Yesaya 5:9

5:9 The Lord who commands armies told me this: ¹ 

“Many houses will certainly become desolate,

large, impressive houses will have no one living in them. ² 

Yesaya 7:18

7:18 At that time ³  the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. ⁴ 

Yesaya 23:13

23:13 Look at the land of the Chaldeans,

these people who have lost their identity! ⁵ 

The Assyrians have made it a home for wild animals.

They erected their siege towers, ⁶ 

demolished ⁷  its fortresses,

and turned it into a heap of ruins. ⁸ 

[5:9]  ¹ tn Heb “in my ears, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].”

[5:9]  ² tn Heb “great and good [houses], without a resident.”

[7:18]  ³ tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[7:18]  ⁴ sn Swarming flies are irritating; bees are irritating and especially dangerous because of the pain they inflict with their sting (see Deut 1:44; Ps 118:12). The metaphors are well chosen, for the Assyrians (symbolized by the bees) were much more powerful and dangerous than the Egyptians (symbolized by the flies). Nevertheless both would put pressure on Judah, for Egypt wanted Judah as a buffer state against Assyrian aggression, while Assyrian wanted it as a base for operations against Egypt. Following the reference to sour milk and honey, the metaphor is especially apt, for flies are attracted to dairy products and bees can be found in the vicinity of honey.

[23:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “this people [that] is not.”

[23:13]  ⁶ tn For the meaning of this word, see HALOT 118 s.v. *בַּחוּן.

[23:13]  ⁷ tn Or “laid bare.” For the meaning of this word, see HALOT 889 s.v. ערר.

[23:13]  ⁸ sn This verse probably refers to the Assyrian destruction of Babylon.