Yesaya 1:24

1:24 Therefore, the sovereign Lord who commands armies, ¹ 

the powerful ruler of Israel, ²  says this:

“Ah, I will seek vengeance ³  against my adversaries,

I will take revenge against my enemies. ⁴ 

Yesaya 6:10

6:10 Make the hearts of these people calloused;

make their ears deaf and their eyes blind!

Otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears,

their hearts might understand and they might repent and be healed.” ⁵ 

Yesaya 8:9

8:9 You will be broken, ⁶  O nations;

you will be shattered! ⁷ 

Pay attention, all you distant lands of the earth!

Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered!

Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered! ⁸ 

Yesaya 9:11

9:11 Then the Lord provoked ⁹  their adversaries to attack them, ¹⁰ 

he stirred up ¹¹  their enemies –

Yesaya 10:2

10:2 to keep the poor from getting fair treatment,

and to deprive ¹²  the oppressed among my people of justice,

so they can steal what widows own,

and loot what belongs to orphans. ¹³ 

Yesaya 10:15

10:15 Does an ax exalt itself over the one who wields it,

or a saw magnify itself over the one who cuts with it? ¹⁴ 

As if a scepter should brandish the one who raises it,

or a staff should lift up what is not made of wood!

Yesaya 10:27

10:27 At that time ¹⁵ 

the Lord will remove their burden from your shoulders, ¹⁶ 

and their yoke from your neck;

the yoke will be taken off because your neck will be too large. ¹⁷ 

Yesaya 11:8

11:8 A baby ¹⁸  will play

over the hole of a snake; ¹⁹ 

over the nest ²⁰  of a serpent

an infant ²¹  will put his hand. ²² 

Yesaya 16:7

16:7 So Moab wails over its demise ²³  –

they all wail!

Completely devastated, they moan

about what has happened to the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth. ²⁴ 

Yesaya 19:8

19:8 The fishermen will mourn and lament,

all those who cast a fishhook into the river,

and those who spread out a net on the water’s surface will grieve. ²⁵ 

Yesaya 25:11

25:11 Moab ²⁶  will spread out its hands in the middle of it, ²⁷ 

just as a swimmer spreads his hands to swim;

the Lord ²⁸  will bring down Moab’s ²⁹  pride as it spreads its hands. ³⁰ 

Yesaya 27:8

27:8 When you summon her for divorce, you prosecute her; ³¹ 

he drives her away ³²  with his strong wind in the day of the east wind. ³³ 

Yesaya 28:18

28:18 Your treaty with death will be dissolved; ³⁴ 

your agreement ³⁵  with Sheol will not last. ³⁶ 

When the overwhelming judgment sweeps by, ³⁷ 

you will be overrun by it. ³⁸ 

Yesaya 28:22

28:22 So now, do not mock,

or your chains will become heavier!

For I have heard a message about decreed destruction,

from the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, against the entire land. ³⁹ 

Yesaya 30:12

30:12 For this reason this is what the Holy One of Israel says:

“You have rejected this message; ⁴⁰ 

you trust instead in your ability to oppress and trick, ⁴¹ 

and rely on that kind of behavior. ⁴² 

Yesaya 30:22

30:22 You will desecrate your silver-plated idols ⁴³ 

and your gold-plated images. ⁴⁴ 

You will throw them away as if they were a menstrual rag,

saying to them, “Get out!”

Yesaya 37:12

37:12 Were the nations whom my predecessors ⁴⁵  destroyed – the nations of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Telassar – rescued by their gods? ⁴⁶ 

Yesaya 37:19

37:19 They have burned the gods of the nations, ⁴⁷  for they are not really gods, but only the product of human hands manufactured from wood and stone. That is why the Assyrians could destroy them. ⁴⁸ 

Yesaya 40:14-15

40:14 From whom does he receive directions? ⁴⁹ 

Who ⁵⁰  teaches him the correct way to do things, ⁵¹ 

or imparts knowledge to him,

or instructs him in skillful design? ⁵² 

40:15 Look, the nations are like a drop in a bucket;

they are regarded as dust on the scales.

