Yesaya 1:4

1:4 ¹ The sinful nation is as good as dead, ² 

the people weighed down by evil deeds.

They are offspring who do wrong,

children ³  who do wicked things.

They have abandoned the Lord,

and rejected the Holy One of Israel. ⁴ 

They are alienated from him. ⁵ 

Yesaya 2:1

The Future Glory of Jerusalem

2:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem ⁶  that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz. ⁷ 

Yesaya 2:16

2:16 for all the large ships, ⁸ 

for all the impressive ⁹  ships. ¹⁰ 

Yesaya 3:14

3:14 The Lord comes to pronounce judgment

on the leaders of his people and their officials.

He says, ¹¹  “It is you ¹²  who have ruined ¹³  the vineyard! ¹⁴ 

You have stashed in your houses what you have stolen from the poor. ¹⁵ 

Yesaya 7:17

7:17 The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father’s family a time ¹⁶  unlike any since Ephraim departed from Judah – the king of Assyria!” ¹⁷ 

Yesaya 11:15

11:15 The Lord will divide ¹⁸  the gulf ¹⁹  of the Egyptian Sea; ²⁰ 

he will wave his hand over the Euphrates River ²¹  and send a strong wind, ²² 

he will turn it into seven dried-up streams, ²³ 

and enable them to walk across in their sandals.

Yesaya 13:1

The Lord Will Judge Babylon

13:1 ²⁴ This is a message about Babylon that God revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz: ²⁵ 

Yesaya 14:1-2

14:1 The Lord will certainly have compassion on Jacob; ²⁶  he will again choose Israel as his special people ²⁷  and restore ²⁸  them to their land. Resident foreigners will join them and unite with the family ²⁹  of Jacob. 14:2 Nations will take them and bring them back to their own place. Then the family of Jacob will make foreigners their servants as they settle in the Lord’s land. ³⁰  They will make their captors captives and rule over the ones who oppressed them.

Yesaya 18:4

18:4 For this is what the Lord has told me:

“I will wait ³¹  and watch from my place,

like scorching heat produced by the sunlight, ³² 

like a cloud of mist ³³  in the heat ³⁴  of harvest.” ³⁵ 

Yesaya 26:11

26:11 O Lord, you are ready to act, ³⁶ 

but they don’t even notice.

They will see and be put to shame by your angry judgment against humankind, ³⁷ 

yes, fire will consume your enemies. ³⁸ 

Yesaya 26:21--27:1

26:21 For look, the Lord is coming out of the place where he lives, ³⁹ 

to punish the sin of those who live on the earth.

The earth will display the blood shed on it;

it will no longer cover up its slain. ⁴⁰ 

27:1 At that time ⁴¹  the Lord will punish

with his destructive, ⁴²  great, and powerful sword

Leviathan the fast-moving ⁴³  serpent,

Leviathan the squirming serpent;

he will kill the sea monster. ⁴⁴ 

Yesaya 27:13

27:13 At that time ⁴⁵  a large ⁴⁶  trumpet will be blown, and the ones lost ⁴⁷  in the land of Assyria will come, as well as the refugees in ⁴⁸  the land of Egypt. They will worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem. ⁴⁹ 

Yesaya 28:13

28:13 So the Lord’s word to them will sound like

meaningless gibberish,

senseless babbling,

a syllable here, a syllable there. ⁵⁰ 

As a result, they will fall on their backsides when they try to walk, ⁵¹ 

and be injured, ensnared, and captured. ⁵² 

Yesaya 28:21

28:21 For the Lord will rise up, as he did at Mount Perazim, ⁵³ 

he will rouse himself, as he did in the Valley of Gibeon, ⁵⁴ 

to accomplish his work,

his peculiar work,

to perform his task,

his strange task. ⁵⁵ 

Yesaya 28:26

28:26 His God instructs him;

he teaches him the principles of agriculture. ⁵⁶ 

Yesaya 30:1

Egypt Will Prove Unreliable

30:1 “The rebellious ⁵⁷  children are as good as dead,” ⁵⁸  says the Lord,

“those who make plans without consulting me, ⁵⁹ 

who form alliances without consulting my Spirit, ⁶⁰ 

and thereby compound their sin. ⁶¹ 

Yesaya 30:26

30:26 The light of the full moon will be like the sun’s glare

and the sun’s glare will be seven times brighter,

like the light of seven days, ⁶² 

when the Lord binds up his people’s fractured bones ⁶³ 

and heals their severe wound. ⁶⁴ 

Yesaya 30:29-30

30:29 You will sing

as you do in the evening when you are celebrating a festival.

