Yesaya 30:1--39:8
Konteks30:1 “The rebellious 1 children are as good as dead,” 2 says the Lord,
“those who make plans without consulting me, 3
who form alliances without consulting my Spirit, 4
and thereby compound their sin. 5
30:2 They travel down to Egypt
without seeking my will, 6
seeking Pharaoh’s protection,
and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. 7
30:3 But Pharaoh’s protection will bring you nothing but shame,
and the safety of Egypt’s protective shade nothing but humiliation.
30:4 Though his 8 officials are in Zoan
and his messengers arrive at Hanes, 9
30:5 all will be put to shame 10
because of a nation that cannot help them,
who cannot give them aid or help,
but only shame and disgrace.”
30:6 This is a message 11 about the animals in the Negev:
Through a land of distress and danger,
inhabited by lionesses and roaring lions, 12
by snakes and darting adders, 13
they transport 14 their wealth on the backs of donkeys,
their riches on the humps of camels,
to a nation that cannot help them. 15
30:7 Egypt is totally incapable of helping. 16
For this reason I call her
‘Proud one 17 who is silenced.’” 18
30:8 Now go, write it 19 down on a tablet in their presence, 20
inscribe it on a scroll,
so that it might be preserved for a future time
as an enduring witness. 21
30:9 For these are rebellious people –
they are lying children,
children unwilling to obey the Lord’s law. 22
30:10 They 23 say to the visionaries, “See no more visions!”
and to the seers, “Don’t relate messages to us about what is right! 24
Tell us nice things,
relate deceptive messages. 25
30:11 Turn aside from the way,
stray off the path. 26
Remove from our presence the Holy One of Israel.” 27
30:12 For this reason this is what the Holy One of Israel says:
“You have rejected this message; 28
you trust instead in your ability to oppress and trick, 29
and rely on that kind of behavior. 30
30:13 So this sin will become your downfall.
You will be like a high wall
that bulges and cracks and is ready to collapse;
it crumbles suddenly, in a flash. 31
30:14 It shatters in pieces like a clay jar,
so shattered to bits that none of it can be salvaged. 32
Among its fragments one cannot find a shard large enough 33
to scoop a hot coal from a fire 34
or to skim off water from a cistern.” 35
30:15 For this is what the master, the Lord, the Holy One of Israel says:
“If you repented and patiently waited for me, you would be delivered; 36
if you calmly trusted in me you would find strength, 37
but you are unwilling.
30:16 You say, ‘No, we will flee on horses,’
so you will indeed flee.
You say, ‘We will ride on fast horses,’
so your pursuers will be fast.
30:17 One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier; 38
at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away, 39
until the remaining few are as isolated 40
as a flagpole on a mountaintop
or a signal flag on a hill.”
30:18 For this reason the Lord is ready to show you mercy;
he sits on his throne, ready to have compassion on you. 41
Indeed, the Lord is a just God;
all who wait for him in faith will be blessed. 42
30:19 For people will live in Zion;
in Jerusalem 43 you will weep no more. 44
When he hears your cry of despair, he will indeed show you mercy;
when he hears it, he will respond to you. 45
30:20 The sovereign master 46 will give you distress to eat
and suffering to drink; 47
but your teachers will no longer be hidden;
your eyes will see them. 48
30:21 You 49 will hear a word spoken behind you, saying,
“This is the correct 50 way, walk in it,”
whether you are heading to the right or the left.
30:22 You will desecrate your silver-plated idols 51
and your gold-plated images. 52
You will throw them away as if they were a menstrual rag,
saying to them, “Get out!”
30:23 He will water the seed you plant in the ground,
and the ground will produce crops in abundance. 53
At that time 54 your cattle will graze in wide pastures.
30:24 The oxen and donkeys used in plowing 55
will eat seasoned feed winnowed with a shovel and pitchfork. 56
30:25 On every high mountain
and every high hill
there will be streams flowing with water,
at the time of 57 great slaughter when the fortified towers collapse.
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, 58
when the Lord binds up his people’s fractured bones 59
and heals their severe wound. 60
30:27 Look, the name 61 of the Lord comes from a distant place
in raging anger and awesome splendor. 62
He speaks angrily
and his word is like destructive fire. 63
30:28 His battle cry overwhelms like a flooding river 64
that reaches one’s neck.
He shakes the nations in a sieve that isolates the chaff; 65
he puts a bit into the mouth of the nations and leads them to destruction. 66
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. 67
30:30 The Lord will give a mighty shout 68
and intervene in power, 69
with furious anger and flaming, destructive fire, 70
with a driving rainstorm and hailstones.
30:31 Indeed, the Lord’s shout will shatter Assyria; 71
he will beat them with a club.
30:32 Every blow from his punishing cudgel, 72
with which the Lord will beat them, 73
will be accompanied by music from the 74 tambourine and harp,
and he will attack them with his weapons. 75
30:33 For 76 the burial place is already prepared; 77
it has been made deep and wide for the king. 78
The firewood is piled high on it. 79
The Lord’s breath, like a stream flowing with brimstone,
will ignite it.
31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, 80
those who rely on war horses,
and trust in Egypt’s many chariots 81
and in their many, many horsemen. 82
But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel 83
and do not seek help from the Lord.
31:2 Yet he too is wise 84 and he will bring disaster;
he does not retract his decree. 85
He will attack the wicked nation, 86
and the nation that helps 87 those who commit sin. 88
31:3 The Egyptians are mere humans, not God;
their horses are made of flesh, not spirit.
The Lord will strike with 89 his hand;
the one who helps will stumble
and the one being helped will fall.
Together they will perish. 90
31:4 Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me:
“The Lord will be like a growling lion,
like a young lion growling over its prey. 91
Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it,
it is not afraid of their shouts
or intimidated by their yelling. 92
In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend
to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill. 93
31:5 Just as birds hover over a nest, 94
so the Lord who commands armies will protect Jerusalem. 95
He will protect and deliver it;
as he passes over 96 he will rescue it.
31:6 You Israelites! Return to the one against whom you have so blatantly rebelled! 97 31:7 For at that time 98 everyone will get rid of 99 the silver and gold idols your hands sinfully made. 100
31:8 Assyria will fall by a sword, but not one human-made; 101
a sword not made by humankind will destroy them. 102
They will run away from this sword 103
and their young men will be forced to do hard labor.
31:9 They will surrender their stronghold 104 because of fear; 105
their officers will be afraid of the Lord’s battle flag.” 106
This is what the Lord says –
the one whose fire is in Zion,
whose firepot is in Jerusalem. 107
32:1 Look, a king will promote fairness; 108
officials will promote justice. 109
32:2 Each of them 110 will be like a shelter from the wind
and a refuge from a rainstorm;
like streams of water in a dry region
and like the shade of a large cliff in a parched land.
32:3 Eyes 111 will no longer be blind 112
and ears 113 will be attentive.
32:4 The mind that acts rashly will possess discernment 114
and the tongue that stutters will speak with ease and clarity.
32:5 A fool will no longer be called honorable;
a deceiver will no longer be called principled.
32:6 For a fool speaks disgraceful things; 115
his mind plans out sinful deeds. 116
He commits godless deeds 117
and says misleading things about the Lord;
he gives the hungry nothing to satisfy their appetite 118
and gives the thirsty nothing to drink. 119
32:7 A deceiver’s methods are evil; 120
he dreams up evil plans 121
to ruin the poor with lies,
even when the needy are in the right. 122
32:8 An honorable man makes honorable plans;
his honorable character gives him security. 123
32:9 You complacent 124 women,
get up and listen to me!
You carefree 125 daughters,
pay attention to what I say!
you carefree ones will shake with fear,
for the grape 127 harvest will fail,
and the fruit harvest will not arrive.
32:11 Tremble, you complacent ones!
Shake with fear, you carefree ones!
Strip off your clothes and expose yourselves –
put sackcloth on your waist! 128
32:12 Mourn over the field, 129
over the delightful fields
and the fruitful vine!
32:13 Mourn 130 over the land of my people,
which is overgrown with thorns and briers,
and over all the once-happy houses 131
in the city filled with revelry. 132
32:14 For the fortress is neglected;
the once-crowded 133 city is abandoned.
Hill 134 and watchtower
are permanently uninhabited. 135
Wild donkeys love to go there,
and flocks graze there. 136
32:15 This desolation will continue until new life is poured out on us from heaven. 137
Then the desert will become an orchard
and the orchard will be considered a forest. 138
32:16 Justice will settle down in the desert
and fairness will live in the orchard. 139
32:17 Fairness will produce peace 140
and result in lasting security. 141
32:18 My people will live in peaceful settlements,
in secure homes,
and in safe, quiet places. 142
32:19 Even if the forest is destroyed 143
and the city is annihilated, 144
32:20 you will be blessed,
you who plant seed by all the banks of the streams, 145
you who let your ox and donkey graze. 146
33:1 The destroyer is as good as dead, 147
you who have not been destroyed!
The deceitful one is as good as dead, 148
the one whom others have not deceived!
When you are through destroying, you will be destroyed;
when you finish 149 deceiving, others will deceive you!
33:2 Lord, be merciful to us! We wait for you.
Give us strength each morning! 150
Deliver us when distress comes. 151
33:3 The nations run away when they hear a loud noise; 152
the nations scatter when you spring into action! 153
33:4 Your plunder 154 disappears as if locusts were eating it; 155
they swarm over it like locusts! 156
indeed, 158 he lives in heaven; 159
he fills Zion with justice and fairness.
33:6 He is your constant source of stability; 160
he abundantly provides safety and great wisdom; 161
he gives all this to those who fear him. 162
33:7 Look, ambassadors 163 cry out in the streets;
messengers sent to make peace 164 weep bitterly.
there are no travelers. 166
Treaties are broken, 167
witnesses are despised, 168
human life is treated with disrespect. 169
33:9 The land 170 dries up 171 and withers away;
the forest of Lebanon shrivels up 172 and decays.
Sharon 173 is like the desert; 174
Bashan and Carmel 175 are parched. 176
33:10 “Now I will rise up,” says the Lord.