He lifts ⁵³  the coastlands ⁵⁴  as if they were dust.

Yesaya 41:4

41:4 Who acts and carries out decrees? ⁵⁵ 

Who ⁵⁶  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. ⁵⁷ 

Yesaya 41:11

41:11 Look, all who were angry at you will be ashamed and humiliated;

your adversaries ⁵⁸  will be reduced to nothing ⁵⁹  and perish.

Yesaya 44:25

44:25 who frustrates the omens of the empty talkers ⁶⁰ 

and humiliates ⁶¹  the omen readers,

who overturns the counsel of the wise men ⁶² 

and makes their advice ⁶³  seem foolish,

Yesaya 45:12

45:12 I made the earth,

I created the people who live ⁶⁴  on it.

It was me – my hands ⁶⁵  stretched out the sky, ⁶⁶ 

I give orders to all the heavenly lights. ⁶⁷ 

Yesaya 48:5

48:5 I announced them to you beforehand;

before they happened, I predicted them for you,

so you could never say,

‘My image did these things,

my idol, my cast image, decreed them.’

Yesaya 49:4

49:4 But I thought, ⁶⁸  “I have worked in vain;

I have expended my energy for absolutely nothing.” ⁶⁹ 

But the Lord will vindicate me;

my God will reward me. ⁷⁰ 

Yesaya 50:8

50:8 The one who vindicates me is close by.

Who dares to argue with me? Let us confront each other! ⁷¹ 

Who is my accuser? ⁷²  Let him challenge me! ⁷³ 

Yesaya 51:2

51:2 Look at Abraham, your father,

and Sarah, who gave you birth. ⁷⁴ 

When I summoned him, he was a lone individual, ⁷⁵ 

but I blessed him ⁷⁶  and gave him numerous descendants. ⁷⁷ 

Yesaya 58:6

58:6 No, this is the kind of fast I want. ⁷⁸ 

I want you ⁷⁹  to remove the sinful chains,

to tear away the ropes of the burdensome yoke,

to set free the oppressed, ⁸⁰ 

and to break every burdensome yoke.

Yesaya 59:5

59:5 They hatch the eggs of a poisonous snake

and spin a spider’s web.

Whoever eats their eggs will die,

a poisonous snake is hatched. ⁸¹ 

Yesaya 59:18

59:18 He repays them for what they have done,

dispensing angry judgment to his adversaries

and punishing his enemies. ⁸² 

He repays the coastlands. ⁸³ 

Yesaya 62:6

62:6 I ⁸⁴  post watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem;

they should keep praying all day and all night. ⁸⁵ 

You who pray to ⁸⁶  the Lord, don’t be silent!

Yesaya 63:6

63:6 I trampled nations in my anger,

I made them drunk ⁸⁷  in my rage,

I splashed their blood on the ground.” ⁸⁸ 

Yesaya 65:11

65:11 But as for you who abandon the Lord

and forget about worshiping at ⁸⁹  my holy mountain,

who prepare a feast for the god called ‘Fortune,’ ⁹⁰ 

and fill up wine jugs for the god called ‘Destiny’ ⁹¹  –

Yesaya 66:22

66:22 “For just as the new heavens and the new earth I am about to make will remain standing before me,” says the Lord, “so your descendants and your name will remain.

[1:24]  ¹ tn Heb “the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” On the title “the Lord who commands armies,” see the note at v. 9.

[1:24]  ² tn Heb “the powerful [one] of Israel.”

[1:24]  ³ tn Heb “console myself” (i.e., by getting revenge); NRSV “pour out my wrath on.”

[1:24]  ⁴ sn The Lord here identifies with the oppressed and comes as their defender and vindicator.