You will be happy like one who plays a flute

as he goes to the mountain of the Lord, the Rock who shelters Israel. ⁶⁵ 

30:30 The Lord will give a mighty shout ⁶⁶ 

and intervene in power, ⁶⁷ 

with furious anger and flaming, destructive fire, ⁶⁸ 

with a driving rainstorm and hailstones.

Yesaya 31:1

Egypt Will Disappoint

31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, ⁶⁹ 

those who rely on war horses,

and trust in Egypt’s many chariots ⁷⁰ 

and in their many, many horsemen. ⁷¹ 

But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel ⁷² 

and do not seek help from the Lord.

Yesaya 31:3

31:3 The Egyptians are mere humans, not God;

their horses are made of flesh, not spirit.

The Lord will strike with ⁷³  his hand;

the one who helps will stumble

and the one being helped will fall.

Together they will perish. ⁷⁴ 

Yesaya 35:10

35:10 those whom the Lord has ransomed will return that way. ⁷⁵ 

They will enter Zion with a happy shout.

Unending joy will crown them, ⁷⁶ 

happiness and joy will overwhelm ⁷⁷  them;

grief and suffering will disappear. ⁷⁸ 

Yesaya 37:5

37:5 When King Hezekiah’s servants came to Isaiah,

Yesaya 38:1

The Lord Hears Hezekiah’s Prayer

38:1 In those days Hezekiah was stricken with a terminal illness. ⁷⁹  The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz visited him and told him, “This is what the Lord says, ‘Give instructions to your household, for you are about to die; you will not get well.’”

Yesaya 43:1

The Lord Will Rescue His People

43:1 Now, this is what the Lord says,

the one who created you, O Jacob,

and formed you, O Israel:

“Don’t be afraid, for I will protect ⁸⁰  you.

I call you by name, you are mine.

Yesaya 45:19

45:19 I have not spoken in secret,

in some hidden place. ⁸¹ 

I did not tell Jacob’s descendants,

‘Seek me in vain!’ ⁸² 

I am the Lord,

the one who speaks honestly,

who makes reliable announcements. ⁸³ 

Yesaya 49:8

49:8 This is what the Lord says:

“At the time I decide to show my favor, I will respond to you;

in the day of deliverance I will help you;

I will protect you ⁸⁴  and make you a covenant mediator for people, ⁸⁵ 

to rebuild ⁸⁶  the land ⁸⁷ 

and to reassign the desolate property.

Yesaya 49:23

49:23 Kings will be your children’s ⁸⁸  guardians;

their princesses will nurse your children. ⁸⁹ 

With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you

and they will lick the dirt on ⁹⁰  your feet.

Then you will recognize that I am the Lord;

those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.

Yesaya 49:26--50:1

49:26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh;

they will get drunk on their own blood, as if it were wine. ⁹¹ 

Then all humankind ⁹²  will recognize that

I am the Lord, your deliverer,

your protector, ⁹³  the powerful ruler of Jacob.” ⁹⁴ 

50:1 This is what the Lord says:

“Where is your mother’s divorce certificate

by which I divorced her?

Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? ⁹⁵ 

Look, you were sold because of your sins; ⁹⁶ 

because of your rebellious acts I divorced your mother. ⁹⁷ 

Yesaya 51:11

51:11 Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return;

they will enter Zion with a happy shout.

Unending joy will crown them, ⁹⁸ 

happiness and joy will overwhelm ⁹⁹  them;

grief and suffering will disappear. ¹⁰⁰ 

Yesaya 51:13

51:13 Why do you forget ¹⁰¹  the Lord, who made you,

who stretched out the sky ¹⁰² 

and founded the earth?

Why do you constantly tremble all day long ¹⁰³ 

at the anger of the oppressor,

when he makes plans to destroy?

Where is the anger of the oppressor? ¹⁰⁴ 

Yesaya 58:9

58:9 Then you will call out, and the Lord will respond;

you will cry out, and he will reply, ‘Here I am.’

You must ¹⁰⁵  remove the burdensome yoke from among you

and stop pointing fingers and speaking sinfully.