“Now I will exalt myself;
now I will magnify myself. 177
you give birth to chaff;
your breath is a fire that destroys you. 179
33:12 The nations will be burned to ashes; 180
like thorn bushes that have been cut down, they will be set on fire.
33:13 You who are far away, listen to what I have done!
You who are close by, recognize my strength!”
33:14 Sinners are afraid in Zion;
panic 181 grips the godless. 182
They say, 183 ‘Who among us can coexist with destructive fire?
Who among us can coexist with unquenchable 184 fire?’
33:15 The one who lives 185 uprightly 186
and speaks honestly;
the one who refuses to profit from oppressive measures
and rejects a bribe; 187
the one who does not plot violent crimes 188
and does not seek to harm others 189 –
33:16 This is the person who will live in a secure place; 190
he will find safety in the rocky, mountain strongholds; 191
he will have food
and a constant supply of water.
33:17 You will see a king in his splendor; 192
you will see a wide land. 193
33:18 Your mind will recall the terror you experienced, 194
and you will ask yourselves, 195 “Where is the scribe?
Where is the one who weighs the money?
Where is the one who counts the towers?” 196
33:19 You will no longer see a defiant 197 people
whose language you do not comprehend, 198
whose derisive speech you do not understand. 199
33:20 Look at Zion, the city where we hold religious festivals!
You 200 will see Jerusalem, 201
a peaceful settlement,
a tent that stays put; 202
its stakes will never be pulled up;
none of its ropes will snap in two.
33:21 Instead the Lord will rule there as our mighty king. 203
Rivers and wide streams will flow through it; 204
no war galley will enter; 205
no large ships will sail through. 206
33:22 For the Lord, our ruler,
the Lord, our commander,
the Lord, our king –
he will deliver us.
33:23 Though at this time your ropes are slack, 207
the mast is not secured, 208
and the sail 209 is not unfurled,
at that time you will divide up a great quantity of loot; 210
even the lame will drag off plunder. 211
33:24 No resident of Zion 212 will say, “I am ill”;
the people who live there will have their sin forgiven.
34:1 Come near, you nations, and listen!
Pay attention, you people!
The earth and everything it contains must listen,
the world and everything that lives in it. 213
34:2 For the Lord is angry at all the nations
and furious with all their armies.
He will annihilate them and slaughter them.
34:3 Their slain will be left unburied, 214
their corpses will stink; 215
the hills will soak up their blood. 216
34:4 All the stars in the sky will fade away, 217
the sky will roll up like a scroll;
all its stars will wither,
like a leaf withers and falls from a vine
or a fig withers and falls from a tree. 218
34:5 He says, 219 “Indeed, my sword has slaughtered heavenly powers. 220
Look, it now descends on Edom, 221
on the people I will annihilate in judgment.”
34:6 The Lord’s sword is dripping with blood,
it is covered 222 with fat;
it drips 223 with the blood of young rams and goats
and is covered 224 with the fat of rams’ kidneys.
For the Lord is holding a sacrifice 225 in Bozrah, 226
a bloody 227 slaughter in the land of Edom.
34:7 Wild oxen will be slaughtered 228 along with them,
as well as strong bulls. 229
Their land is drenched with blood,
their soil is covered with fat.
34:8 For the Lord has planned a day of revenge, 230
a time when he will repay Edom for her hostility toward Zion. 231
34:9 Edom’s 232 streams will be turned into pitch
and her soil into brimstone;
her land will become burning pitch.
34:10 Night and day it will burn; 233
its smoke will ascend continually.
Generation after generation it will be a wasteland
and no one will ever pass through it again.
34:11 Owls and wild animals 234 will live there, 235
all kinds of wild birds 236 will settle in it.
The Lord 237 will stretch out over her
the measuring line of ruin
and the plumb line 238 of destruction. 239
34:12 Her nobles will have nothing left to call a kingdom
and all her officials will disappear. 240
34:13 Her fortresses will be overgrown with thorns;
thickets and weeds will grow 241 in her fortified cities.
Jackals will settle there;
ostriches will live there. 242
34:14 Wild animals and wild dogs will congregate there; 243
wild goats will bleat to one another. 244
Yes, nocturnal animals 245 will rest there
and make for themselves a nest. 246
34:15 Owls 247 will make nests and lay eggs 248 there;
they will hatch them and protect them. 249
Yes, hawks 250 will gather there,
each with its mate.
34:16 Carefully read the scroll of the Lord! 251
Not one of these creatures will be missing, 252
none will lack a mate. 253
For the Lord has issued the decree, 254
and his own spirit gathers them. 255
34:17 He assigns them their allotment; 256
he measures out their assigned place. 257
They will live there 258 permanently;
they will settle in it through successive generations.
35:1 Let the desert and dry region be happy; 259
let the wilderness 260 rejoice and bloom like a lily!
let it rejoice and shout with delight! 262
It is given the grandeur 263 of Lebanon,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.
They will see the grandeur of the Lord,
the splendor of our God.
35:3 Strengthen the hands that have gone limp,
steady the knees that shake! 264
35:4 Tell those who panic, 265
“Be strong! Do not fear!
Look, your God comes to avenge!
With divine retribution he comes to deliver you.” 266
35:5 Then blind eyes will open,
deaf ears will hear.
35:6 Then the lame will leap like a deer,
the mute tongue will shout for joy;
for water will flow 267 in the desert,
streams in the wilderness. 268
35:7 The dry soil will become a pool of water,
the parched ground springs of water.
Where jackals once lived and sprawled out,
grass, reeds, and papyrus will grow.
35:8 A thoroughfare will be there –
it will be called the Way of Holiness. 269
The unclean will not travel on it;
it is reserved for those authorized to use it 270 –
fools 271 will not stray into it.
35:9 No lions will be there,
no ferocious wild animals will be on it 272 –
they will not be found there.
Those delivered from bondage will travel on it,
35:10 those whom the Lord has ransomed will return that way. 273
They will enter Zion with a happy shout.
Unending joy will crown them, 274
happiness and joy will overwhelm 275 them;
grief and suffering will disappear. 276
36:1 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, 277 King Sennacherib of Assyria marched up against all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. 36:2 The king of Assyria sent his chief adviser 278 from Lachish to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem, 279 along with a large army. The chief adviser 280 stood at the conduit of the upper pool which is located on the road to the field where they wash and dry cloth. 281 36:3 Eliakim son of Hilkiah, the palace supervisor, accompanied by Shebna the scribe and Joah son of Asaph, the secretary, went out to meet him.
36:4 The chief adviser said to them, “Tell Hezekiah: ‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: “What is your source of confidence? 282 36:5 Your claim to have a strategy and military strength is just empty talk. 283 In whom are you trusting, that you would dare to rebel against me? 36:6 Look, you must be trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed staff. If someone leans on it for support, it punctures his hand and wounds him. That is what Pharaoh king of Egypt does to all who trust in him! 36:7 Perhaps you will tell me, ‘We are trusting in the Lord our God.’ But Hezekiah is the one who eliminated his high places and altars and then told the people of Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You must worship at this altar.’ 36:8 Now make a deal with my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, provided you can find enough riders for them. 36:9 Certainly you will not refuse one of my master’s minor officials and trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen. 284 36:10 Furthermore it was by the command of the Lord that I marched up against this land to destroy it. The Lord told me, ‘March up against this land and destroy it!’”’” 285
36:11 Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said to the chief adviser, “Speak to your servants in Aramaic, 286 for we understand it. Don’t speak with us in the Judahite dialect 287 in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.” 36:12 But the chief adviser said, “My master did not send me to speak these words only to your master and to you. 288 His message is also for the men who sit on the wall, for they will eat their own excrement and drink their own urine along with you!” 289
36:13 The chief adviser then stood there and called out loudly in the Judahite dialect, 290 “Listen to the message of the great king, the king of Assyria. 36:14 This is what the king says: ‘Don’t let Hezekiah mislead you, for he is not able to rescue you! 36:15 Don’t let Hezekiah talk you into trusting in the Lord by saying, “The Lord will certainly rescue us; this city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.” 36:16 Don’t listen to Hezekiah!’ For this is what the king of Assyria says, ‘Send me a token of your submission and surrender to me. 291 Then each of you may eat from his own vine and fig tree and drink water from his own cistern, 36:17 until I come and take you to a land just like your own – a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards. 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? 292 36:19 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? 293 Indeed, did any gods rescue Samaria 294 from my power? 295 36:20 Who among all the gods of these lands have rescued their lands from my power? So how can the Lord rescue Jerusalem from my power?’” 296 36:21 They were silent and did not respond, for the king had ordered, “Don’t respond to him.”
36:22 Eliakim son of Hilkiah, the palace supervisor, accompanied by Shebna the scribe and Joah son of Asaph, the secretary, went to Hezekiah with their clothes torn in grief 297 and reported to him what the chief adviser had said. 37:1 When King Hezekiah heard this, 298 he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and went to the Lord’s temple. 37:2 Eliakim the palace supervisor, Shebna the scribe, and the leading priests, 299 clothed in sackcloth, sent this message to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz: 37:3 “This is what Hezekiah says: 300 ‘This is a day of distress, insults, 301 and humiliation, 302 as when a baby is ready to leave the birth canal, but the mother lacks the strength to push it through. 303 37:4 Perhaps the Lord your God will hear all these things the chief adviser has spoken on behalf of his master, the king of Assyria, who sent him to taunt the living God. 304 When the Lord your God hears, perhaps he will punish him for the things he has said. 305 So pray for this remnant that remains.’” 306
37:5 When King Hezekiah’s servants came to Isaiah, 37:6 Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master this: ‘This is what the Lord says: “Don’t be afraid because of the things you have heard – these insults the king of Assyria’s servants have hurled against me. 307 37:7 Look, I will take control of his mind; 308 he will receive a report and return to his own land. I will cut him down 309 with a sword in his own land.”’”
