Yesaya 8:19

Darkness Turns to Light as an Ideal King Arrives

8:19 ¹ They will say to you, “Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations. ²  Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?” ³ 

Yesaya 9:7

9:7 His dominion will be vast ⁴ 

and he will bring immeasurable prosperity. ⁵ 

He will rule on David’s throne

and over David’s kingdom, ⁶ 

establishing it ⁷  and strengthening it

by promoting justice and fairness, ⁸ 

from this time forward and forevermore.

The Lord’s intense devotion to his people ⁹  will accomplish this.

Yesaya 14:2

14:2 Nations will take them and bring them back to their own place. Then the family of Jacob will make foreigners their servants as they settle in the Lord’s land. ¹⁰  They will make their captors captives and rule over the ones who oppressed them.

Yesaya 19:20

19:20 It ¹¹  will become a visual reminder in the land of Egypt of ¹²  the Lord who commands armies. When they cry out to the Lord because of oppressors, he will send them a deliverer and defender ¹³  who will rescue them.

Yesaya 25:8

25:8 he will swallow up death permanently. ¹⁴ 

The sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from every face,

and remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth.

Indeed, the Lord has announced it! ¹⁵ 

Yesaya 30:6

30:6 This is a message ¹⁶  about the animals in the Negev:

Through a land of distress and danger,

inhabited by lionesses and roaring lions, ¹⁷ 

by snakes and darting adders, ¹⁸ 

they transport ¹⁹  their wealth on the backs of donkeys,

their riches on the humps of camels,

to a nation that cannot help them. ²⁰ 

Yesaya 33:15

33:15 The one who lives ²¹  uprightly ²² 

and speaks honestly;

the one who refuses to profit from oppressive measures

and rejects a bribe; ²³ 

the one who does not plot violent crimes ²⁴ 

and does not seek to harm others ²⁵  –

Yesaya 36:6

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!

Yesaya 37:4

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. ²⁶  When the Lord your God hears, perhaps he will punish him for the things he has said. ²⁷  So pray for this remnant that remains.’” ²⁸ 

Yesaya 37:26-27

37:26 ²⁹ Certainly you must have heard! ³⁰ 

Long ago I worked it out,

in ancient times I planned ³¹  it,

and now I am bringing it to pass.

The plan is this:

Fortified cities will crash

into heaps of ruins. ³² 

37:27 Their residents are powerless; ³³ 

they are terrified and ashamed.

They are as short-lived as plants in the field

or green vegetation. ³⁴ 

They are as short-lived as grass on the rooftops ³⁵ 

when it is scorched by the east wind. ³⁶ 

Yesaya 38:1

The Lord Hears Hezekiah’s Prayer

38:1 In those days Hezekiah was stricken with a terminal illness. ³⁷  The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz visited him and told him, “This is what the Lord says, ‘Give instructions to your household, for you are about to die; you will not get well.’”

Yesaya 39:2

39:2 Hezekiah welcomed ³⁸  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. ³⁹ 

Yesaya 41:7

41:7 The craftsman encourages the metalsmith,

the one who wields the hammer encourages ⁴⁰  the one who pounds on the anvil.

He approves the quality of the welding, ⁴¹ 

and nails it down so it won’t fall over.”

Yesaya 41:26

41:26 Who decreed this from the beginning, so we could know?

Who announced it ⁴²  ahead of time, so we could say, ‘He’s correct’?

Indeed, none of them decreed it!

Indeed, none of them announced it!

Indeed, no one heard you say anything!

Yesaya 42:16

42:16 I will lead the blind along an unfamiliar way; ⁴³ 

I will guide them down paths they have never traveled. ⁴⁴ 

I will turn the darkness in front of them into light,

and level out the rough ground. ⁴⁵ 

This is what I will do for them.

I will not abandon them.

