Yesaya 5:11

5:11 Those who get up early to drink beer are as good as dead, ¹ 

those who keep drinking long after dark

until they are intoxicated with wine. ² 

Yesaya 5:22

5:22 Those who are champions ³  at drinking wine are as good as dead, ⁴ 

who display great courage when mixing strong drinks.

Yesaya 22:13

22:13 But look, there is outright celebration! ⁵ 

You say, “Kill the ox and slaughter the sheep,

eat meat and drink wine.

Eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” ⁶ 

Yesaya 28:7

28:7 Even these men ⁷  stagger because of wine,

they stumble around because of beer –

priests and prophets stagger because of beer,

they are confused ⁸  because of wine,

they stumble around because of beer;

they stagger while seeing prophetic visions, ⁹ 

they totter while making legal decisions. ¹⁰ 

Yesaya 56:12

56:12 Each one says, ¹¹ 

‘Come on, I’ll get some wine!

Let’s guzzle some beer!

Tomorrow will be just like today!

We’ll have everything we want!’ ¹² 

[5:11]  ¹ tn Heb “Woe [to] those who arise early in the morning, [who] chase beer.”

[5:11]  ² tn Heb “[who] delay until dark, [until] wine enflames them.”

[5:11]  sn This verse does not condemn drinking per se, but refers to the carousing lifestyle of the rich bureaucrats, made possible by wealth taken from the poor. Their carousing is not the fundamental problem, but a disgusting symptom of the real disease – their social injustice.

[5:22]  ³ tn The language used here is quite sarcastic and paves the way for the shocking description of the enemy army in vv. 25-30. The rich leaders of Judah are nothing but “party animals” who are totally incapable of withstanding real warriors.

[5:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “Woe [to]….” See the note at v. 8.

[22:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “happiness and joy.”

[22:13]  ⁶ tn The prophet here quotes what the fatalistic people are saying. The introductory “you say” is supplied in the translation for clarification; the concluding verb “we die” makes it clear the people are speaking. The six verbs translated as imperatives are actually infinitives absolute, functioning here as finite verbs.

[28:7]  ⁷ tn Heb “these.” The demonstrative pronoun anticipates “priests and prophets” two lines later.

[28:7]  ⁸ tn According to HALOT 135 s.v. III בלע, the verb form is derived from בָּלַע (bala’, “confuse”), not the more common בָּלַע (“swallow”). See earlier notes at 3:12 and 9:16.

[28:7]  ⁹ tn Heb “in the seeing.”

[28:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “[in] giving a decision.”

[56:12]  ¹¹ tn The words “each one says” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[56:12]  ¹² tn Heb “great, [in] abundance, very much,” i.e., “very great indeed.” See HALOT 452 s.v. יֶתֶר.