Yesaya 4:2

The Branch of the Lord

4:2 At that time ¹ 

the crops given by the Lord will bring admiration and honor; ² 

the produce of the land will be a source of pride and delight

to those who remain in Israel. ³ 

Yesaya 35:1-2

The Land and Its People Are Transformed

35:1 Let the desert and dry region be happy; ⁴ 

let the wilderness ⁵  rejoice and bloom like a lily!

35:2 Let it richly bloom; ⁶ 

let it rejoice and shout with delight! ⁷ 

It is given the grandeur ⁸  of Lebanon,

the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.

They will see the grandeur of the Lord,

the splendor of our God.

Yesaya 61:3

61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,

by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,

oil symbolizing joy, ⁹  instead of mourning,

a garment symbolizing praise, ¹⁰  instead of discouragement. ¹¹ 

They will be called oaks of righteousness, ¹² 

trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. ¹³ 

[4:2]  ¹ tn Or “in that day” (KJV).

[4:2]  ² tn Heb “and the vegetation of the Lord will become beauty and honor.” Many English versions understand the phrase צֶמַח יְהוָה (tsemakh yÿhvah) as a messianic reference and render it, “the Branch of the Lord” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT, and others). Though צֶמַח (tsemakh) is used by later prophets of a royal descendant (Jer 23;5; 33:15; Zech 3:8; 6:12), those passages contain clear contextual indicators that a human ruler is in view and that the word is being used in a metaphorical way of offspring. However, in Isa 4:2 there are no such contextual indicators. To the contrary, in the parallel structure of the verse צֶמַח יְהוָה corresponds to “produce of the land,” a phrase that refers elsewhere exclusively to literal agricultural produce (see Num 13:20, 26; Deut 1:25). In the majority of its uses צֶמַח refers to literal crops or vegetation (in Ps 65:10 the Lord is the source of this vegetation). A reference to the Lord restoring crops would make excellent sense in Isa 4 and the prophets frequently included this theme in their visions of the future age (see Isa 30:23-24; 32:20; Jer 31:12; Ezek 34:26-29; and Amos 9:13-14).

[4:2]  ³ tn Heb “and the fruit of the land will become pride and beauty for the remnant of Israel.”

[35:1]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ tn Or “Arabah” (NASB); NAB, NIV, TEV “desert.”

[35:2]  ⁶ tn The ambiguous verb form תִּפְרַח (tifrakh) is translated as a jussive because it is parallel to the jussive form תָגֵל (tagel).

[35:2]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ tn Or “glory” (KJV, NIV, NRSV); also a second time later in this verse.

[61:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”

[61:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “garment of praise.”

[61:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”

[61:3]  ¹² 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]  ¹³ tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”