Yesaya 5:26

5:26 He lifts a signal flag for a distant nation, ¹ 

he whistles for it to come from the far regions of the earth.

Look, they ²  come quickly and swiftly.

Yesaya 11:12

11:12 He will lift a signal flag for the nations;

he will gather Israel’s dispersed people ³ 

and assemble Judah’s scattered people

from the four corners of the earth.

Yesaya 13:2

13:2 ⁴ On a bare hill raise a signal flag,

shout to them,

wave your hand,

so they might enter the gates of the princes!

Yesaya 21:9

21:9 Look what’s coming!

A charioteer,

a team of horses.” ⁵ 

When questioned, he replies, ⁶ 

“Babylon has fallen, fallen!

All the idols of her gods lie shattered on the ground!”

Yesaya 36:13

36:13 The chief adviser then stood there and called out loudly in the Judahite dialect, ⁷  “Listen to the message of the great king, the king of Assyria.

Yesaya 41:4

41:4 Who acts and carries out decrees? ⁸ 

Who ⁹  summons the successive generations from the beginning?

I, the Lord, am present at the very beginning,

and at the very end – I am the one. ¹⁰ 

Yesaya 43:17

43:17 the one who led chariots and horses to destruction, ¹¹ 

together with a mighty army.

They fell down, ¹²  never to rise again;

they were extinguished, put out like a burning wick:

Yesaya 51:9

51:9 Wake up! Wake up!

Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the Lord! ¹³ 

Wake up as in former times, as in antiquity!

Did you not smash ¹⁴  the Proud One? ¹⁵ 

Did you not ¹⁶  wound the sea monster? ¹⁷ 

Yesaya 52:12

52:12 Yet do not depart quickly

or leave in a panic. ¹⁸ 

For the Lord goes before you;

the God of Israel is your rear guard.

Yesaya 60:17

60:17 Instead of bronze, I will bring you gold,

instead of iron, I will bring you silver,

instead of wood, I will bring you ¹⁹  bronze,

instead of stones, I will bring you ²⁰  iron.

I will make prosperity ²¹  your overseer,

and vindication your sovereign ruler. ²² 

Yesaya 62:10

62:10 Come through! Come through the gates!

Prepare the way for the people!

Build it! Build the roadway!

Remove the stones!

Lift a signal flag for the nations!

[5:26]  ¹ tc The Hebrew text has literally, “for nations from a distance.” The following verses use singular forms to describe this nation, so the final mem (ם) on לְגּוֹיִם (lÿgoyim) may be enclitic or dittographic. In the latter case one could read לְגוֹי מֵרָחוֹק (lÿgoy merakhoq, “for a nation from a distance”; see Deut 28:49; Joel 3:8). Another possibility is to emend the text from לַגּוֹיִם מֵרָחוֹק (laggoyim merakhoq) to לְגוֹי מִמֶּרְחָק (lÿgoy mimmerkhaq, “for a nation from a distant place”) a phrase which occurs in Jer 5:15. In this case an error of misdivision has occurred in MT, the mem of the prefixed preposition being accidentally taken as a plural ending on the preceding word.

[5:26]  ² tn Heb “he.” Singular forms are used throughout vv. 26-30 to describe this nation, but for stylistic reasons the translation uses the plural for these collective singulars.

[11:12]  ³ tn Or “the banished of Israel,” i.e., the exiles.

[13:2]  ⁴ sn The Lord is speaking here (see v. 3).

[21:9]  ⁵ tn Or “[with] teams of horses,” or perhaps, “with a pair of horsemen.”

[21:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “and he answered and said” (so KJV, ASV).

[36:13]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew text includes “and he said.”

[41:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “Who acts and accomplishes?”; NASB “Who has performed and accomplished it.”

[41:4]  ⁹ tn The interrogative particle is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[41:4]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “I, the Lord, [am with] the first, and with the last ones I [am] he.”

[43:17]  ¹¹ tn Heb “led out chariots and horses.” The words “to destruction” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The verse refers to the destruction of the Egyptians at the Red Sea.

[43:17]  ¹² tn Heb “lay down”; NAB “lie prostrate together”; CEV “lie dead”; NRSV “they lie down.”

[51:9]  ¹³ tn The arm of the Lord is a symbol of divine military power. Here it is personified and told to arouse itself from sleep and prepare for action.

[51:9]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Are you not the one who smashed?” The feminine singular forms agree grammatically with the feminine noun “arm.” The Hebrew text has ַהמַּחְצֶבֶת (hammakhtsevet), from the verbal root חָצַב (khatsav, “hew, chop”). The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has, probably correctly, המחצת, from the verbal root מָחַץ (makhats, “smash”) which is used in Job 26:12 to describe God’s victory over “the Proud One.”

[51:9]  ¹⁵ tn This title (רַהַב, rahav, “proud one”) is sometimes translated as a proper name: “Rahab” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). It is used here of a symbolic sea monster, known elsewhere in the Bible and in Ugaritic myth as Leviathan. This sea creature symbolizes the forces of chaos that seek to destroy the created order. In the Bible “the Proud One” opposes God’s creative work, but is defeated (see Job 26:12; Ps 89:10). Here the title refers to Pharaoh’s Egyptian army that opposed Israel at the Red Sea (see v. 10, and note also Isa 30:7 and Ps 87:4, where the title is used of Egypt).

[51:9]  ¹⁶ tn The words “did you not” are understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line). The rhetorical questions here and in v. 10 expect the answer, “Yes, you certainly did!”

[51:9]  ¹⁷ tn Hebrew תַּנִּין (tannin) is another name for the symbolic sea monster. See the note at 27:1. In this context the sea creature represents Egypt. See the note on the title “Proud One” earlier in this verse.

[52:12]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “or go in flight”; NAB “leave in headlong flight.”

[60:17]  ¹⁹ tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the preceding lines).

[60:17]  ²⁰ tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the first two lines of the verse).

[60:17]  ²¹ tn Or “peace” (KJV and many other English versions).

[60:17]  ²² tn The plural indicates degree. The language is ironic; in the past Zion was ruled by oppressive tyrants, but now personified prosperity and vindication will be the only things that will “dominate” the city.