Yesaya 58:11

58:11 The Lord will continually lead you;

he will feed you even in parched regions. ¹⁰⁶ 

He will give you renewed strength, ¹⁰⁷ 

and you will be like a well-watered garden,

like a spring that continually produces water.

Yesaya 60:14

60:14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing to you;

all who treated you with disrespect will bow down at your feet.

They will call you, ‘The City of the Lord,

Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’ ¹⁰⁸ 

Yesaya 62:8

62:8 The Lord swears an oath by his right hand,

by his strong arm: ¹⁰⁹ 

“I will never again give your grain

to your enemies as food,

and foreigners will not drink your wine,

which you worked hard to produce.

Yesaya 63:17

63:17 Why, Lord, do you make us stray ¹¹⁰  from your ways, ¹¹¹ 

and make our minds stubborn so that we do not obey you? ¹¹² 

Return for the sake of your servants,

the tribes of your inheritance!

Yesaya 66:17

66:17 “As for those who consecrate and ritually purify themselves so they can follow their leader and worship in the sacred orchards, ¹¹³  those who eat the flesh of pigs and other disgusting creatures, like mice ¹¹⁴  – they will all be destroyed together,” ¹¹⁵  says the Lord.

[1:4]  ¹ sn Having summoned the witnesses and announced the Lord’s accusation against Israel, Isaiah mourns the nation’s impending doom. The third person references to the Lord in the second half of the verse suggest that the quotation from the Lord (cf. vv. 2-3) has concluded.

[1:4]  ² tn Heb “Woe [to the] sinful nation.” The Hebrew term הוֹי, (hoy, “woe, ah”) was used in funeral laments (see 1 Kgs 13:30; Jer 22:18; 34:5) and carries the connotation of death. In highly dramatic fashion the prophet acts out Israel’s funeral in advance, emphasizing that their demise is inevitable if they do not repent soon.

[1:4]  ³ tn Or “sons” (NASB). The prophet contrasts four terms of privilege – nation, people, offspring, children – with four terms that depict Israel’s sinful condition in Isaiah’s day – sinful, evil, wrong, wicked (see J. A. Motyer, The Prophecy of Isaiah, 43).

[1:4]  ⁴ sn Holy One of Israel is one of Isaiah’s favorite divine titles for God. It pictures the Lord as the sovereign king who rules over his covenant people and exercises moral authority over them.

[1:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “they are estranged backward.” The LXX omits this statement, which presents syntactical problems and seems to be outside the synonymous parallelistic structure of the verse.

[2:1]  ⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[2:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “the word which Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.”

[2:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” This probably refers to large ships either made in or capable of traveling to the distant western port of Tarshish.

[2:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “desirable”; NAB, NIV “stately”; NRSV “beautiful.”

[2:16]  ¹⁰ tn On the meaning of this word, which appears only here in the Hebrew Bible, see H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 41-42.

[2:16]  sn The ships mentioned in this verse were the best of their class, and therefore an apt metaphor for the proud men being denounced in this speech.

[3:14]  ¹¹ tn The words “he says” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[3:14]  ¹² tn The pronominal element is masculine plural; the leaders are addressed.

[3:14]  ¹³ 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]  ¹⁴ sn The vineyard is a metaphor for the nation here. See 5:1-7.

[3:14]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the plunder of the poor [is] in your houses” (so NASB).

[7:17]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “days” (so KJV, NAB); NASB, NRSV “such days.”

[7:17]  ¹⁷ sn Initially the prophecy appears to be a message of salvation. Immanuel seems to have a positive ring to it, sour milk and honey elsewhere symbolize prosperity and blessing (see Deut 32:13-14; Job 20:17), verse 16 announces the defeat of Judah’s enemies, and verse 17a could be taken as predicting a return to the glorious days of David and Solomon. However, the message turns sour in verses 17b-25. God will be with his people in judgment, as well as salvation. The curds and honey will be signs of deprivation, not prosperity, the relief announced in verse 16 will be short-lived, and the new era will be characterized by unprecedented humiliation, not a return to glory. Because of Ahaz’s refusal to trust the Lord, potential blessing would be transformed into a curse, just as Isaiah turns an apparent prophecy of salvation into a message of judgment. Because the words “the king of Assyria” are rather awkwardly tacked on to the end of the sentence, some regard them as a later addition. However, the very awkwardness facilitates the prophet’s rhetorical strategy here, as he suddenly turns what sounds like a positive message into a judgment speech. Actually, “the king of Assyria,” stands in apposition to the earlier object “days,” and specifies who the main character of these coming “days” will be.