Yesaya 45:1

45:1 This is what the Lord says to his chosen ⁴⁶  one,

to Cyrus, whose right hand I hold ⁴⁷ 

in order to subdue nations before him,

and disarm kings, ⁴⁸ 

to open doors before him,

so gates remain unclosed:

Yesaya 47:8

47:8 So now, listen to this,

O one who lives so lavishly, ⁴⁹ 

who lives securely,

who says to herself, ⁵⁰ 

‘I am unique! No one can compare to me! ⁵¹ 

I will never have to live as a widow;

I will never lose my children.’ ⁵² 

Yesaya 47:11

47:11 Disaster will overtake you;

you will not know how to charm it away. ⁵³ 

Destruction will fall on you;

you will not be able to appease it.

Calamity will strike you suddenly,

before you recognize it. ⁵⁴ 

Yesaya 47:13

47:13 You are tired out from listening to so much advice. ⁵⁵ 

Let them take their stand –

the ones who see omens in the sky,

who gaze at the stars,

who make monthly predictions –

let them rescue you from the disaster that is about to overtake you! ⁵⁶ 

Yesaya 49:6

49:6 he says, “Is it too insignificant a task for you to be my servant,

to reestablish the tribes of Jacob,

and restore the remnant ⁵⁷  of Israel? ⁵⁸ 

I will make you a light to the nations, ⁵⁹ 

so you can bring ⁶⁰  my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth.”

Yesaya 49:21

49:21 Then you will think to yourself, ⁶¹ 

‘Who bore these children for me?

I was bereaved and barren,

dismissed and divorced. ⁶² 

Who raised these children?

Look, I was left all alone;

where did these children come from?’”

Yesaya 50:11

50:11 Look, all of you who start a fire

and who equip yourselves with ⁶³  flaming arrows, ⁶⁴ 

walk ⁶⁵  in the light ⁶⁶  of the fire you started

and among the flaming arrows you ignited! ⁶⁷ 

This is what you will receive from me: ⁶⁸ 

you will lie down in a place of pain. ⁶⁹ 

Yesaya 55:2

55:2 Why pay money for something that will not nourish you? ⁷⁰ 

Why spend ⁷¹  your hard-earned money ⁷²  on something that will not satisfy?

Listen carefully ⁷³  to me and eat what is nourishing! ⁷⁴ 

Enjoy fine food! ⁷⁵ 

Yesaya 58:2

58:2 They seek me day after day;

they want to know my requirements, ⁷⁶ 

like a nation that does what is right

and does not reject the law of their God.

They ask me for just decrees;

they want to be near God.

Yesaya 58:13

58:13 You must ⁷⁷  observe the Sabbath ⁷⁸ 

rather than doing anything you please on my holy day. ⁷⁹ 

You must look forward to the Sabbath ⁸⁰ 

and treat the Lord’s holy day with respect. ⁸¹ 

You must treat it with respect by refraining from your normal activities,

and by refraining from your selfish pursuits and from making business deals. ⁸² 

Yesaya 59:10

59:10 We grope along the wall like the blind,

we grope like those who cannot see; ⁸³ 

we stumble at noontime as if it were evening.

Though others are strong, we are like dead men. ⁸⁴ 

Yesaya 61:3

61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,

by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,

oil symbolizing joy, ⁸⁵  instead of mourning,

a garment symbolizing praise, ⁸⁶  instead of discouragement. ⁸⁷ 

They will be called oaks of righteousness, ⁸⁸ 

trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. ⁸⁹ 

Yesaya 64:5

64:5 You assist ⁹⁰  those who delight in doing what is right, ⁹¹ 

who observe your commandments. ⁹² 

Look, you were angry because we violated them continually.

How then can we be saved? ⁹³ 

Yesaya 65:12

65:12 I predestine you to die by the sword, ⁹⁴ 

all of you will kneel down at the slaughtering block, ⁹⁵ 

because I called to you, and you did not respond,

I spoke and you did not listen.

You did evil before me; ⁹⁶ 

you chose to do what displeases me.”

[8:19]  ¹ tn It is uncertain if the prophet or the Lord is speaking in vv. 19-22. If the latter, then vv. 19-22 resume the speech recorded in vv. 12-15, after the prophet’s response in vv. 16-18.