37:8 When the chief adviser heard the king of Assyria had departed from Lachish, he left and went to Libnah, where the king was campaigning. 310 37:9 The king 311 heard that King Tirhakah of Ethiopia 312 was marching out to fight him. 313 He again sent 314 messengers to Hezekiah, ordering them: 37:10 “Tell King Hezekiah of Judah this: ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust mislead you when he says, “Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.” 37:11 Certainly you have heard how the kings of Assyria have annihilated all lands. 315 Do you really think you will be rescued? 316 37:12 Were the nations whom my predecessors 317 destroyed – the nations of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Telassar – rescued by their gods? 318 37:13 Where are the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, and the kings of Lair, 319 Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah?’”
37:14 Hezekiah took the letter 320 from the messengers and read it. 321 Then Hezekiah went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it out before the Lord. 37:15 Hezekiah prayed before the Lord: 37:16 “O Lord who commands armies, O God of Israel, who is enthroned on the cherubim! 322 You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the sky 323 and the earth. 37:17 Pay attention, Lord, and hear! Open your eyes, Lord, and observe! Listen to this entire message Sennacherib sent and how he taunts the living God! 324 37:18 It is true, Lord, that the kings of Assyria have destroyed all the nations 325 and their lands. 37:19 They have burned the gods of the nations, 326 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. 327 37:20 Now, O Lord our God, rescue us from his power, so all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the Lord.” 328
37:21 Isaiah son of Amoz sent this message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘Because you prayed to me concerning King Sennacherib of Assyria, 329 37:22 this is what the Lord says about him: 330
“The virgin daughter Zion 331
despises you – she makes fun of you;
daughter Jerusalem
shakes her head after you. 332
37:23 Whom have you taunted and hurled insults at?
At whom have you shouted
and looked so arrogantly? 333
At the Holy One of Israel! 334
37:24 Through your messengers you taunted the sovereign master, 335
‘With my many chariots I climbed up
the high mountains,
the slopes of Lebanon.
I cut down its tall cedars
and its best evergreens.
I invaded its most remote regions, 336
its thickest woods.
37:25 I dug wells
and drank water. 337
With the soles of my feet I dried up
all the rivers of Egypt.’
37:26 338 Certainly you must have heard! 339
Long ago I worked it out,
in ancient times I planned 340 it,
and now I am bringing it to pass.
The plan is this:
Fortified cities will crash
into heaps of ruins. 341
37:27 Their residents are powerless; 342
they are terrified and ashamed.
They are as short-lived as plants in the field
or green vegetation. 343
They are as short-lived as grass on the rooftops 344
when it is scorched by the east wind. 345
37:28 I know where you live
and everything you do
and how you rage against me. 346
37:29 Because you rage against me
and the uproar you create has reached my ears, 347
I will put my hook in your nose, 348
and my bridle between your lips,
and I will lead you back
the way you came.”
37:30 349 “This will be your reminder that I have spoken the truth: 350 This year you will eat what grows wild, 351 and next year 352 what grows on its own. But the year after that 353 you will plant seed and harvest crops; you will plant vines and consume their produce. 354 37:31 Those who remain in Judah will take root in the ground and bear fruit. 355
37:32 “For a remnant will leave Jerusalem;
survivors will come out of Mount Zion.
The intense devotion of the Lord who commands armies 356 will accomplish this.
37:33 So this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
‘He will not enter this city,
nor will he shoot an arrow here. 357
He will not attack it with his shielded warriors, 358
nor will he build siege works against it.
37:34 He will go back the way he came –
he will not enter this city,’ says the Lord.
37:35 I will shield this city and rescue it for the sake of my reputation and because of my promise to David my servant.”’” 359
37:36 The Lord’s messenger 360 went out and killed 185,000 troops 361 in the Assyrian camp. When they 362 got up early the next morning, there were all the corpses! 363 37:37 So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and went on his way. He went home and stayed in Nineveh. 364 37:38 One day, 365 as he was worshiping 366 in the temple of his god Nisroch, 367 his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer struck him down with the sword. 368 They ran away to the land of Ararat; his son Esarhaddon replaced him as king.
38:1 In those days Hezekiah was stricken with a terminal illness. 369 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.’” 38:2 Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 38:3 “Please, Lord. Remember how I have served you 370 faithfully and with wholehearted devotion, 371 and how I have carried out your will.” 372 Then Hezekiah wept bitterly. 373
38:4 The Lord told Isaiah, 374 38:5 “Go and tell Hezekiah: ‘This is what the Lord God of your ancestor 375 David says: “I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Look, I will add fifteen years to your life, 38:6 and rescue you and this city from the king of Assyria. I will shield this city.”’” 38:7 Isaiah replied, 376 “This is your sign from the Lord confirming that the Lord will do what he has said: 38:8 Look, I will make the shadow go back ten steps on the stairs of Ahaz.” 377 And then the shadow went back ten steps. 378
38:9 This is the prayer of King Hezekiah of Judah when he was sick and then recovered from his illness:
‘In the middle of my life 380 I must walk through the gates of Sheol,
I am deprived 381 of the rest of my years.’
38:11 “I thought,
‘I will no longer see the Lord 382 in the land of the living,
I will no longer look on humankind with the inhabitants of the world. 383
38:12 My dwelling place 384 is removed and taken away 385 from me
like a shepherd’s tent.
I rolled up my life like a weaver rolls cloth; 386
from the loom he cuts me off. 387
You turn day into night and end my life. 388
38:13 I cry out 389 until morning;
like a lion he shatters all my bones;
you turn day into night and end my life. 390
38:14 Like a swallow or a thrush I chirp,
I coo 391 like a dove;
my eyes grow tired from looking up to the sky. 392
O sovereign master, 393 I am oppressed;
help me! 394
38:15 What can I say?
He has decreed and acted. 395
I will walk slowly all my years because I am overcome with grief. 396
38:16 O sovereign master, your decrees can give men life;
may years of life be restored to me. 397
Restore my health 398 and preserve my life.’
38:17 “Look, the grief I experienced was for my benefit. 399
You delivered me 400 from the pit of oblivion. 401
For you removed all my sins from your sight. 402
38:18 Indeed 403 Sheol does not give you thanks;
death does not 404 praise you.
Those who descend into the pit do not anticipate your faithfulness.
38:19 The living person, the living person, he gives you thanks,
as I do today.
A father tells his sons about your faithfulness.
38:20 The Lord is about to deliver me, 405
and we will celebrate with music 406
for the rest of our lives in the Lord’s temple.” 407
38:21 408 Isaiah ordered, “Let them take a fig cake and apply it to the ulcerated sore and he will get well.” 38:22 Hezekiah said, “What is the confirming sign that I will go up to the Lord’s temple?”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. 39:2 Hezekiah welcomed 409 them and showed them his storehouse with its silver, gold, spices, and high-quality olive oil, as well as his whole armory and everything in his treasuries. Hezekiah showed them everything in his palace and in his whole kingdom. 410 39:3 Isaiah the prophet visited King Hezekiah and asked him, “What did these men say? Where do they come from?” Hezekiah replied, “They come from the distant land of Babylon.” 39:4 Isaiah 411 asked, “What have they seen in your palace?” Hezekiah replied, “They have seen everything in my palace. I showed them everything in my treasuries.” 39:5 Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Listen to the word of the Lord who commands armies: 39:6 ‘Look, a time is coming when everything in your palace and the things your ancestors 412 have accumulated to this day will be carried away to Babylon; nothing will be left,’ says the Lord. 39:7 ‘Some of your very own descendants whom you father 413 will be taken away and will be made eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’” 39:8 Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The Lord’s word which you have announced is appropriate.” 414 Then he thought, 415 “For 416 there will be peace and stability during my lifetime.”
[30:1] 1 tn Or “stubborn” (NCV); cf. NIV “obstinate.”
[30:1] 2 tn Heb “Woe [to] rebellious children.”
[30:1] 3 tn Heb “making a plan, but not from me.”
[30:1] 4 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] 5 tn Heb “consequently adding sin to sin.”
[30:2] 6 tn Heb “those who go to descend to Egypt, but [of] my mouth they do not inquire.”
[30:2] 7 tn Heb “to seek protection in the protection of Pharaoh, and to seek refuge in the shade of Egypt.”
[30:4] 8 sn This probably refers to Judah’s officials and messengers.
[30:4] 9 sn Zoan was located in the Egyptian delta in the north; Hanes was located somewhere in southern region of lower Egypt, south of Memphis; the exact location is debated.
[30:5] 10 tn The present translation follows the marginal (Qere) reading of the Hebrew text; the consonantal text (Kethib) has “made to stink, decay.”
[30:6] 11 tn Traditionally, “burden” (so KJV, ASV); NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “oracle.”
[30:6] 12 tc Heb “[a land of] a lioness and a lion, from them.” Some emend מֵהֶם (mehem, “from them”) to מֵהֵם (mehem), an otherwise unattested Hiphil participle from הָמַם (hamam, “move noisily”). Perhaps it would be better to take the initial mem (מ) as enclitic and emend the form to הֹמֶה (homeh), a Qal active participle from הָמָה (hamah, “to make a noise”); cf. J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:542, n. 9.
[30:6] 13 tn Heb “flying fiery one.” See the note at 14:29.
[30:6] 14 tn Or “carry” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[30:6] 15 sn This verse describes messengers from Judah transporting wealth to Egypt in order to buy Pharaoh’s protection through a treaty.
[30:7] 16 tn Heb “As for Egypt, with vanity and emptiness they help.”
[30:7] 17 tn Heb “Rahab” (רַהַב, rahav), which also appears as a name for Egypt in Ps 87:4. The epithet is also used in the OT for a mythical sea monster symbolic of chaos. See the note at 51:9. A number of English versions use the name “Rahab” (e.g., ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV) while others attempt some sort of translation (cf. CEV “a helpless monster”; TEV, NLT “the Harmless Dragon”).
[30:7] 18 tn The MT reads “Rahab, they, sitting.” The translation above assumes an emendation of הֵם שָׁבֶת (hem shavet) to הַמָּשְׁבָּת (hammashbat), a Hophal participle with prefixed definite article, meaning “the one who is made to cease,” i.e., “destroyed,” or “silenced.” See HALOT 444-45 s.v. ישׁב.
[30:8] 19 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] 20 tn Heb “with them.” On the use of the preposition here, see BDB 86 s.v. II אֵת.
[30:8] 21 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.