[11:15]  ¹⁸ tn The verb is usually understood as “put under the ban, destroy,” or emended to חָרָב (kharav, “dry up”). However, HALOT 354 s.v. II חרם proposes a homonymic root meaning “divide.”

[11:15]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “tongue” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[11:15]  ²⁰ sn That is, the Red Sea.

[11:15]  ²¹ tn Heb “the river”; capitalized in some English versions (e.g., ASV, NASB, NRSV) as a reference to the Euphrates River.

[11:15]  ²² tn Heb “with the [?] of his wind” [or “breath”]. The Hebrew term עַיָם (’ayam) occurs only here. Some attempt to relate the word to an Arabic root and translate, “scorching [or “hot”] wind.” This interpretation fits especially well if one reads “dry up” in the previous line. Others prefer to emend the form to עֹצֶם (’otsem, “strong”). See HALOT 817 s.v. עֲצַם.

[11:15]  ²³ tn Heb “seven streams.” The Hebrew term נַחַל (nakhal, “stream”) refers to a wadi, or seasonal stream, which runs during the rainy season, but is otherwise dry. The context (see v. 15b) here favors the translation, “dried up streams.” The number seven suggests totality and completeness. Here it indicates that God’s provision for escape will be thorough and more than capable of accommodating the returning exiles.

[13:1]  ²⁴ sn Isa 13-23 contains a series of judgment oracles against various nations. It is likely that Israel, not the nations mentioned, actually heard these oracles. The oracles probably had a twofold purpose. For those leaders who insisted on getting embroiled in international politics, these oracles were a reminder that Judah need not fear foreign nations or seek international alliances for security reasons. For the righteous remnant within the nation, these oracles were a reminder that Israel’s God was indeed the sovereign ruler of the earth, worthy of his people’s trust.

[13:1]  ²⁵ tn Heb “The message [traditionally, “burden”] [about] Babylon which Isaiah son of Amoz saw.”

[14:1]  ²⁶ tn The sentence begins with כִּי (ki), which is understood as asseverative (“certainly”) in the translation. Another option is to translate, “For the Lord will have compassion.” In this case one of the reasons for Babylon’s coming demise (13:22b) is the Lord’s desire to restore his people.

[14:1]  ²⁷ tn The words “as his special people” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[14:1]  ²⁸ tn Or “settle” (NASB, NIV, NCV, NLT).

[14:1]  ²⁹ tn Heb “house.”

[14:2]  ³⁰ tn Heb “and the house of Jacob will take possession of them [i.e., the nations], on the land of the Lord, as male servants and female servants.”

[18:4]  ³¹ tn Or “be quiet, inactive”; NIV “will remain quiet.”

[18:4]  ³² tn Heb “like the glowing heat because of light.” The precise meaning of the line is uncertain.

[18:4]  ³³ tn Heb “a cloud of dew,” or “a cloud of light rain.”

[18:4]  ³⁴ tc Some medieval Hebrew mss, with support from the LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Latin Vulgate, read “the day.”

[18:4]  ³⁵ sn It is unclear how the comparisons in v. 4b relate to the preceding statement. How is waiting and watching similar to heat or a cloud? For a discussion of interpretive options, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:362.

[26:11]  ³⁶ tn Heb “O Lord, your hand is lifted up.”

[26:11]  ³⁷ tn Heb “They will see and be ashamed of zeal of people.” Some take the prefixed verbs as jussives and translate the statement as a prayer, “Let them see and be put to shame.” The meaning of the phrase קִנְאַת־עָם (qin’at-’am, “zeal of people”) is unclear. The translation assumes that this refers to God’s angry judgment upon people. Another option is to understand the phrase as referring to God’s zealous, protective love of his covenant people. In this case one might translate, “by your zealous devotion to your people.”

[26:11]  ³⁸ tn Heb “yes, fire, your enemies, will consume them.” Many understand the prefixed verb form to be jussive and translate, “let [fire] consume” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV). The mem suffixed to the verb may be enclitic; if a pronominal suffix, it refers back to “your enemies.”

[26:21]  ³⁹ tn Heb “out of his place” (so KJV, ASV).

[26:21]  ⁴⁰ sn This implies that rampant bloodshed is one of the reasons for divine judgment. See the note at 24:5.