[8:19]  ² tn Heb “inquire of the ritual pits and of the magicians who chirp and mutter.” The Hebrew word אוֹב (’ov, “ritual pit”) refers to a pit used by a magician to conjure up underworld spirits. In 1 Sam 28:7 the witch of Endor is called a אוֹב-בַּעֲלַת (ba’alat-’ov, “owner of a ritual pit”). See H. Hoffner, “Second Millennium Antecedents to the Hebrew ’OñBù,” JBL 86 (1967): 385-401.

[8:19]  ³ tn Heb “Should a nation not inquire of its gods on behalf of the living, (by inquiring) of the dead?” These words appear to be a continuation of the quotation begun in the first part of the verse. אֱלֹהָיו (’elohayv) may be translated “its gods” or “its God.” Some take the second half of the verse as the prophet’s (or the Lord’s) rebuke of the people who advise seeking oracles at the ritual pits, but in this case the words “the dead on behalf of the living” are difficult to explain.

[9:7]  ⁴ tc The Hebrew text has לְםַרְבֵּה (lÿmarbeh), which is a corrupt reading. לם is dittographic; note the preceding word, שָׁלוֹם (shalom). The corrected text reads literally, “great is the dominion.”

[9:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “and to peace there will be no end” (KJV and ASV both similar). On the political and socio-economic sense of שָׁלוֹם (shalom) in this context, see the note at v. 6 on “Prince of Peace.”

[9:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “over the throne of David, and over his kingdom.” The referent of the pronoun “his” (i.e., David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:7]  ⁷ tn The feminine singular pronominal suffix on this form and the following one (translated “it” both times) refers back to the grammatically feminine noun “kingdom.”

[9:7]  ⁸ tn Heb “with/by justice and fairness”; ASV “with justice and with righteousness.”

[9:7]  ⁹ tn Heb “the zeal of the Lord.” In this context the Lord’s “zeal” refers to his intense devotion to and love for his people which prompts him to vindicate them and to fulfill his promises to David and the nation.

[14:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and the house of Jacob will take possession of them [i.e., the nations], on the land of the Lord, as male servants and female servants.”

[19:20]  ¹¹ tn The masculine noun מִזְבֵּחַ (mizbbeakh, “altar”) in v. 19 is probably the subject of the masculine singular verb הָיָה (hayah) rather than the feminine noun מַצֵּבָה (matsevah, “sacred pillar”), also in v. 19.

[19:20]  ¹² tn Heb “a sign and a witness to the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] in the land of Egypt.”

[19:20]  ¹³ tn רָב (rav) is a substantival participle (from רִיב, riv) meaning “one who strives, contends.”

[25:8]  ¹⁴ sn The image of the Lord “swallowing” death would be especially powerful, for death was viewed in Canaanite mythology and culture as a hungry enemy that swallows its victims. See the note at 5:14.

[25:8]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “has spoken” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[30:6]  ¹⁶ tn Traditionally, “burden” (so KJV, ASV); NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “oracle.”

[30:6]  ¹⁷ 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]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “flying fiery one.” See the note at 14:29.

[30:6]  ¹⁹ tn Or “carry” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[30:6]  ²⁰ sn This verse describes messengers from Judah transporting wealth to Egypt in order to buy Pharaoh’s protection through a treaty.

[33:15]  ²¹ tn Heb “walks” (so NASB, NIV).

[33:15]  ²² tn Or, possibly, “justly”; NAB “who practices virtue.”

[33:15]  ²³ tn Heb “[who] shakes off his hands from grabbing hold of a bribe.”

[33:15]  ²⁴ tn Heb “[who] shuts his ear from listening to bloodshed.”

[33:15]  ²⁵ tn Heb “[who] closes his eyes from seeing evil.”

[37:4]  ²⁶ tn Heb “all the words of the chief adviser whom his master, the king of Assyria, sent to taunt the living God.”

[37:4]  ²⁷ tn Heb “and rebuke the words which the Lord your God hears.”

[37:4]  ²⁸ tn Heb “and lift up a prayer on behalf of the remnant that is found.”

[37:26]  ²⁹ tn Having quoted the Assyrian king’s arrogant words in vv. 23-24, the Lord now speaks to the king.

[37:26]  ³⁰ 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]  ³¹ tn Heb “formed” (so KJV, ASV).