[30:9] 22 tn Or perhaps, “instruction” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); NCV, TEV “teachings.”
[30:10] 23 tn Heb “who” (so NASB, NRSV). A new sentence was started here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[30:10] 24 tn Heb “Do not see for us right things.”
[30:10] 25 tn Heb “Tell us smooth things, see deceptive things.”
[30:11] 26 sn The imagery refers to the way or path of truth, as revealed by God to the prophet.
[30:11] 27 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
[30:12] 28 tn The sentence actually begins with the word “because.” In the Hebrew text vv. 12-13 are one long sentence.
[30:12] 29 tn Heb “and you trust in oppression and cunning.”
[30:12] 30 tn Heb “and you lean on it”; NAB “and depend on it.”
[30:13] 31 tn The verse reads literally, “So this sin will become for you like a breach ready to fall, bulging on a high wall, the breaking of which comes suddenly, in a flash.” Their sin produces guilt and will result in judgment. Like a wall that collapses their fall will be swift and sudden.
[30:14] 32 tn Heb “Its shattering is like the shattering of a jug of [i.e., “made by”] potters, [so] shattered one cannot save [any of it].”
[30:14] 33 tn The words “large enough” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[30:14] 34 tn Heb “to remove fire from the place of kindling.”
[30:14] 35 tn On the meaning of גֶבֶא (geveh, “cistern”) see HALOT 170 s.v.
[30:15] 36 tn Heb “in returning and in quietness you will be delivered.” Many English versions render the last phrase “shall be saved” or something similar (e.g., NAB, NASB, NRSV).
[30:15] 37 tn Heb “in quietness and in trust is your strength” (NASB and NRSV both similar).
[30:17] 38 tn Heb “One thousand from before [or “because of”] one battle cry.” גְּעָרָה (gÿ’arah) is often defined as “threat,” but in war contexts it likely refers to a shout or battle cry. See Ps 76:6.
[30:17] 39 tn Heb “from before [or “because of”] the battle cry of five you will flee.
[30:17] 40 tn Heb “until you are left” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV).
[30:18] 41 tn Heb “Therefore the Lord waits to show you mercy, and therefore he is exalted to have compassion on you.” The logical connection between this verse and what precedes is problematic. The point seems to be that Judah’s impending doom does not bring God joy. Rather the prospect of their suffering stirs within him a willingness to show mercy and compassion, if they are willing to seek him on his terms.
[30:18] 42 tn Heb “Blessed are all who wait for him.”
[30:19] 43 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[30:19] 44 tn Heb “For people in Zion will live, in Jerusalem, you will weep no more.” The phrase “in Jerusalem” could be taken with what precedes. Some prefer to emend יֵשֵׁב (yeshev, “will live,” a Qal imperfect) to יֹשֵׁב (yoshev, a Qal active participle) and translate “For [you] people in Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more.”
[30:19] 45 tn Heb “he will indeed show you mercy at the sound of your crying out; when he hears, he will answer you.”
[30:20] 46 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonai).
[30:20] 47 tn Heb “and the Master will give to you bread – distress, and water – oppression.”
[30:20] 48 tn Heb “but your teachers will no longer be hidden, your eyes will be seeing your teachers.” The translation assumes that the form מוֹרֶיךָ (morekha) is a plural participle, referring to spiritual leaders such as prophets and priests. Another possibility is that the form is actually singular (see GKC 273-74 §93.ss) or a plural of respect, referring to God as the master teacher. See HALOT 560-61 s.v. III מוֹרֶה. For discussion of the views, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:560.
[30:21] 49 tn Heb “your ears” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[30:21] 50 tn The word “correct’ is supplied in the translation for clarification.
[30:22] 51 tn Heb “the platings of your silver idols.”
[30:22] 52 tn Heb “the covering of your gold image.”
[30:23] 53 tn Heb “and he will give rain for your seed which you plant in the ground, and food [will be] the produce of the ground, and it will be rich and abundant.”
[30:23] 54 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
[30:24] 55 tn Heb “the oxen and the donkeys that work the ground.”
[30:24] 56 sn Crops will be so abundant that even the work animals will eat well.
[30:25] 57 tn Or “in the day of” (KJV).
[30:26] 58 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] 59 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] 60 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.”
[30:27] 61 sn The “name” of the Lord sometimes stands by metonymy for the Lord himself, see Exod 23:21; Lev 24:11; Pss 54:1 (54:3 HT); 124:8. In Isa 30:27 the point is that he reveals that aspect of his character which his name suggests – he comes as Yahweh (“he is present”), the ever present helper of his people who annihilates their enemies and delivers them. The name “Yahweh” originated in a context where God assured a fearful Moses that he would be with him as he confronted Pharaoh and delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt. See Exod 3.
[30:27] 62 tn Heb “his anger burns, and heaviness of elevation.” The meaning of the phrase “heaviness of elevation” is unclear, for מַשָּׂאָה (masa’ah, “elevation”) occurs only here. Some understand the term as referring to a cloud (elevated above the earth’s surface), in which case one might translate, “and in heavy clouds” (cf. NAB “with lowering clouds”). Others relate the noun to מָשָׂא (masa’, “burden”) and interpret it as a reference to judgment. In this case one might translate, “and with severe judgment.” The present translation assumes that the noun refers to his glory and that “heaviness” emphasizes its degree.
[30:27] 63 tn Heb “his lips are full of anger, and his tongue is like consuming fire.” The Lord’s lips and tongue are used metonymically for his word (or perhaps his battle cry; see v. 31).
[30:28] 64 tn Heb “his breath is like a flooding river.” This might picture the Lord breathing heavily as he runs down his enemy, but in light of the preceding verse, which mentions his lips and tongue, “breath” probably stands metonymically for the word or battle cry that he expels from his mouth as he shouts. In Isa 34:16 and Ps 33:6 the Lord’s “breath” is associated with his command.
[30:28] 65 tn Heb “shaking nations in a sieve of worthlessness.” It is not certain exactly how שָׁוְא (shavÿ’, “emptiness, worthlessness”) modifies “sieve.” A sieve is used to separate grain from chaff and isolate what is worthless so that it might be discarded. Perhaps the nations are likened to such chaff; God’s judgment will sift them out for destruction.
[30:28] 66 tn Heb “and a bit that leads astray [is] in the jaws of the peoples.” Here the nations are likened to horse that can be controlled by a bit placed in its mouth. In this case the Lord uses his sovereign control over the “horse” to lead it to its demise.
[30:29] 67 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] 68 tn Heb “the Lord will cause the splendor of his voice to be heard.”
[30:30] 69 tn Heb “and reveal the lowering of his arm.”
[30:30] 70 tn Heb “and a flame of consuming fire.”
[30:31] 71 tn Heb “Indeed by the voice of the Lord Assyria will be shattered.”
[30:32] 72 tc The Hebrew text has “every blow from a founded [i.e., “appointed”?] cudgel.” The translation above, with support from a few medieval Hebrew
[30:32] 73 tn Heb “which the Lord lays on him.”
[30:32] 74 tn Heb “will be with” (KJV similar).
[30:32] 75 tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “and with battles of brandishing [weapons?] he will fight against him.” Some prefer to emend וּבְמִלְחֲמוֹת (uvÿmilkhamot, “and with battles of”) to וּבִמְחֹלוֹת (uvimkholot, “and with dancing”). Note the immediately preceding references to musical instruments.
[30:33] 77 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] 78 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] 79 tn Heb “its pile of wood, fire and wood one makes abundant.”
[30:33] sn Apparently this alludes to some type of funeral rite.
[31:1] 80 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who go down to Egypt for help.”
[31:1] 81 tn Heb “and trust in chariots for they are many.”
[31:1] 82 tn Heb “and in horsemen for they are very strong [or “numerous”].”
[31:1] 83 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
[31:2] 84 sn This statement appears to have a sarcastic tone. The royal advisers who are advocating an alliance with Egypt think they are wise, but the Lord possesses wisdom as well and will thwart their efforts.
[31:2] 85 tn Heb “and he does not turn aside [i.e., “retract”] his words”; NIV “does not take back his words.”
[31:2] 86 tn Heb “and he will arise against the house of the wicked.”
[31:2] 88 tn Heb “and against the help of the doers of sin.”
[31:3] 89 tn Heb “will extend”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV “stretch out.”
[31:3] 90 tn Heb “together all of them will come to an end.”
[31:4] 91 tn Heb “As a lion growls, a young lion over its prey.” In the Hebrew text the opening comparison is completed later in the verse (“so the Lord will come down…”), after a parenthesis describing how fearless the lion is. The present translation divides the verse into three sentences for English stylistic reasons.
[31:4] 92 tn Heb “Though there is summoned against it fullness of shepherds, by their voice it is not terrified, and to their noise it does not respond.”
[31:4] 93 tn Some prefer to translate the phrase לִצְבֹּא עַל (litsbo’ ’al) as “fight against,” but the following context pictures the Lord defending, not attacking, Zion.
[31:5] 94 tn Heb “just as birds fly.” The words “over a nest” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[31:5] 95 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[31:5] 96 tn The only other occurrence of this verb is in Exod 12:13, 23, 27, where the Lord “passes over” (i.e., “spares”) the Israelite households as he comes to judge their Egyptian oppressors. The noun פֶּסַח (pesakh, “Passover”) is derived from the verb. The use of the verb in Isa 31:5 is probably an intentional echo of the Exodus event. As in the days of Moses the Lord will spare his people as he comes to judge their enemies.
[31:6] 97 tn Heb “Return to the one [against] whom the sons of Israel made deep rebellion.” The syntax is awkward here. A preposition is omitted by ellipsis after the verb (see GKC 446 §138.f, n. 2), and there is a shift from direct address (note the second plural imperative “return”) to the third person (note “they made deep”). For other examples of abrupt shifts in person in poetic style, see GKC 462 §144.p.
[31:7] 98 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
[31:7] 99 tn Heb “reject” (so NIV); NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT “throw away.”
[31:7] 100 tn Heb “the idols of their idols of silver and their idols of gold which your hands made for yourselves [in] sin.” חָטָא (khata’, “sin”) is understood as an adverbial accusative of manner. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:573, n. 4.