[6:10]  ⁵ sn Do we take this commission at face value? Does the Lord really want to prevent his people from understanding, repenting, and being healed? Verse 9, which ostensibly records the content of Isaiah’s message, is clearly ironic. As far as we know, Isaiah did not literally proclaim these exact words. The Hebrew imperatival forms are employed rhetorically and anticipate the response Isaiah will receive. When all is said and done, Isaiah might as well preface and conclude every message with these ironic words, which, though imperatival in form, might be paraphrased as follows: “You continually hear, but don’t understand; you continually see, but don’t perceive.” Isaiah might as well command them to be spiritually insensitive, because, as the preceding and following chapters make clear, the people are bent on that anyway. (This ironic command is comparable to saying to a particularly recalcitrant individual, “Go ahead, be stubborn!”) Verse 10b is also clearly sarcastic. On the surface it seems to indicate Isaiah’s hardening ministry will prevent genuine repentance. But, as the surrounding chapters clearly reveal, the people were hardly ready or willing to repent. Therefore, Isaiah’s preaching was not needed to prevent repentance! Verse 10b reflects the people’s attitude and might be paraphrased accordingly: “Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their mind, repent, and be restored, and they certainly wouldn’t want that, would they?” Of course, this sarcastic statement may also reveal that the Lord himself is now bent on judgment, not reconciliation. Just as Pharaoh’s rejection of Yahweh’s ultimatum ignited judgment and foreclosed, at least temporarily, any opportunity for repentance, so the Lord may have come to the point where he has decreed to bring judgment before opening the door for repentance once more. The sarcastic statement in verse 10b would be an emphatic way of making this clear. (Perhaps we could expand our paraphrase: “Otherwise they might…repent, and be restored, and they certainly wouldn’t want that, would they? Besides, it’s too late for that!”) Within this sarcastic framework, verse 10a must also be seen as ironic. As in verse 9 the imperatival forms should be taken as rhetorical and as anticipating the people’s response. One might paraphrase: “Your preaching will desensitize the minds of these people, make their hearing dull, and blind their eyes.” From the outset the Lord might as well command Isaiah to harden the people, because his preaching will end up having that effect. Despite the use of irony, we should still view this as a genuine, albeit indirect, act of divine hardening. After all, God did not have to send Isaiah. By sending him, he drives the sinful people further from him, for Isaiah’s preaching, which focuses on the Lord’s covenantal demands and impending judgment upon covenantal rebellion, forces the people to confront their sin and then continues to desensitize them as they respond negatively to the message. As in the case of Pharaoh, Yahweh’s hardening is not arbitrarily imposed on a righteous or even morally neutral object. Rather his hardening is an element of his righteous judgment on recalcitrant sinners. Ironically, Israel’s rejection of prophetic preaching in turn expedites disciplinary punishment, and brings the battered people to a point where they might be ready for reconciliation. The prophesied judgment (cf. 6:11-13) was fulfilled by 701 b.c. when the Assyrians devastated the land (a situation presupposed by Isa 1:2-20; see especially vv. 4-9). At that time the divine hardening had run its course and Isaiah is able to issue an ultimatum (1:19-20), one which Hezekiah apparently took to heart, resulting in the sparing of Jerusalem (see Isa 36-39 and cf. Jer 26:18-19 with Mic 3:12).This interpretation, which holds in balance both Israel’s moral responsibility and the Lord’s sovereign work among his people, is consistent with other pertinent texts both within and outside the Book of Isaiah. Isa 3:9 declares that the people of Judah “have brought disaster upon themselves,” but Isa 29:9-10 indicates that the Lord was involved to some degree in desensitizing the people. Zech 7:11-12 looks back to the pre-exilic era (cf. v. 7) and observes that the earlier generations stubbornly hardened their hearts, but Ps 81:11-12, recalling this same period, states that the Lord “gave them over to their stubborn hearts.”

