Yesaya 4:5

4:5 Then the Lord will create

over all of Mount Zion ¹ 

and over its convocations

a cloud and smoke by day

and a bright flame of fire by night; ² 

indeed a canopy will accompany the Lord’s glorious presence. ³ 

Yesaya 5:24

5:24 Therefore, as flaming fire ⁴  devours straw,

and dry grass disintegrates in the flames,

so their root will rot,

and their flower will blow away like dust. ⁵ 

For they have rejected the law of the Lord who commands armies,

they have spurned the commands ⁶  of the Holy One of Israel. ⁷ 

[4:5]  ¹ tn Heb “over all the place, Mount Zion.” Cf. NLT “Jerusalem”; CEV “the whole city.”

[4:5]  ² tn Heb “a cloud by day, and smoke, and brightness of fire, a flame by night.” Though the accents in the Hebrew text suggest otherwise, it might be preferable to take “smoke” with what follows, since one would expect smoke to accompany fire.

[4:5]  sn The imagery of the cloud by day and fire by night recalls the days of Moses, when a cloud and fire were tangible reminders that the Lord was guiding and protecting his people (Exod 13:21-22; 14:19, 24). In the future age envisioned in Isa 4, the Lord’s protective presence will be a reality.

[4:5]  ³ tn Heb “indeed (or “for”) over all the glory, a canopy.” This may allude to Exod 40:34-35, where a cloud overshadows the meeting tent as it is filled with God’s glory.

[5:24]  ⁴ tn Heb “a tongue of fire” (so NASB), referring to a tongue-shaped flame.

[5:24]  ⁵ sn They are compared to a flowering plant that withers quickly in a hot, arid climate.

[5:24]  ⁶ tn Heb “the word.”

[5:24]  ⁷ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.