[31:8] 101 tn Heb “Assyria will fall by a sword, not of a man.”
[31:8] 102 tn Heb “and a sword not of humankind will devour him.”
[31:8] 103 tn Heb “he will flee for himself from before a sword.”
[31:9] 104 tn Heb “rocky cliff” (cf. ASV, NASB “rock”), viewed metaphorically as a place of defense and security.
[31:9] 105 tn Heb “His rocky cliff, because of fear, will pass away [i.e., “perish”].”
[31:9] 106 tn Heb “and they will be afraid of the flag, his officers.”
[31:9] 107 sn The “fire” and “firepot” here symbolize divine judgment, which is heating up like a fire in Jerusalem, waiting to be used against the Assyrians when they attack the city.
[32:1] 108 tn Heb “will reign according to fairness.”
[32:1] 109 tn Heb “will rule according to justice.”
[32:2] 110 tn Heb “a man,” but אִישׁ (’ish) probably refers here to “each” of the officials mentioned in the previous verse.
[32:3] 111 tn Heb “Eyes that see.”
[32:3] 112 tn The Hebrew text as vocalized reads literally “will not gaze,” but this is contradictory to the context. The verb form should be revocalized as תְּשֹׁעֶינָה (tÿsho’enah) from שָׁעַע (sha’a’, “be blinded”); see Isa 6:10; 29:9.
[32:3] 113 tn Heb “ears that hear.”
[32:4] 114 tn Heb “the heart of rashness will understand knowledge”; cf. NAB “The flighty will become wise and capable.”
[32:6] 115 tn Or “foolishness,” in a moral-ethical sense. See 9:17.
[32:6] 116 tn Heb “and his heart commits sin”; KJV, ASV “his heart will work iniquity”; NASB “inclines toward wickedness.”
[32:6] 117 tn Heb “in order to do [or “so that he does”] what is godless [or “defiled”].”
[32:6] 118 tn Heb “so that he leaves empty the appetite [or “desire”] of the hungry.”
[32:6] 119 tn Heb “and the drink of the thirsty he causes to fail.”
[32:7] 120 tn Heb “as for a deceiver, his implements [or “weapons”] are evil.”
[32:7] 121 tn Or “he plans evil things”; NIV “he makes up evil schemes.”
[32:7] 122 tn Heb “to ruin the poor with words of falsehood, even when the needy speak what is just.”
[32:8] 123 tn Heb “and he upon honorable things stands.”
[32:9] 124 tn Or “self-assured”; NASB, NRSV “who are at ease.”
[32:9] 125 tn Or “self-confident”; NAB “overconfident.”
[32:10] 126 tn Heb “days upon a year.”
[32:10] 127 tn Or perhaps, “olive.” See 24:13.
[32:11] 128 tn The imperatival forms in v. 11 are problematic. The first (חִרְדוּ, khirdu, “tremble”) is masculine plural in form, though spoken to a feminine plural addressee (שַׁאֲנַנּוֹת, sha’anannot, “complacent ones”). The four imperatival forms that follow (רְגָזָה, rÿgazah, “shake with fear”; פְּשֹׁטָה, pÿshotah, “strip off your clothes”; עֹרָה, ’orah, “expose yourselves”; and חֲגוֹרָה, khagorah, “put on”) all appear to be lengthened (so-called “emphatic”) masculine singular forms, even though they too appear to be spoken to a feminine plural addressee. GKC 131-32 §48.i suggests emending חִרְדוּ (khirdu) to חֲרָדָה (kharadah) and understanding all five imperatives as feminine plural “aramaized” forms.
[32:12] 129 tc The Hebrew text has “over mourning breasts.” The reference to “breasts” would make sense in light of v. 11, which refers to the practice of women baring their breasts as a sign of sorrow (see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:585). However, one expects the preposition עַל (’al) to introduce the source or reason for mourning (see vv. 12b-13a) and the participle סֹפְדִים (sofedim, “mourning”) seems odd modifying “breasts.” The translation above assumes a twofold emendation: (1) שָׁדַיִם (shadayim, “breasts”) is emended to [ם]שָׂדַי (saday[m], “field,” a term that also appears in Isa 56:9). The final mem (ם) would be enclitic in this case, not a plural indicator. (The Hebrew noun שָׂדֶה (sadeh, “field”) forms its plural with an וֹת- [-ot] ending). (2) The plural participle סֹפְדִים is emended to סְפֹדָה (sÿfodah), a lengthened imperatival form, meaning “mourn.” For an overview of various suggestions that have been made for this difficult line, see Oswalt, 586, n. 12).
[32:13] 130 tn “Mourn” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 12-13 are one long sentence.
[32:13] 131 tn Heb “indeed, over all the houses of joy.” It is not certain if this refers to individual homes or to places where parties and celebrations were held.
[32:13] 132 sn This same phrase is used in 22:2.
[32:14] 133 tn Or “noisy” (NAB, NIV, NCV).
[32:14] 134 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] 135 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] 136 tn Heb “the joy of wild donkeys, a pasture for flocks.”
[32:15] 137 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] 138 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.
[32:16] 139 sn This new era of divine blessing will also include a moral/ethical transformation, as justice and fairness fill the land and replace the social injustice so prevalent in Isaiah’s time.
[32:17] 140 tn Heb “and the product of fairness will be peace.”
[32:17] 141 tn Heb “and the work of fairness [will be] calmness and security forever.”
[32:18] 142 tn Or “in safe resting places”; NAB, NRSV “quiet resting places.”
[32:19] 143 tn Heb “and [?] when the forest descends.” The form וּבָרַד (uvarad) is often understood as an otherwise unattested denominative verb meaning “to hail” (HALOT 154 s.v. I ברד). In this case one might translate, “and it hails when the forest is destroyed” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV). Perhaps the text alludes to a powerful wind and hail storm that knocks down limbs and trees. Some prefer to emend the form to וְיָרַד (vÿyarad), “and it descends,” which provides better, though not perfect, symmetry with the parallel line (cf. NAB). Perhaps וּבָרַד should be dismissed as dittographic. In this case the statement (“when the forest descends”) lacks a finite verb and seems incomplete, but perhaps it is subordinate to v. 20.
[32:19] 144 tn Heb “and in humiliation the city is laid low.”
[32:20] 145 tn Heb “by all the waters.”
[32:20] 146 tn Heb “who set free the foot of the ox and donkey”; NIV “letting your cattle and donkeys range free.”
[32:20] sn This verse seems to anticipate a time when fertile land is available to cultivate and crops are so abundant that the farm animals can be allowed to graze freely.
[33:1] 147 tn Heb “Woe [to] the destroyer.”
[33:1] sn In this context “the destroyer” appears to refer collectively to the hostile nations (vv. 3-4). Assyria would probably have been primary in the minds of the prophet and his audience.
[33:1] 148 tn Heb “and the deceitful one”; NAB, NIV “O traitor”; NRSV “you treacherous one.” In the parallel structure הוֹי (hoy, “woe [to]”) does double duty.
[33:1] 149 tc The form in the Hebrew text appears to derive from an otherwise unattested verb נָלָה (nalah). The translation follows the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa in reading ככלתך, a Piel infinitival form from the verbal root כָּלָה (kalah), meaning “finish.”
[33:2] 150 tn Heb “Be their arm each morning.” “Arm” is a symbol for strength. The mem suffixed to the noun has been traditionally understood as a third person suffix, but this is contrary to the context, where the people speak of themselves in the first person. The mem (מ) is probably enclitic with ellipsis of the pronoun, which can be supplied from the context. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:589, n. 1.
[33:2] 151 tn Heb “[Be] also our deliverance in the time of distress.”
[33:3] 152 tn Heb “at the sound of tumult the nations run away.”
[33:3] 153 tn Heb “because of your exaltation the nations scatter.”
[33:4] 154 tn The pronoun is plural; the statement is addressed to the nations who have stockpiled plunder from their conquests of others.
[33:4] 155 tn Heb “and your plunder is gathered, the gathering of the locust.”
[33:4] 156 tn Heb “like a swarm of locusts swarming on it.”
[33:5] 157 tn Or “elevated”; NCV, NLT “is very great.”
[33:5] 158 tn Or “for” (KJV, NASB, NIV).
[33:5] 159 tn Heb “on high” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); CEV “in the heavens.”
[33:6] 160 tn Heb “and he is the stability of your times.”
[33:6] 161 tn Heb “a rich store of deliverance, wisdom, and knowledge.”
[33:6] 162 tn Heb “the fear of the Lord, it is his treasure.”
[33:7] 163 tn The meaning of the Hebrew word is unknown. Proposals include “heroes” (cf. KJV, ASV “valiant ones”; NASB, NIV “brave men”); “priests,” “residents [of Jerusalem].” The present translation assumes that the term is synonymous with “messengers of peace,” with which it corresponds in the parallel structure of the verse.
[33:7] 164 tn Heb “messengers of peace,” apparently those responsible for negotiating the agreements that have been broken (see v. 8).
[33:8] 165 tn Or “desolate” (NAB, NASB); NIV, NRSV, NLT “deserted.”
[33:8] 166 tn Heb “the one passing by on the road ceases.”
[33:8] 167 tn Heb “one breaks a treaty”; NAB “Covenants are broken.”
[33:8] 168 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 1QIsaa. Confusion of dalet (ד) and resh (ר) is a well-attested scribal error.
[33:8] 169 tn Heb “he does not regard human beings.”
[33:9] 170 tn Or “earth” (KJV); NAB “the country.”
[33:9] 171 tn Or “mourns” (BDB 5 s.v. I אָבַל). HALOT 6-7 lists homonyms I אבל (“mourn”) and II אבל (“dry up”). They propose the second here on the basis of parallelism. See 24:4.
[33:9] 172 tn Heb “Lebanon is ashamed.” The Hiphil is exhibitive, expressing the idea, “exhibits shame.” In this context the statement alludes to the withering of vegetation.
[33:9] 173 sn Sharon was a fertile plain along the Mediterranean coast. See 35:2.
[33:9] 174 tn Or “the Arabah” (NIV). See 35:1.