[37:26]  ³² 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]  ³³ tn Heb “short of hand”; KJV, ASV “of small power”; NASB “short of strength.”

[37:27]  ³⁴ 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]  ³⁵ tn Heb “[they are] grass on the rooftops.” See the preceding note.

[37:27]  ³⁶ 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 Isa^a; cf. J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:657, n. 8.

[38:1]  ³⁷ tn Heb “was sick to the point of dying”; NRSV “became sick and was at the point of death.”

[39:2]  ³⁸ tn Heb “was happy with”; NAB, NASB “was pleased”; NIV “received the envoys gladly.”

[39:2]  ³⁹ tn Heb “there was nothing which Hezekiah did not show them in his house and in all his kingdom.”

[41:7]  ⁴⁰ tn The verb “encourages” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[41:7]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “saying of the welding, ‘It is good.’”

[41:26]  ⁴² tn The words “who announced it” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The interrogative particle and verb are understood by ellipsis (see the preceding line).

[42:16]  ⁴³ tn Heb “a way they do not know” (so NASB); NRSV “a road they do not know.”

[42:16]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “in paths they do not know I will make them walk.”

[42:16]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “and the rough ground into a level place.”

[45:1]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “anointed” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NCV “his appointed king.”

[45:1]  ⁴⁷ sn The “right hand” is a symbol of activity and strength; the Lord directs Cyrus’ activities and assures his success.

[45:1]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “and the belts of kings I will loosen”; NRSV “strip kings of their robes”; NIV “strip kings of their armor.”

[47:8]  ⁴⁹ tn Or perhaps, “voluptuous one” (NAB); NAB “you sensual one”; NLT “You are a pleasure-crazy kingdom.”

[47:8]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “the one who says in her heart.”

[47:8]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “I [am], and besides me there is no other.” See Zeph 2:15.

[47:8]  ⁵² tn Heb “I will not live [as] a widow, and I will not know loss of children.”

[47:11]  ⁵³ tc The Hebrew text has שַׁחְרָהּ (shakhrah), which is either a suffixed noun (“its dawning,” i.e., origin) or infinitive (“to look early for it”). Some have suggested an emendation to שַׁחֲדָהּ (shakhadah), a suffixed infinitive from שָׁחַד (shakhad, “[how] to buy it off”; see BDB 1005 s.v. שָׁחַד). This forms a nice parallel with the following couplet. The above translation is based on a different etymology of the verb in question. HALOT 1466 s.v. III שׁחר references a verbal root with these letters (שׁחד) that refers to magical activity.

[47:11]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “you will not know”; NIV “you cannot foresee.”

[47:13]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “you are tired because of the abundance of your advice.”

[47:13]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “let them stand and rescue you – the ones who see omens in the sky, who gaze at the stars, who make known by months – from those things which are coming upon you.”

[49:6]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “the protected [or “preserved”] ones.”

[49:6]  ⁵⁸ sn The question is purely rhetorical; it does not imply that the servant was dissatisfied with his commission or that he minimized the restoration of Israel.

[49:6]  ⁵⁹ tn See the note at 42:6.

[49:6]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “be” (so KJV, ASV); CEV “you must take.”

[49:21]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “and you will say in your heart.”

[49:21]  ⁶² tn Or “exiled and thrust away”; NIV “exiled and rejected.”

[50:11]  ⁶³ tc Several more recent commentators have proposed an emendation of מְאַזְּרֵי (mÿ’azzÿre, “who put on”) to מְאִירִי (mÿ’iri, “who light”). However, both Qumran scrolls of Isaiah and the Vulgate support the MT reading (cf. NIV, ESV).

[50:11]  ⁶⁴ tn On the meaning of זִיקוֹת (ziqot, “flaming arrows”), see HALOT 268 s.v. זִיקוֹת.

[50:11]  ⁶⁵ tn The imperative is probably rhetorical and has a predictive force.

[50:11]  ⁶⁶ tn Or perhaps, “flame” (so ASV).

[50:11]  ⁶⁷ sn Perhaps the servant here speaks to his enemies and warns them that they will self-destruct.