[8:9]  ⁶ tn The verb רֹעוּ (ro’u) is a Qal imperative, masculine plural from רָעַע (ra’a’, “break”). Elsewhere both transitive (Job 34:24; Ps 2:9; Jer 15:12) and intransitive (Prov 25:19; Jer 11:16) senses are attested for the Qal of this verb. Because no object appears here, the form is likely intransitive: “be broken.” In this case the imperative is rhetorical (like “be shattered” later in the verse) and equivalent to a prediction, “you will be broken.” On the rhetorical use of the imperative in general, see IBHS 572 §34.4c; GKC 324 §110.c.

[8:9]  ⁷ tn The imperatival form (Heb “be shattered”) is rhetorical and expresses the speaker’s firm conviction of the outcome of the nations’ attack. See the note on “be broken.”

[8:9]  ⁸ tn The initial imperative (“get ready for battle”) acknowledges the reality of the nations’ hostility; the concluding imperative (Heb “be shattered”) is rhetorical and expresses the speakers’ firm conviction of the outcome of the nations’ attack. (See the note on “be broken.”) One could paraphrase, “Okay, go ahead and prepare for battle since that’s what you want to do, but your actions will backfire and you’ll be shattered.” This rhetorical use of the imperatives is comparable to saying to a child who is bent on climbing a high tree, “Okay, go ahead, climb the tree and break your arm!” What this really means is: “Okay, go ahead and climb the tree since that’s what you really want to do, but your actions will backfire and you’ll break your arm.” The repetition of the statement in the final two lines of the verse gives the challenge the flavor of a taunt (ancient Israelite “trash talking,” as it were).

[9:11]  ⁹ tn The translation assumes that the prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive continues the narrative of past judgment.

[9:11]  ¹⁰ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “adversaries of Rezin against him [i.e., them].” The next verse describes how the Syrians (over whom Rezin ruled, see 7:1, 8) and the Philistines encroached on Israel’s territory. Since the Syrians and Israelites were allies by 735 b.c. (see 7:1), the hostilities described probably occurred earlier, while Israel was still pro-Assyrian. In this case one might understand the phrase צָרֵי רְצִין (tsare rÿtsin, “adversaries of Rezin”) as meaning “adversaries sent from Rezin.” However, another option, the one chosen in the translation above, is to emend the phrase to צָרָיו (tsarayv, “his [i.e., their] adversaries”). This creates tighter parallelism with the next line (note “his [i.e., their] enemies”). The phrase in the Hebrew text may be explained as virtually dittographic.

[9:11]  ¹¹ tn The prefixed verbal form is understood as a preterite, used, as is often the case in poetry, without vav consecutive. Note that prefixed forms with vav consecutive both precede (וַיְשַׂגֵּב, vaysaggev, “and he provoked”) and follow in v. 12 (וַיֹּאכְלוּ, vayyo’khÿlu, “and they devoured”) this verb.

[10:2]  ¹² tn Or “rob” (ASV, NASB, NCV, NRSV); KJV “take away the right from the poor.”

[10:2]  ¹³ tn Heb “so that widows are their plunder, and they can loot orphans.”

[10:2]  sn On the socio-economic background of vv. 1-2, see the note at 1:23.

[10:15]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “the one who pushes it back and forth”; KJV “him that shaketh it”; ASV “him that wieldeth it.”

[10:27]  ¹⁵ tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[10:27]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “he [i.e., the Lord] will remove his [i.e, Assyria’s] burden from upon your shoulder.”

