Yesaya 16:8

16:8 For the fields of Heshbon are dried up,

as well as the vines of Sibmah.

The rulers of the nations trample all over its vines,

which reach Jazer and spread to the desert;

their shoots spread out and cross the sea.

Yesaya 27:11

27:11 When its branches get brittle, ¹  they break;

women come and use them for kindling. ² 

For these people lack understanding, ³ 

therefore the one who made them has no compassion on them;

the one who formed them has no mercy on them.

Yesaya 28:1

The Lord Will Judge Samaria

28:1 The splendid crown of Ephraim’s drunkards is doomed, ⁴ 

the withering flower, its beautiful splendor, ⁵ 

situated ⁶  at the head of a rich valley,

the crown of those overcome with wine. ⁷ 

Yesaya 28:15

28:15 For you say,

“We have made a treaty with death,

with Sheol ⁸  we have made an agreement. ⁹ 

When the overwhelming judgment sweeps by ¹⁰ 

it will not reach us.

For we have made a lie our refuge,

we have hidden ourselves in a deceitful word.” ¹¹ 

Yesaya 49:21

49:21 Then you will think to yourself, ¹² 

‘Who bore these children for me?

I was bereaved and barren,

dismissed and divorced. ¹³ 

Who raised these children?

Look, I was left all alone;

where did these children come from?’”

Yesaya 53:12

53:12 So I will assign him a portion with the multitudes, ¹⁴ 

he will divide the spoils of victory with the powerful, ¹⁵ 

because he willingly submitted ¹⁶  to death

and was numbered with the rebels,

when he lifted up the sin of many

and intervened ¹⁷  on behalf of the rebels.”

Yesaya 65:12

65:12 I predestine you to die by the sword, ¹⁸ 

all of you will kneel down at the slaughtering block, ¹⁹ 

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

I spoke and you did not listen.

You did evil before me; ²⁰ 

you chose to do what displeases me.”

[27:11]  ¹ tn Heb “are dry” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[27:11]  ² tn Heb “women come [and] light it.” The city is likened to a dead tree with dried up branches that is only good for firewood.

[27:11]  ³ tn Heb “for not a people of understanding [is] he.”

[28:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “Woe [to] the crown [or “wreath”] of the splendor [or “pride”] of the drunkards of Ephraim.” The “crown” is Samaria, the capital city of the northern kingdom (Ephraim). Priests and prophets are included among these drunkards in v. 7.

[28:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “the beauty of his splendor.” In the translation the masculine pronoun (“his”) has been replaced by “its” because the referent (the “crown”) is the city of Samaria.

[28:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “which [is].”

[28:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “ones overcome with wine.” The words “the crown of” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The syntactical relationship of the final phrase to what precedes is uncertain. הֲלוּמֵי יָיִן (halume yayin, “ones overcome with wine”) seems to correspond to שִׁכֹּרֵי אֶפְרַיִם (shikkore ’efrayim, “drunkards of Ephraim”) in line 1. The translation assumes that the phrase “the splendid crown” is to be understood in the final line as well.

[28:15]  ⁸ sn Sheol is the underworld, land of the dead, according to the OT world view.

[28:15]  ⁹ tn Elsewhere the noun חֹזֶה (khozeh) refers to a prophet who sees visions. In v. 18 the related term חָזוּת (khazut, “vision”) is used. The parallelism in both verses (note “treaty”) seems to demand a meaning “agreement” for both nouns. Perhaps חֹזֶה and חזוּת are used in a metonymic sense in vv. 15 and 18. Another option is to propose a homonymic root. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:514, and HALOT 301 s.v. II חֹזֶה.

[28:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the overwhelming scourge, when it passes by” (NRSV similar).

[28:15]  ¹¹ sn “Lie” and “deceitful word” would not be the terms used by the people. They would likely use the words “promise” and “reliable word,” but the prophet substitutes “lie” and “deceitful word” to emphasize that this treaty with death will really prove to be disappointing.

[49:21]  ¹² tn Heb “and you will say in your heart.”

[49:21]  ¹³ tn Or “exiled and thrust away”; NIV “exiled and rejected.”

[53:12]  ¹⁴ tn Scholars have debated the precise meaning of the term רַבִּים (rabbim) that occurs five times in this passage (Isa 52:14, 15; 53:11, 12 [2x]). Its two broad categories of translation are “much”/“many” and “great” (HALOT 1171-72 s.v. I רַב). Unlike other Hebrew terms for might or strength, this term is linked with numbers or abundance. In all sixteen uses outside of Isaiah 52:13-53:12 (articular and plural) it signifies an inclusive meaning: “the majority” or “the multitude” (J. Jeremias, TDNT 6:536-37). This term occurs in parallelism with עֲצוּמִים (’atsumim), which normally signifies “numerous” or “large” or “powerful” (through large numbers). Like רַבִּים (rabbim), it refers to greatness in numbers (cf. Deut 4:38; 7:1; 9:1; 11:34). It emphasizes the multitudes with whom the Servant will share the spoil of his victory. As J. Olley wrote: “Yahweh has won the victory and vindicates his Servant, giving to him many subservient people, together with their spoils. These numerous peoples in turn receive blessing, sharing in the “peace” resulting from Yahweh’s victory and the Servant’s suffering” (John W. Olley, “‘The Many’: How Is Isa 53,12a to Be Understood,” Bib 68 [1987]: 330-56).

[53:12]  ¹⁵ sn The servant is compared here to a warrior who will be richly rewarded for his effort and success in battle.

[53:12]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “because he laid bare his life”; traditionally, ASV “because he (+ hath KJV) poured out his soul (life NIV) unto death.”

[53:12]  ¹⁷ tn The Hiphil of פָּגַע (paga’) can mean “cause to attack” (v. 6), “urge, plead verbally” (Jer 15:11; 36:25), or “intervene militarily” (Isa 59:16). Perhaps the third nuance fits best here, for military imagery is employed in the first two lines of the verse.

[65:12]  ¹⁸ 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]  ¹⁹ tn Or “at the slaughter”; NIV “for the slaughter”; NLT “before the executioner.”

[65:12]  ²⁰ tn Heb “that which is evil in my eyes.”