[33:9] 175 sn Both of these areas were known for their trees and vegetation. See 2:13; 35:2.
[33:9] 176 tn Heb “shake off [their leaves]” (so ASV, NRSV); NAB “are stripped bare.”
[33:10] 177 tn Or “lift myself up” (KJV); NLT “show my power and might.”
[33:11] 178 tn The second person verb and pronominal forms in this verse are plural. The hostile nations are the addressed, as the next verse makes clear.
[33:11] 179 sn The hostile nations’ plans to destroy God’s people will come to nothing; their hostility will end up being self-destructive.
[33:12] 180 tn Heb “will be a burning to lime.” See Amos 2:1.
[33:14] 181 tn Or “trembling” (ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “shake with fear.”
[33:14] 182 tn Or “the defiled”; TEV “The sinful people of Zion”; NLT “The sinners in Jerusalem.”
[33:14] 183 tn The words “they say” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[33:14] 184 tn Or “perpetual”; or “everlasting” (KJV, ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).
[33:15] 185 tn Heb “walks” (so NASB, NIV).
[33:15] 186 tn Or, possibly, “justly”; NAB “who practices virtue.”
[33:15] 187 tn Heb “[who] shakes off his hands from grabbing hold of a bribe.”
[33:15] 188 tn Heb “[who] shuts his ear from listening to bloodshed.”
[33:15] 189 tn Heb “[who] closes his eyes from seeing evil.”
[33:16] 190 tn Heb “he [in the] exalted places will live.”
[33:16] 191 tn Heb “mountain strongholds, cliffs [will be] his elevated place.”
[33:17] 192 tn Heb “your eyes will see a king in his beauty”; NIV, NRSV “the king.”
[33:17] 193 tn Heb “a land of distances,” i.e., an extensive land.
[33:18] 194 tn Heb “your heart will meditate on terror.”
[33:18] 195 tn The words “and you will ask yourselves” are supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic reasons.
[33:18] 196 sn The people refer to various Assyrian officials who were responsible for determining the amount of taxation or tribute Judah must pay to the Assyrian king.
[33:19] 197 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] 198 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] 199 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.
[33:20] 200 tn Heb “your eyes” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[33:20] 201 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[33:20] 202 tn Or “that does not travel”; NASB “which shall not be folded.”
[33:21] 203 tn Heb “But there [as] a mighty one [will be] the Lord for us.”
[33:21] 204 tn Heb “a place of rivers, streams wide of hands [i.e., on both sides].”
[33:21] 205 tn Heb “a ship of rowing will not go into it.”
[33:21] 206 tn Heb “and a mighty ship will not pass through it.”
[33:23] 207 tn The words “though at this time” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The first half of the verse is addressed to Judah and contrasts the nation’s present weakness with its future prosperity. Judah is compared to a ship that is incapable of sailing.
[33:23] 208 tn Heb “they do not fasten the base of their mast.” On כֵּן (ken, “base”) see BDB 487 s.v. III כֵּן and HALOT 483 s.v. III כֵּן.
[33:23] 209 tn Or perhaps, “flag.”
[33:23] 210 tn Heb “then there will be divided up loot of plunder [in] abundance.”
[33:23] 211 sn Judah’s victory over its enemies will be so thorough there will be more than enough plunder for everyone, even slow-moving lame men who would normally get left out in the rush to gather the loot.
[33:24] 212 tn The words “of Zion” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[34:1] 213 tn Heb “the world and its offspring”; NASB “the world and all that springs from it.”
[34:3] 214 tn Heb “will be cast aside”; NASB, NIV “thrown out.”
[34:3] 215 tn Heb “[as for] their corpses, their stench will arise.”
[34:3] 216 tn Heb “hills will dissolve from their blood.”
[34:4] 217 tc Heb “and all the host of heaven will rot.” The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa inserts “and the valleys will be split open,” but this reading may be influenced by Mic 1:4. On the other hand, the statement, if original, could have been omitted by homoioarcton, a scribe’s eye jumping from the conjunction prefixed to “the valleys” to the conjunction prefixed to the verb “rot.”
[34:4] 218 tn Heb “like the withering of a leaf from a vine, and like the withering from a fig tree.”
[34:5] 219 tn The words “he says” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The Lord speaks at this point.
[34:5] 220 tn Heb “indeed [or “for”] my sword is drenched in the heavens.” The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has תראה (“[my sword] appeared [in the heavens]”), but this is apparently an attempt to make sense out of a difficult metaphor. Cf. NIV “My sword has drunk its fill in the heavens.”
[34:5] sn In v. 4 the “host of the heaven” refers to the heavenly luminaries (stars and planets, see, among others, Deut 4:19; 17:3; 2 Kgs 17:16; 21:3, 5; 23:4-5; 2 Chr 33:3, 5) that populate the divine/heavenly assembly in mythological and prescientific Israelite thought (see Job 38:7; Isa 14:13). As in 24:21, they are viewed here as opposing God and being defeated in battle.
[34:5] 221 sn Edom is mentioned here as epitomizing the hostile nations that oppose God.
[34:6] 222 tn The verb is a rare Hotpaal passive form. See GKC 150 §54.h.
[34:6] 223 tn The words “it drips” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[34:6] 224 tn The words “and is covered” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[34:6] 225 tn Heb “for there is a sacrifice to the Lord.”
[34:6] 226 sn The Lord’s judgment of Edom is compared to a bloody sacrificial scene.
[34:6] 227 tn Heb “great” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[34:7] 228 tn Heb “will go down”; NAB “shall be struck down.”
[34:7] 229 tn Heb “and bulls along with strong ones.” Perhaps this refers to the leaders.
[34:8] 230 tn Heb “for a day of vengeance [is] for the Lord.”
[34:8] 231 tn Heb “a year of repayment for the strife of Zion.” The translation assumes that רִיב (riv) refers to Edom’s hostility toward Zion. Another option is to understand רִיב (riv) as referring to the Lord’s taking up Zion’s cause. In this case one might translate, “a time when he will repay Edom and vindicate Zion.”
[34:9] 232 tn Heb “her”; the referent (Edom) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[34:10] 233 tn Heb “it will not be extinguished.”
[34:11] 234 tn קָאַת (qa’at) refers to some type of bird (cf. Lev 11:18; Deut 14:17) that was typically found near ruins (see Zeph 2:14). קִפּוֹד (qippod) may also refer to a type of bird (NAB “hoot owl”; NIV “screech owl”; TEV “ravens”), but some have suggested a rodent may be in view (cf. NCV “small animals”; ASV “porcupine”; NASB, NRSV “hedgehog”).
[34:11] 235 tn Heb “will possess it” (so NIV).
[34:11] 236 tn The Hebrew text has יַנְשׁוֹף וְעֹרֵב (yanshof vÿ’orev). Both the יַנְשׁוֹף (“owl”; see Lev 11:17; Deut 14:16) and עֹרֵב (“raven”; Lev 11:15; Deut 14:14) were types of wild birds.
[34:11] 237 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[34:11] 238 tn Heb “stones,” i.e., the stones used in a plumb bob.
[34:11] 239 sn The metaphor in v. 11b emphasizes that God has carefully planned Edom’s demise.
[34:12] 240 tn Heb “will be nothing”; NCV, TEV, NLT “will all be gone.”
[34:13] 241 tn The words “will grow” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[34:13] 242 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 (1QIsaa) supports this emendation (cf. HALOT 344 s.v. II חָצִיר)
[34:14] 243 tn Heb “will meet” (so NIV); NLT “will mingle there.”
[34:14] 244 tn Heb “and a goat will call to its neighbor.”
[34:14] 245 tn The precise meaning of לִּילִית (lilit) is unclear, though in this context the word certainly refers to some type of wild animal or bird. The word appears to be related to לַיְלָה (laylah, “night”). Some interpret it as the name of a female night demon, on the basis of an apparent Akkadian cognate used as the name of a demon. Later Jewish legends also identified Lilith as a demon. Cf. NRSV “Lilith.”
[34:14] 246 tn Heb “and will find for themselves a resting place.”
[34:15] 247 tn Hebrew קִפּוֹז (qippoz) occurs only here; the precise meaning of the word is uncertain.
[34:15] 248 tn For this proposed meaning for Hebrew מָלַט (malat), see HALOT 589 s.v. I מלט.
[34:15] 249 tn Heb “and brood [over them] in her shadow.”
[34:15] 250 tn The precise meaning of דַּיָּה (dayyah) is uncertain, though the term appears to refer to some type of bird of prey, perhaps a vulture.
[34:16] 251 tn Heb “Seek from upon the scroll of the Lord and read.”
[34:16] sn It is uncertain what particular scroll is referred to here. Perhaps the phrase simply refers to this prophecy and is an admonition to pay close attention to the details of the message.
[34:16] 252 tn Heb “one from these will not be missing.” הֵנָּה (hennah, “these”) is feminine plural in the Hebrew text. It may refer only to the birds mentioned in v. 15b or may include all of the creatures listed in vv. 14b-15 (all of which are identified with feminine nouns).
[34:16] 253 tn Heb “each its mate they will not lack.”
[34:16] 254 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “for a mouth, it has commanded.” The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa and a few medieval
[34:16] 255 tn Heb “and his spirit, he gathers them.” 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] 256 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] 257 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] 258 tn Heb “will possess it” (so NIV); NCV “they will own that land forever.”
[35:1] 259 tn The final mem (ם) on the verb יְשֻׂשׂוּם (yÿsusum) is dittographic (note the initial mem on the following noun מִדְבָּר [midbar]). The ambiguous verbal form is translated as a jussive because it is parallel to the jussive form תָגֵל (tagel). The jussive is used rhetorically here, not as a literal command or prayer.
[35:1] 260 tn Or “Arabah” (NASB); NAB, NIV, TEV “desert.”
[35:2] 261 tn The ambiguous verb form תִּפְרַח (tifrakh) is translated as a jussive because it is parallel to the jussive form תָגֵל (tagel).
[35:2] 262 tn Heb “and let it rejoice, yes [with] rejoicing and shouting.” גִּילַת (gilat) may be an archaic feminine nominal form (see GKC 421 §130.b).