[10:27]  ¹⁷ tc The meaning of this line is uncertain. The Hebrew text reads literally, “and the yoke will be destroyed (or perhaps, “pulled down”) because of fatness.” Perhaps this is a bizarre picture of an ox growing so fat that it breaks the yoke around its neck or can no longer fit into its yoke. Fatness would symbolize the Lord’s restored blessings; the removal of the yoke would symbolize the cessation of Assyrian oppression. Because of the difficulty of the metaphor, many prefer to emend the text at this point. Some emend וְחֻבַּל (vÿkhubbal, “and it will be destroyed,” a perfect with prefixed vav), to יִחְבֹּל (yikhbol, “[it] will be destroyed,” an imperfect), and take the verb with what precedes, “and their yoke will be destroyed from your neck.” Proponents of this view (cf. NAB, NRSV) then emend עֹל (’ol, “yoke”) to עָלָה (’alah, “he came up”) and understand this verb as introducing the following description of the Assyrian invasion (vv. 28-32). מִפְּנֵי־שָׁמֶן (mippÿney-shamen, “because of fatness”) is then emended to read “from before Rimmon” (NAB, NRSV), “from before Samaria,” or “from before Jeshimon.” Although this line may present difficulties, it appears best to regard the line as a graphic depiction of God’s abundant blessings on his servant nation.

[11:8]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “one sucking,” i.e., still being nursed by his mother.

[11:8]  ¹⁹ tn Or perhaps, “cobra” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NCV); KJV, ASV, NRSV “asp.”

[11:8]  ²⁰ tc The Hebrew text has the otherwise unattested מְאוּרַת (mÿ’urat, “place of light”), i.e., opening of a hole. Some prefer to emend to מְעָרַת (mÿ’arat, “cave, den”).

[11:8]  ²¹ tn Heb “one who is weaned” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[11:8]  ²² sn The transformation of the animal kingdom depicted here typifies what will occur in human society under the just rule of the ideal king (see vv. 3-5). The categories “predator-prey” (i.e., oppressor-oppressed) will no longer exist.

[16:7]  ²³ tn Heb “So Moab wails for Moab.”

[16:7]  ²⁴ tn The Hebrew text has, “for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth you [masculine plural] moan, surely destroyed.” The “raisin cakes” could have cultic significance (see Hos 3:1), but the next verse focuses on agricultural disaster, so here the raisin cakes are mentioned as an example of the fine foods that are no longer available (see 2 Sam 6:19; Song 2:5) because the vines have been destroyed by the invader (see v. 8). Some prefer to take אֲשִׁישֵׁי (’ashishe, “raisin cakes of”) as “men of” (see HALOT 95 s.v. *אָשִׁישׁ; cf. NIV). The verb form תֶהְגּוּ (tehgu, “you moan”) is probably the result of dittography (note that the preceding word ends in tav [ת]) and should be emended to הגו (a perfect, third plural form), “they moan.”

[19:8]  ²⁵ tn Or perhaps, “will disappear”; cf. TEV “will be useless.”

[25:11]  ²⁶ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:11]  ²⁷ tn The antecedent of the third masculine singular pronominal suffix is probably the masculine noun מַתְבֵּן (matben, “heap of straw”) in v. 10 rather than the feminine noun מַדְמֵנָה (madmenah, “manure pile”), also in v. 10.

[25:11]  ²⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:11]  ²⁹ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Moab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:11]  ³⁰ tn The Hebrew text has, “he will bring down his pride along with the [?] of his hands.” The meaning of אָרְבּוֹת (’arbot), which occurs only here in the OT, is unknown. Some (see BDB 70 s.v. אָרְבָּה) translate “artifice, cleverness,” relating the form to the verbal root אָרָב (’arav, “to lie in wait, ambush”), but this requires some convoluted semantic reasoning. HALOT 83 s.v. *אָרְבָּה suggests the meaning “[nimble] movements.” The translation above, which attempts to relate the form to the preceding context, is purely speculative.