[27:1]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV).

[27:1]  ⁴² tn Heb “hard, severe”; cf. NAB, NRSV “cruel”; KJV “sore”; NLT “terrible.”

[27:1]  ⁴³ tn Heb “fleeing” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV). Some translate “slippery” or “slithering.”

[27:1]  ⁴⁴ tn The description of Leviathan should be compared with the following excerpts from Ugaritic mythological texts: (1) “Was not the dragon (Ugaritic tnn, cognate with Hebrew תַנִּין [tannin, translated “sea monster” here]) vanquished and captured? I did destroy the wriggling (Ugaritic ’qltn, cognate to Hebrew עֲקַלָּתוֹן [’aqallaton, translated “squirming” here]) serpent, the tyrant with seven heads (cf. Ps 74:14).” (See CTA 3 iii 38-39.) (2) “for all that you smote Leviathan the slippery (Ugaritic brh, cognate to Hebrew בָּרִחַ [bariakh, translated “fast-moving” here]) serpent, [and] made an end of the wriggling serpent, the tyrant with seven heads” (See CTA 5 i 1-3.)

[27:1]  sn In the Ugaritic mythological texts Leviathan is a sea creature that symbolizes the destructive water of the sea and in turn the forces of chaos that threaten the established order. Isaiah here applies imagery from Canaanite mythology to Yahweh’s eschatological victory over his enemies. Elsewhere in the OT, the battle with the sea motif is applied to Yahweh’s victories over the forces of chaos at creation and in history (cf. Pss 74:13-14; 77:16-20; 89:9-10; Isa 51:9-10). Yahweh’s subjugation of the chaos waters is related to His kingship (cf. Pss 29:3, 10; 93:3-4). Apocalyptic literature employs the imagery as well. The beasts of Dan 7 emerge from the sea, while Rev 13 speaks of a seven-headed beast coming from the sea.

[27:13]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “and it will be in that day.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[27:13]  ⁴⁶ tn Traditionally, “great” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NLT); CEV “loud.”

[27:13]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “the ones perishing.”

[27:13]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “the ones driven into.”

[27:13]  ⁴⁹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[28:13]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “And the word of the Lord will be to them, ‘tsahv latsahv,’ etc.” See the note at v. 10. In this case the “Lord’s word” is not the foreigner’s strange sounding words (as in v. 10), but the Lord’s repeated appeals to them (like the one quoted in v. 12). As time goes on, the Lord’s appeals through the prophets will have no impact on the people; they will regard prophetic preaching as gibberish.

[28:13]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “as a result they will go and stumble backward.” Perhaps an infant falling as it attempts to learn to walk is the background image here (cf. v. 9b). The Hebrew term לְמַעַן (lÿma’an) could be taken as indicating purpose (“in order that”), rather than simple result. In this case the people’s insensitivity to the message is caused by the Lord as a means of expediting their downfall.

[28:13]  ⁵² sn When divine warnings and appeals become gibberish to the spiritually insensitive, they have no guidance and are doomed to destruction.

[28:21]  ⁵³ sn This probably alludes to David’s victory over the Philistines at Baal Perazim. See 2 Sam 5:20.

[28:21]  ⁵⁴ sn This probably alludes to the Lord’s victory over the Canaanites at Gibeon, during the days of Joshua. See Josh 10:10-11.

[28:21]  ⁵⁵ sn God’s judgment of his own people is called “his peculiar work” and “his strange task,” because he must deal with them the way he treated their enemies in the past.

[28:26]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “he teaches him the proper way, his God instructs him.”

[30:1]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “stubborn” (NCV); cf. NIV “obstinate.”

[30:1]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “Woe [to] rebellious children.”

[30:1]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “making a plan, but not from me.”

[30:1]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “and pouring out a libation, but not [from] my spirit.” This translation assumes that the verb נָסַךְ (nasakh) means “pour out,” and that the cognate noun מַסֵּכָה (massekhah) means “libation.” In this case “pouring out a libation” alludes to a ceremony that formally ratifies an alliance. Another option is to understand the verb נָסַךְ as a homonym meaning “weave,” and the cognate noun מַסֵּכָה as a homonym meaning “covering.” In this case forming an alliance is likened to weaving a garment.

[30:1]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “consequently adding sin to sin.”