[35:2] 263 tn Or “glory” (KJV, NIV, NRSV); also a second time later in this verse.
[35:3] 264 tn Heb “staggering knees”; KJV, ASV, NRSV “feeble knees”; NIV “knees that give way.”
[35:4] 265 tn Heb “Say to the hasty of heart,” i.e., those whose hearts beat quickly from fear.
[35:4] 266 tn The jussive form וְיֹשַׁעֲכֶם (vÿyosha’akhem), which is subordinated to the preceding imperfect with vav conjunctive, indicates purpose.
[35:6] 267 tn Heb “burst forth” (so NAB); KJV “break out.”
[35:6] 268 tn Or “Arabah” (NASB); KJV, NIV, NRSV, NLT “desert.”
[35:8] 269 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and there will be there a road and a way, and the Way of Holiness it will be called.” וְדֶרֶךְ (vÿderekh, “and a/the way”) is accidentally duplicated; the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa does not reflect the repetition of the phrase.
[35:8] 270 tn The precise meaning of this line is uncertain. The text reads literally “and it is for them, the one who walks [on the] way.” In this context those authorized to use the Way of Holiness would be morally upright people who are the recipients of God’s deliverance, in contrast to the morally impure and foolish who are excluded from the new covenant community.
[35:8] 271 tn In this context “fools” are those who are morally corrupt, not those with limited intellectual capacity.
[35:9] 272 tn Heb “will go up on it”; TEV “will pass that way.”
[35:10] 273 tn Heb “and the redeemed will walk, the ransomed of the Lord will return.”
[35:10] 274 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] 275 tn Heb “will overtake” (NIV); NLT “they will be overcome with.”
[35:10] 276 tn Heb “grief and groaning will flee”; KJV “sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
[36:1] 277 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
[36:2] 278 sn For a discussion of this title see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 229-30.
[36:2] 279 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[36:2] 280 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the chief adviser) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[36:2] 281 tn Heb “the field of the washer”; traditionally “the fuller’s field” (so KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).
[36:4] 282 tn Heb “What is this object of trust in which you are trusting?”
[36:5] 283 tn Heb “you say only a word of lips, counsel and might for battle.” Sennacherib’s message appears to be in broken Hebrew at this point. The phrase “word of lips” refers to mere or empty talk in Prov 14:23.
[36:9] 284 tn Heb “How can you turn back the face of an official [from among] the least of my master’s servants and trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen?” In vv. 8-9 the chief adviser develops further the argument begun in v. 6. His reasoning seems to be as follows: “In your weakened condition you obviously need military strength. Agree to the king’s terms and I will personally give you more horses than you are capable of outfitting. If I, a mere minor official, am capable of giving you such military might, just think what power the king has. There is no way the Egyptians can match our strength. It makes much better sense to deal with us.”
[36:10] 285 sn In v. 10 the chief adviser develops further the argument begun in v. 7. He claims that Hezekiah has offended the Lord and that the Lord has commissioned Assyria as his instrument of discipline and judgment.
[36:11] 286 sn Aramaic was the diplomatic language of the Assyrian empire.
[36:11] 287 tn Or “in Hebrew” (NIV, NCV, NLT); NAB, NASB “in Judean.”
[36:12] 288 tn Heb “To your master and to you did my master send me to speak these words?” The rhetorical question expects a negative answer.
[36:12] 289 tn Heb “[Is it] not [also] to the men…?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Yes, it is.”
[36:12] sn The chief adviser alludes to the horrible reality of siege warfare, when the starving people in the besieged city would resort to eating and drinking anything to stay alive.
[36:13] 290 tn The Hebrew text includes “and he said.”
[36:16] 291 tn Heb “make with me a blessing and come out to me.”
[36:18] 292 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!”
[36:19] 293 tn The rhetorical questions in v. 34a suggest the answer, “Nowhere, they seem to have disappeared in the face of Assyria’s might.”
[36:19] 294 map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.
[36:19] 295 tn Heb “that they rescued Samaria from my hand?” But this gives the impression that the gods of Sepharvaim were responsible for protecting Samaria, which is obviously not the case. The implied subject of the plural verb “rescued” must be the generic “gods of the nations/lands” (vv. 18, 20).
[36:20] 296 tn Heb “that the Lord might rescue Jerusalem from my hand?” The logic runs as follows: Since no god has ever been able to withstand the Assyrian onslaught, how can the people of Jerusalem possibly think the Lord will rescue them?
[36:22] 297 tn Heb “with their clothes torn”; the words “in grief” have been supplied in the translation to indicate that this was done as a sign of grief and mourning.
[37:1] 298 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
[37:2] 299 tn Heb “elders of the priests” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NCV “the older priests”; NRSV, TEV, CEV “the senior priests.”
[37:3] 300 tn In the Hebrew text this verse begins with “they said to him” (cf. NRSV).
[37:3] 301 tn Or “rebuke” (KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV), or “correction.”
[37:3] 302 tn Or “contempt”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “disgrace.”
[37:3] 303 tn Heb “when sons come to the cervical opening and there is no strength to give birth.”
[37:4] 304 tn Heb “all the words of the chief adviser whom his master, the king of Assyria, sent to taunt the living God.”
[37:4] 305 tn Heb “and rebuke the words which the Lord your God hears.”
[37:4] 306 tn Heb “and lift up a prayer on behalf of the remnant that is found.”
[37:6] 307 tn Heb “by which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.”
[37:7] 308 tn Heb “I will put in him a spirit.” The precise sense of רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) is uncertain in this context. It may refer to a spiritual being who will take control of his mind (see 1 Kgs 22:19), or it could refer to a disposition of concern and fear. In either case the Lord’s sovereignty over the king is apparent.
[37:7] 309 tn Heb “cause him to fall” (so KJV, ASV, NAB), that is, “kill him.”
[37:8] 310 tn Heb “and the chief adviser returned and he found the king of Assyria fighting against Libnah, for he heard that he had departed from Lachish.”
[37:9] 311 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[37:9] 312 tn Heb “Cush” (so NASB); NIV, NCV “the Cushite king of Egypt.”
[37:9] 313 tn Heb “heard concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, ‘He has come out to fight with you.’”
[37:9] 314 tn The Hebrew text has, “and he heard and he sent,” but the parallel in 2 Kgs 19:9 has וַיָּשָׁב וַיִּשְׁלַח (vayyashav vayyishlakh, “and he returned and he sent”), i.e., “he again sent.”
[37:11] 315 tn Heb “Look, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands, annihilating them.”
[37:11] 316 tn Heb “and will you be rescued?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “No, of course not!”
[37:12] 317 tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “forefathers”; NCV “ancestors.”
[37:12] 318 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?”
[37:13] 319 sn Lair was a city located in northeastern Babylon. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 235.
[37:14] 320 tc The Hebrew text has the plural, “letters.” The final mem (ם) may be dittographic (note the initial mem on the form that immediately follows). Some Greek and Aramaic witnesses have the singular. If so, one still has to deal with the yod that is part of the plural ending. J. N. Oswalt refers to various commentators who have suggested ways to understand the plural form (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:652).
[37:14] 321 tn In the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:14 the verb has the plural suffix, “them,” but this probably reflects a later harmonization to the preceding textual corruption (of “letter” to “letters”).
[37:16] 322 sn Cherubim (singular “cherub”) refers to the images of winged angelic creatures that were above the ark of the covenant.
[37:16] 323 tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
[37:17] 324 tn Heb “Hear all the words of Sennacherib which he sent to taunt the living God.”
[37:18] 325 tn The Hebrew text here has “all the lands,” but the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:17 has “the nations.”
[37:19] 326 tn Heb “and they put their gods in the fire.”
[37:19] 327 tn Heb “so they destroyed them” (NASB similar).
[37:20] 328 tn The parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:19 reads, “that you, Lord, are the only God.”
[37:21] 329 tn The parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:20 reads, “That which you prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.” The verb “I have heard” does not appear in Isa 37:21, where אֲשֶׁר (’asher) probably has a causal sense: “because.”
[37:22] 330 tn Heb “this is the word which the Lord has spoken about him.”
[37:22] 331 sn Zion (Jerusalem) is pictured here as a young, vulnerable daughter whose purity is being threatened by the would-be Assyrian rapist. The personification hints at the reality which the young girls of the city would face if the Assyrians conquer it.
[37:22] 332 sn Shaking the head was a mocking gesture of derision.
[37:23] 333 tn Heb “and lifted your eyes on high?” Cf. NIV “lifted your eyes in pride”; NRSV “haughtily lifted your eyes.”
[37:23] 334 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
[37:24] 335 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
[37:24] 336 tn Heb “the height of its extremity”; ASV “its farthest height.”
[37:25] 337 tc The Hebrew text has simply, “I dug and drank water.” But the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:24 has “foreign waters.” זָרִים (zarim, “foreign”) may have accidentally dropped out of the Isaianic text by homoioteleuton (cf. NCV, NIV, NLT). Note that the preceding word, מַיִם (mayim, “water) also ends in mem (ם). The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has “foreign waters” for this line. However, in several other passages the 1QIsaa scroll harmonizes with 2 Kgs 19 against the MT (Isa 36:5; 37:9, 20). Since the addition of “foreign” to this text in Isaiah by a later scribe would be more likely than its deletion, the MT reading should be accepted.
[37:26] 338 tn Having quoted the Assyrian king’s arrogant words in vv. 23-24, the Lord now speaks to the king.
[37:26] 339 tn Heb “Have you not heard?” The rhetorical question expresses the Lord’s amazement that anyone might be ignorant of what he is about to say.
[37:26] 340 tn Heb “formed” (so KJV, ASV).
[37:26] 341 tn Heb “and it is to cause to crash into heaps of ruins fortified cities.” The subject of the third feminine singular verb תְהִי (tÿhi) is the implied plan, referred to in the preceding lines with third feminine singular pronominal suffixes.
[37:27] 342 tn Heb “short of hand”; KJV, ASV “of small power”; NASB “short of strength.”
[37:27] 343 tn Heb “they are plants in the field and green vegetation.” The metaphor emphasizes how short-lived these seemingly powerful cities really were. See Ps 90:5-6; Isa 40:6-8, 24.