[27:8]  ³¹ tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “in [?], in sending her away, you oppose her.” The meaning of this line is uncertain. The form בְּסַאסְּאָה (bÿsa’ssÿ’ah) is taken as an infinitive from סַאסְּאָה (sa’ssÿ’ah) with a prepositional prefix and a third feminine singular suffix. (The MT does not have a mappiq in the final he [ה], however). According to HALOT 738 s.v. סַאסְּאָה the verb is a Palpel form from an otherwise unattested root cognate with an Arabic verb meaning “to gather beasts with a call.” Perhaps it means “to call, summon” here, but this is a very tentative proposal. בְּשַׁלְחָהּ (bÿshalkhah, “in sending her away”) appears to be a Piel infinitive with a prepositional prefix and a third feminine singular suffix. Since the Piel of שָׁלָח (shalakh) can sometimes mean “divorce” (HALOT 1514-15 s.v.) and the following verb רִיב (riv, “oppose”) can be used in legal contexts, it is possible that divorce proceedings are alluded to here. This may explain why Israel is referred to as feminine in this verse, in contrast to the masculine forms used in vv. 6-7 and 9.

[27:8]  ³² tn The Hebrew text has no object expressed, but one can understand a third feminine singular pronominal object and place a mappiq in the final he (ה) of the form to indicate the suffix.

[27:8]  ³³ sn The “east wind” here symbolizes violent divine judgment.

[28:18]  ³⁴ tn On the meaning of כָּפַר (kafar) in this context, see HALOT 494 s.v. I כפר and J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:515, n. 9.

[28:18]  ³⁵ tn Normally the noun חָזוּת (khazut) means “vision.” See the note at v. 15.

[28:18]  ³⁶ tn Or “will not stand” (NIV, NRSV).

[28:18]  ³⁷ tn See the note at v. 15.

[28:18]  ³⁸ tn Heb “you will become a trampling place for it.”

[28:22]  ³⁹ tn Or “the whole earth” (KJV, ASV, NAB, NCV).

[30:12]  ⁴⁰ tn The sentence actually begins with the word “because.” In the Hebrew text vv. 12-13 are one long sentence.

[30:12]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “and you trust in oppression and cunning.”

[30:12]  ⁴² tn Heb “and you lean on it”; NAB “and depend on it.”

[30:22]  ⁴³ tn Heb “the platings of your silver idols.”

[30:22]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “the covering of your gold image.”

[37:12]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “forefathers”; NCV “ancestors.”

[37:12]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “Did the gods of the nations whom my fathers destroyed rescue them – Gozan and Haran, and Rezeph and the sons of Eden who are in Telassar?”

[37:19]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “and they put their gods in the fire.”

[37:19]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “so they destroyed them” (NASB similar).

[40:14]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “With whom did he consult, so that he gave discernment to him?”

[40:14]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “and taught him.” The vav (ו) consecutive with prefixed verbal form continues the previous line. The translation employs an interrogative pronoun for stylistic reasons.

[40:14]  ⁵¹ tn The phrase אֹרַח מִשְׁפָּט (’orakh mishpat) could be translated “path of justice” (so NASB, NRSV), but in this context, where creative ability and skill is in view, the phrase is better understood in the sense of “the way that is proper or fitting” (see BDB 1049 s.v. מִשְׁפָּט 6); cf. NIV, NCV “the right way.”

[40:14]  ⁵² tn Heb “or the way of understanding causes him to know?”

[40:14]  sn The implied answer to the rhetorical questions in vv. 13-14 is, “No one.” In contrast to Marduk, the creator-god of Mesopotamian myths who receives help from the god of wisdom, the Lord neither needs nor receives any such advice or help. See R. Whybray, Heavenly Counsellor (SOTSMS), 64-77.

[40:15]  ⁵³ tn Or “weighs” (NIV); NLT “picks up.”

[40:15]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “islands” (NASB, NIV, NLT).

[41:4]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “Who acts and accomplishes?”; NASB “Who has performed and accomplished it.”

[41:4]  ⁵⁶ tn The interrogative particle is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[41:4]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “I, the Lord, [am with] the first, and with the last ones I [am] he.”

