. 17b) forms an inclusio with v. 11a through verbal repetition.

[34:17]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “will possess it” (so NIV); NCV “they will own that land forever.”

[36:18]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “Have the gods of the nations rescued, each his land, from the hand of the king of Assyria?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course not!”

[38:17]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “Look, for peace bitterness was to me bitter”; NAB “thus is my bitterness transformed into peace.”

[38:17]  ⁷⁸ tc The Hebrew text reads, “you loved my soul,” but this does not fit syntactically with the following prepositional phrase. חָשַׁקְתָּ (khashaqta, “you loved”), may reflect an aural error; most emend the form to חָשַׂכְת, (khasakht, “you held back”).

[38:17]  ⁷⁹ tn בְּלִי (bÿli) most often appears as a negation, meaning “without,” suggesting the meaning “nothingness, oblivion,” here. Some translate “decay” or “destruction.”

[38:17]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “for you threw behind your back all my sins.”

[48:21]  ⁸¹ sn The translation above (present tense) assumes that this verse describes God’s provision for returning Babylonian exiles (see v. 20; 35:6; 49:10) in terms reminiscent of the Exodus from Egypt (see Exod 17:6).

[49:15]  ⁸² tn Heb “her suckling”; NASB “her nursing child.”

[49:15]  ⁸³ tn Heb “so as not to have compassion on the son of her womb?”

[49:15]  ⁸⁴ tn Heb “these” (so ASV, NASB).

[49:15]  ⁸⁵ sn The argument of v. 15 seems to develop as follows: The Lord has an innate attachment to Zion, just like a mother does for her infant child. But even if mothers were to suddenly abandon their children, the Lord would never forsake Zion. In other words, the Lord’s attachment to Zion is like a mother’s attachment to her infant child, but even stronger.

[52:14]  ⁸⁶ tn Some witnesses read “him,” which is more consistent with the context, where the servant is spoken about, not addressed. However, it is possible that the Lord briefly addresses the servant here. The present translation assumes the latter view and places the phrase in parentheses.

[52:14]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “such was the disfigurement.” The noun מִשְׁחַת (mishkhat) occurs only here. It may be derived from the verbal root שָׁחַת (shakhat, “be ruined”; see BDB 1007-8 s.v. שָׁחַת). The construct form appears here before a prepositional phrase (cf. GKC 421 §130.a).

[52:14]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “from a man his appearance.” The preposition מִן (min) here carries the sense “away from,” i.e., “so as not to be.” See BDB 583 s.v.

[56:12]  ⁸⁹ tn The words “each one says” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[56:12]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “great, [in] abundance, very much,” i.e., “very great indeed.” See HALOT 452 s.v. יֶתֶר.

[58:4]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “you fast for” (so NASB); NRSV “you fast only to quarrel.”

[58:4]  ⁹² tn Heb “and for striking with a sinful fist.”

[59:18]  ⁹³ tn Heb “in accordance with deeds, so he repays, anger to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies.”

[59:18]  ⁹⁴ tn Or “islands” (KJV, NIV).

[60:15]  ⁹⁵ tn Heb “Instead of your being abandoned and despised, with no one passing through, I will make you.”

[63:10]  ⁹⁶ tn Or “grieved, hurt the feelings of.”

[63:10]  ⁹⁷ sn The phrase “holy Spirit” occurs in the OT only here (in v. 11 as well) and in Ps 51:11 (51:13 HT), where it is associated with the divine presence.