[37:27] 344 tn Heb “[they are] grass on the rooftops.” See the preceding note.
[37:27] 345 tc The Hebrew text has “scorched before the standing grain” (perhaps meaning “before it reaches maturity”), but it is preferable to emend קָמָה (qamah, “standing grain”) to קָדִים (qadim, “east wind”) with the support of 1Q Isaa; cf. J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:657, n. 8.
[37:28] 346 tc Heb “your going out and your coming in and how you have raged against me.” Several scholars have suggested that this line is probably dittographic (note the beginning of the next line). However, most English translations include the statement in question at the end of v. 28 and the beginning of v. 29. Interestingly, the LXX does not have this clause at the end of v. 28 and the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa does not have it at the beginning of v. 29. In light of this ambiguous manuscript evidence, it appears best to retain the clause in both verses.
[37:29] 347 tc Heb “and your complacency comes up into my ears.” The parallelism is improved if שַׁאֲנַנְךָ (sha’anankha, “your complacency”) is emended to שְׁאוֹנְךָ (shÿ’onÿkha, “your uproar”). See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 237-38. However, the LXX seems to support the MT and Sennacherib’s cavalier dismissal of Yahweh depicts an arrogant complacency (J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:658, n. 10).
[37:29] 348 sn The word-picture has a parallel in Assyrian sculpture. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 238.
[37:30] 349 tn At this point the word concerning the king of Assyria (vv. 22-29) ends and the Lord again addresses Hezekiah and the people directly (see v. 21).
[37:30] 350 tn Heb “and this is your sign.” In this case the אוֹת (’ot, “sign”) is a future reminder of God’s intervention designated before the actual intervention takes place. For similar “signs” see Exod 3:12 and Isa 7:14-25.
[37:30] 351 sn This refers to crops that grew up on their own (that is, without cultivation) from the seed planted in past years.
[37:30] 352 tn Heb “and in the second year” (so ASV).
[37:30] 353 tn Heb “in the third year” (so KJV, NAB).
[37:30] 354 tn The four plural imperatival verb forms in v. 30b are used rhetorically. The Lord commands the people to plant, harvest, etc. to emphasize the certainty of restored peace and prosperity.
[37:31] 355 tn Heb “The remnant of the house of Judah that is left will add roots below and produce fruit above.”
[37:32] 356 tn Heb “the zeal of the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” In this context the Lord’s “zeal” refers to his intense devotion to and love for his people which prompts him to protect and restore them.
[37:33] 357 tn Heb “there” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV). In terms of English style “here” is expected in collocation with “this” in the previous line.
[37:33] 358 tn Heb “[with] a shield” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV).
[37:35] 359 tn Heb “for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.”
[37:36] 360 tn Traditionally, “the angel of the Lord” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
[37:36] 361 tn The word “troops” is supplied in the translation for smoothness and clarity.
[37:36] 362 tn This refers to the Israelites and/or the rest of the Assyrian army.
[37:36] 363 tn Heb “look, all of them were dead bodies”; NLT “they found corpses everywhere.”
[37:37] 364 tn Heb “and Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and went and returned and lived in Nineveh.”
[37:38] 365 sn The assassination of King Sennacherib probably took place in 681
[37:38] 366 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
[37:38] 367 sn No such Mesopotamian god is presently known. Perhaps the name Nisroch is a corruption of Nusku.
[37:38] 368 sn Extra-biblical sources also mention the assassination of Sennacherib, though they refer to only one assassin. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 239-40.
[38:1] 369 tn Heb “was sick to the point of dying”; NRSV “became sick and was at the point of death.”
[38:3] 370 tn Heb “walked before you.” For a helpful discussion of the background and meaning of this Hebrew idiom, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 254.
[38:3] 371 tn Heb “and with a complete heart”; KJV, ASV “with a perfect heart.”
[38:3] 372 tn Heb “and that which is good in your eyes I have done.”
[38:3] 373 tn Heb “wept with great weeping”; NCV “cried loudly”; TEV “began to cry bitterly.”
[38:4] 374 tn Heb “and the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying.”
[38:5] 375 tn Heb “father” (so KJV, NAB, NIV).
[38:7] 376 tn The words “Isaiah replied” are supplied in the translation for clarification. In the present form of the Hebrew text v. 7 is joined directly to v. 6, but vv. 21-22, if original to Isaiah 38, must be inserted here. See 2 Kgs 20:7-8.
[38:8] 377 tn Heb “the shadow on the steps which [the sun] had gone down, on the steps of Ahaz, with the sun, back ten steps.”
[38:8] sn These steps probably functioned as a type of sundial. See HALOT 614 s.v. מַעֲלָה and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 256.
[38:8] 378 tn Heb “and the sun returned ten steps on the steps which it had gone down.”
[38:10] 379 tn Or “I said” (KJV, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
[38:10] 380 tn The precise meaning of the phrase בִּדְמִי יָמַי (bidmi yamay, “in the [?] of my days”) is uncertain. According to HALOT 226 s.v. דְּמִי this word is a hapax legomenon meaning “half.” Others derive the form from דַּמִי (dami, “quiet, rest, peacefulness”).
[38:10] 381 tn The precise meaning of the verb is uncertain. The Pual of of פָּקַד (paqad) occurs only here and in Exod 38:21, where it appears to mean “passed in review” or “mustered.” Perhaps the idea is, “I have been called away for the remainder of my years.” To bring out the sense more clearly, one can translate, “I am deprived of the rest of my years.”
[38:11] 382 tn The Hebrew text has יָהּ יָהּ (yah yah, the abbreviated form of יְהוָה [yÿhvah] repeated), but this is probably a corruption of יְהוָה.
[38:11] 383 tc The Hebrew text has חָדֶל (khadel), which appears to be derived from a verbal root meaning “to cease, refrain.” But the form has probably suffered an error of transmission; the original form (attested in a few medieval Hebrew
[38:12] 384 tn According to HALOT 217 s.v. דּוֹר this noun is a hapax legomenon meaning “dwelling place,” derived from a verbal root meaning “live” (see Ps 84:10). For an interpretation that understands the form as the well-attested noun meaning “generation,” see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:679, n. 4.
[38:12] 385 tn The verb form appears to be a Niphal from גָּלָה (galah), which normally means “uncovered, revealed” in the Niphal. Because of the following reference to a shepherd’s tent, some prefer to emend the form to וְנָגַל, a Niphal from גָלָל (galal, “roll”) and translate “is rolled [or “folded”] up.”
[38:12] 386 tn Heb “I rolled up, like a weaver, my life” (so ASV).
[38:12] 387 sn For a discussion of the imagery employed here, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:684.
[38:12] 388 tn Heb “from day to night you bring me to an end.”
[38:13] 389 tn The verb form in the Hebrew text is a Piel from שָׁוַה (shavah). There are two homonyms שָׁוַה, one meaning in the Piel “level, smooth out,” the other “set, place.” Neither fits in v. 13. It is likely that the original reading was שִׁוַּעְתִּי (shivva’ti, “I cry out”) from the verbal root שָׁוַע (shava’), which occurs exclusively in the Piel.
[38:13] 390 tn Heb “from day to night you bring me to an end.”
[38:14] 391 tn Or “moan” (ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); KJV, CEV “mourn.”
[38:14] 392 tn Heb “my eyes become weak, toward the height.”
[38:14] 393 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in v. 16 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
[38:14] 394 tn Heb “stand surety for me.” Hezekiah seems to be picturing himself as a debtor who is being exploited; he asks that the Lord might relieve his debt and deliver him from the oppressive creditor.
[38:15] 395 tn Heb “and he has spoken and he has acted.”
[38:15] 396 tn Heb “because of the bitterness of my soul.”
[38:16] 397 tn The translation offered here is purely speculative. The text as it stands is meaningless and probably corrupt. It reads literally, “O lord, on account of them [the suffix is masculine plural], they live, and to all in them [the suffix is feminine plural], life of my spirit.”
[38:16] 398 tn The prefixed verbal form could be taken as indicative, “you restore my health,” but the following imperatival form suggests it be understood as an imperfect of request.
[38:17] 399 tn Heb “Look, for peace bitterness was to me bitter”; NAB “thus is my bitterness transformed into peace.”
[38:17] 400 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] 401 tn בְּלִי (bÿli) most often appears as a negation, meaning “without,” suggesting the meaning “nothingness, oblivion,” here. Some translate “decay” or “destruction.”
[38:17] 402 tn Heb “for you threw behind your back all my sins.”
[38:18] 403 tn Or “For” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
[38:18] 404 tn The negative particle is understood by ellipsis in this line. See GKC 483 §152.z.
[38:20] 405 tn The infinitive construct is used here to indicate that an action is imminent. See GKC 348-49 §114.i, and IBHS 610 §36.2.3g.
[38:20] 406 tn Heb “and music [or perhaps, “stringed instruments”] we will play.”
[38:20] 407 tn Heb “all the days of our lives in the house of the Lord.”
[38:20] sn Note that vv. 21-22 have been placed between vv. 6-7, where they logically belong. See 2 Kgs 20:7-8.
[38:21] 408 tc If original to Isaiah 38, vv. 21-22 have obviously been misplaced in the course of the text’s transmission, and would most naturally be placed here, between Isa 38:6 and 38:7. See 2 Kgs 20:7-8, where these verses are placed at this point in the narrative, not at the end. Another possibility is that these verses were not in the original account, and a scribe, familiar with the 2 Kgs version of the story, appended vv. 21-22 to the end of the account in Isaiah 38.
[39:2] 409 tn Heb “was happy with”; NAB, NASB “was pleased”; NIV “received the envoys gladly.”
[39:2] 410 tn Heb “there was nothing which Hezekiah did not show them in his house and in all his kingdom.”
[39:4] 411 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Isaiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[39:6] 412 tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV).
[39:7] 413 tn Heb “Some of your sons, who go out from you, whom you father.”
[39:8] 414 tn Heb “good” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “favorable.”
[39:8] 415 tn Heb “and he said.” The verb אָמַר (’amar, “say”) is sometimes used of what one thinks (that is, says to oneself).