[30:26]  ⁶² sn Light here symbolizes restoration of divine blessing and prosperity. The number “seven” is used symbolically to indicate intensity. The exact meaning of the phrase “the light of seven days” is uncertain; it probably means “seven times brighter” (see the parallel line).

[30:26]  ⁶³ tn Heb “the fracture of his people” (so NASB).

[30:26]  sn The Lord is here compared to a physician setting a broken bone in a bandage or cast.

[30:26]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “the injury of his wound.” The joining of synonyms emphasizes the severity of the wound. Another option is to translate, “the wound of his blow.” In this case the pronominal suffix might refer to the Lord, not the people, yielding the translation, “the wound which he inflicted.”

[30:29]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “[you will have] joy of heart, like the one going with a flute to enter the mountain of the Lord to the Rock of Israel.” The image here is not a foundational rock, but a rocky cliff where people could hide for protection (for example, the fortress of Masada).

[30:30]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “the Lord will cause the splendor of his voice to be heard.”

[30:30]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “and reveal the lowering of his arm.”

[30:30]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “and a flame of consuming fire.”

[31:1]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “Woe [to] those who go down to Egypt for help.”

[31:1]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “and trust in chariots for they are many.”

[31:1]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “and in horsemen for they are very strong [or “numerous”].”

[31:1]  ⁷² sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[31:3]  ⁷³ tn Heb “will extend”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV “stretch out.”

[31:3]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “together all of them will come to an end.”

[35:10]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “and the redeemed will walk, the ransomed of the Lord will return.”

[35:10]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “[will be] on their head[s].” “Joy” may be likened here to a crown (cf. 2 Sam 1:10). The statement may also be an ironic twist on the idiom “earth/dust on the head” (cf. 2 Sam 1:2; 13:19; 15:32; Job 2:12), referring to a mourning practice.

[35:10]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “will overtake” (NIV); NLT “they will be overcome with.”

[35:10]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “grief and groaning will flee”; KJV “sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”

[38:1]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “was sick to the point of dying”; NRSV “became sick and was at the point of death.”

[43:1]  ⁸⁰ tn Or “redeem.” See the note at 41:14. Cf. NCV “saved you”; CEV “rescued you”; NLT “ransomed you.”

[45:19]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “in a place of a land of darkness” (ASV similar); NASB “in some dark land.”

[45:19]  ⁸² tn “In vain” translates תֹהוּ (tohu), used here as an adverbial accusative: “for nothing.”

[45:19]  ⁸³ tn The translation above assumes that צֶדֶק (tsedeq) and מֵישָׁרִים (mesharim) are adverbial accusatives (see 33:15). If they are taken as direct objects, indicating the content of what is spoken, one might translate, “who proclaims deliverance, who announces justice.”

[49:8]  ⁸⁴ tn The translation assumes the verb is derived from the root נָצָר (natsar, “protect”). Some prefer to derive it from the root יָצָר (yatsar, “form”).

[49:8]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “a covenant of people.” A person cannot literally be a covenant; בְּרִית (bÿrit) is probably metonymic here, indicating a covenant mediator. Here עָם (’am, “people”) appears to refer to Israel. See the note at 42:6.

[49:8]  ⁸⁶ tn The Hiphil of קוּם (qum, “arise”) is probably used here in the sense of “rebuild.”

[49:8]  ⁸⁷ tn The “land” probably stands by metonymy for the ruins within it.

[49:23]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “your,” but Zion here stands by metonymy for her children (see v. 22b).

[49:23]  ⁸⁹ tn Heb “you.” See the preceding note.

[49:23]  ⁹⁰ tn Or “at your feet” (NAB, NIV); NLT “from your feet.”

[49:26]  ⁹¹ sn Verse 26a depicts siege warfare and bloody defeat. The besieged enemy will be so starved they will their own flesh. The bloodstained bodies lying on the blood-soaked battle site will look as if they collapsed in drunkenness.

[49:26]  ⁹² tn Heb “flesh” (so KJV, NASB).

[49:26]  ⁹³ tn Heb “your redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[49:26]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “the powerful [one] of Jacob.” See 1:24.

[50:1]  ⁹⁵ sn The Lord challenges the exiles (Zion’s children) to bring incriminating evidence against him. The rhetorical questions imply that Israel accused the Lord of divorcing his wife (Zion) and selling his children (the Israelites) into slavery to pay off a debt.