[50:11]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “from my hand” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[50:11]  ⁶⁹ sn The imagery may be that of a person who becomes ill and is forced to lie down in pain on a sickbed. Some see this as an allusion to a fiery place of damnation because of the imagery employed earlier in the verse.

[55:2]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “for what is not food.”

[55:2]  ⁷¹ tn The interrogative particle and the verb “spend” are understood here by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[55:2]  ⁷² tn Heb “your labor,” which stands by metonymy for that which one earns.

[55:2]  ⁷³ tn The infinitive absolute follows the imperative and lends emphasis to the exhortation.

[55:2]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “good” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[55:2]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “Let your appetite delight in fine food.”

[55:2]  sn Nourishing, fine food here represents the blessings God freely offers. These include forgiveness, a new covenantal relationship with God, and national prominence (see vv. 3-6).

[58:2]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “ways” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, TEV); NLT “my laws.”

[58:13]  ⁷⁷ tn Lit., “if you.” In the Hebrew text vv. 13-14 are one long conditional sentence. The protasis (“if” clauses appear in v. 13), with the apodosis (“then” clause) appearing in v. 14.

[58:13]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “if you turn from the Sabbath your feet.”

[58:13]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “[from] doing your desires on my holy day.” The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a supplies the preposition מִן (min) on “doing.”

[58:13]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “and call the Sabbath a pleasure”; KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “a delight.”

[58:13]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “and [call] the holy [day] of the Lord honored.” On קָדוֹשׁ (qadosh, “holy”) as indicating a time period, see BDB 872 s.v. 2.e (cf. also Neh 8:9-11).

[58:13]  ⁸² tn Heb “and you honor it [by refraining] from accomplishing your ways, from finding your desire and speaking a word.” It is unlikely that the last phrase (“speaking a word”) is a prohibition against talking on the Sabbath; instead it probably refers to making transactions or plans (see Hos 10:4). Some see here a reference to idle talk (cf. 2 Sam 19:30).

[59:10]  ⁸³ tn Heb “like there are no eyes.”

[59:10]  ⁸⁴ tn Heb among the strong, like dead men.”

[61:3]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”

[61:3]  ⁸⁶ tn Heb “garment of praise.”

[61:3]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”

[61:3]  ⁸⁸ tn Rather than referring to the character of the people, צֶדֶק (tsedeq) may carry the nuance “vindication” here, suggesting that God’s restored people are a testimony to his justice. See v. 2, which alludes to the fact that God will take vengeance against the enemies of his people. Cf. NAB “oaks of justice.”

[61:3]  ⁸⁹ tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”

[64:5]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “meet [with kindness].”

[64:5]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “the one who rejoices and does righteousness.”

[64:5]  ⁹² tn Heb “in your ways they remember you.”

[64:5]  ⁹³ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “look, you were angry and we sinned against them continually [or perhaps, “in ancient times”] and we were delivered.” The statement makes little sense as it stands. The first vav [ו] consecutive (“and we sinned”) must introduce an explanatory clause here (see Num 1:48 and Isa 39:1 for other examples of this relatively rare use of the vav [ו] consecutive). The final verb (if rendered positively) makes no sense in this context – God’s anger at their sin resulted in judgment, not deliverance. One of the alternatives involves an emendation to וַנִּרְשָׁע (vannirsha’, “and we were evil”; LXX, NRSV, TEV). The Vulgate and the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a support the MT reading. One can either accept an emendation or cast the statement as a question (as above).

[65:12]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “I assign you to the sword.” Some emend the Qal verb form מָנִיתִי (maniti, “I assign”) to the Piel מִנִּיתִי (minniti, “ I ordain”). The verb sounds like the name of the god Meni (מְנִי, mÿni, “Destiny, Fate”). The sound play draws attention to the irony of the statement. The sinners among God’s people worship the god Meni, apparently in an effort to ensure a bright destiny for themselves. But the Lord is the one who really determines their destiny and he has decreed their demise.

[65:12]  ⁹⁵ tn Or “at the slaughter”; NIV “for the slaughter”; NLT “before the executioner.”

[65:12]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “that which is evil in my eyes.”