[41:11]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “the men of your strife”; NASB “those who contend with you.”

[41:11]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “like nothing”; NAB “come to nought.”

[44:25]  ⁶⁰ tc The Hebrew text has בַּדִּים (baddim), perhaps meaning “empty talkers” (BDB 95 s.v. III בַּד). In the four other occurrences of this word (Job 11:3; Isa 16:6; Jer 48:30; 50:36) the context does not make the meaning of the term very clear. Its primary point appears to be that the words spoken are meaningless or false. In light of its parallelism with “omen readers,” some have proposed an emendation to בָּרִים (barim, “seers”). The Mesopotamian baru-priests were divination specialists who played an important role in court life. See R. Wilson, Prophecy and Society in Ancient Israel, 93-98. Rather than supporting an emendation, J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 2:189, n. 79) suggests that Isaiah used בַּדִּים purposively as a derisive wordplay on the Akkadian word baru (in light of the close similarity of the d and r consonants).

[44:25]  ⁶¹ tn Or “makes fools of” (NIV, NRSV); NAB and NASB both similar.

[44:25]  ⁶² tn Heb “who turns back the wise” (so NRSV); NIV “overthrows the learning of the wise”; TEV “The words of the wise I refute.”

[44:25]  ⁶³ tn Heb “their knowledge” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[45:12]  ⁶⁴ tn The words “who live” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[45:12]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “I, even my hands”; NASB “I stretched out…with My hands”; NRSV “it was my hands that stretched out.” The same construction occurs at the beginning of v. 13.

[45:12]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

[45:12]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “and to all their host I commanded.” See the notes at 40:26.

[49:4]  ⁶⁸ tn Or “said” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “I replied.”

[49:4]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “for nothing and emptiness.” Synonyms are combined to emphasize the common idea.

[49:4]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “But my justice is with the Lord, and my reward [or “wage”] with my God.”

[50:8]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “Let us stand together!”

[50:8]  ⁷² tn Heb “Who is the master of my judgment?”

[50:8]  ⁷³ tn Heb “let him approach me”; NAB, NIV “Let him confront me.”

[51:2]  ⁷⁴ sn Although Abraham and Sarah are distant ancestors of the people the prophet is addressing, they are spoken of as the immediate parents.

[51:2]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “one”; NLT “was alone”; TEV “was childless.”

[51:2]  ⁷⁶ tn “Bless” may here carry the sense of “endue with potency, reproductive power.” See Gen 1:28.

[51:2]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “and I made him numerous.”

[58:6]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “Is this not a fast I choose?” “No” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[58:6]  ⁷⁹ tn The words “I want you” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[58:6]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “crushed.”

[59:5]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “that which is pressed in hatches [as] a snake.”

[59:18]  ⁸² tn Heb “in accordance with deeds, so he repays, anger to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies.”

[59:18]  ⁸³ tn Or “islands” (KJV, NIV).

[62:6]  ⁸⁴ sn The speaker here is probably the prophet.

[62:6]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “all day and all night continually they do not keep silent.” The following lines suggest that they pray for the Lord’s intervention and restoration of the city.

[62:6]  ⁸⁶ tn Or “invoke”; NIV “call on”; NASB, NRSV “remind.”

[63:6]  ⁸⁷ sn See Isa 49:26 and 51:23 for similar imagery.

[63:6]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “and I brought down to the ground their juice.” “Juice” refers to their blood (see v. 3).

[65:11]  ⁸⁹ tn The Hebrew text has simply, “forget.” The words “about worshiping at” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[65:11]  ⁹⁰ tn The Hebrew has לַגַּד (laggad, “for Gad”), the name of a pagan deity. See HALOT 176 s.v. II גַּד 2.

[65:11]  ⁹¹ tn The Hebrew has לַמְנִי (lamni, “for Meni”), the name of a pagan deity. See HALOT 602 s.v. מְגִי.