[50:1]  ⁹⁶ sn The Lord admits that he did sell the Israelites, but it was because of their sins, not because of some debt he owed. If he had sold them to a creditor, they ought to be able to point him out, but the preceding rhetorical question implies they would not be able to do so.

[50:1]  ⁹⁷ sn The Lord admits he did divorce Zion, but that too was the result of the nation’s sins. The force of the earlier rhetorical question comes into clearer focus now. The question does not imply that a certificate does not exist and that no divorce occurred. Rather, the question asks for the certificate to be produced so the accuser can see the reason for the divorce in black and white. The Lord did not put Zion away arbitrarily.

[51:11]  ⁹⁸ tn Heb “[will be] on their head[s].” “Joy” may be likened here to a crown (cf. 2 Sam 1:10). The statement may also be an ironic twist on the idiom “earth/dust on the head” (cf. 2 Sam 1:2; 13:19; 15:32; Job 2:12), referring to a mourning practice.

[51:11]  ⁹⁹ tn Heb “overtake” (so NIV); NASB “they will obtain.”

[51:11]  ¹⁰⁰ tn Heb “grief and groaning will flee.”

[51:13]  ¹⁰¹ tn Heb “and that you forget.”

[51:13]  ¹⁰² tn Or “the heavens” (also in v. 16). The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

[51:13]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “and that you tremble constantly all the day.”

[51:13]  ¹⁰⁴ tn The question anticipates the answer, “Ready to disappear!” See v. 14.

[58:9]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Heb “if you.” In the Hebrew text vv. 9b-10 are one long conditional sentence. The protasis (“if” clauses appear in vv. 9b-10a), with the apodosis (“then” clause) appearing in v. 10b.

[58:11]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “he will satisfy in parched regions your appetite.”

[58:11]  ¹⁰⁷ tn Heb “and your bones he will strengthen.”

[60:14]  ¹⁰⁸ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[62:8]  ¹⁰⁹ tn The Lord’s right hand and strong arm here symbolize his power and remind the audience that his might guarantees the fulfillment of the following promise.

[63:17]  ¹¹⁰ tn Some suggest a tolerative use of the Hiphil here, “[why do] you allow us to stray?” (cf. NLT). Though the Hiphil of תָעָה (ta’ah) appears to be tolerative in Jer 50:6, elsewhere it is preferable or necessary to take it as causative. See Isa 3:12; 9:15; and 30:28, as well as Gen 20:13; 2 Kgs 21:9; Job 12:24-25; Prov 12:26; Jer 23:13, 32; Hos 4:12; Amos 2:4; Mic 3:5.

[63:17]  ¹¹¹ tn This probably refers to God’s commands.

[63:17]  ¹¹² tn Heb “[Why do] you harden our heart[s] so as not to fear you.” The interrogative particle is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[63:17]  sn How direct this hardening is, one cannot be sure. The speaker may envision direct involvement on the Lord’s part. The Lord has brought the exile as judgment for the nation’s sin and now he continues to keep them at arm’s length by blinding them spiritually. The second half of 64:7 might support this, though the precise reading of the final verb is uncertain. On the other hand, the idiom of lament is sometimes ironic and hyperbolically deterministic. For example, Naomi lamented that Shaddai was directly opposing her and bringing her calamity (Ruth 1:20-21), while the author of Ps 88 directly attributes his horrible suffering and loneliness to God (see especially vv. 6-8, 16-18). Both individuals make little, if any, room for intermediate causes or the principle of sin and death which ravages the human race. In the same way, the speaker in Isa 63:17 (who evidences great spiritual sensitivity and is anything but “hardened”) may be referring to the hardships of exile, which discouraged and even embittered the people, causing many of them to retreat from their Yahwistic faith. In this case, the “hardening” in view is more indirect and can be lifted by the Lord’s intervention. Whether the hardening here is indirect or direct, it is important to recognize that the speaker sees it as one of the effects of rebellion against the Lord (note especially 64:5-6).

[66:17]  ¹¹³ tn Heb “the ones who consecrate themselves and the ones who purify themselves toward the orchards [or “gardens”] after the one in the midst.” The precise meaning of the statement is unclear, though it is obvious that some form of idolatry is in view.

[66:17]  ¹¹⁴ tn Heb “ones who eat the flesh of the pig and the disgusting thing and the mouse.”

[66:17]  ¹¹⁵ tn Heb “together they will come to an end.”