Yesaya 29:9

God’s People are Spiritually Insensitive

29:9 You will be shocked and amazed! ¹ 

You are totally blind! ² 

They are drunk, ³  but not because of wine;

they stagger, ⁴  but not because of beer.

Yesaya 49:26

49:26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh;

they will get drunk on their own blood, as if it were wine. ⁵ 

Then all humankind ⁶  will recognize that

I am the Lord, your deliverer,

your protector, ⁷  the powerful ruler of Jacob.” ⁸ 

Yesaya 51:17

51:17 Wake up! Wake up!

Get up, O Jerusalem!

You drank from the cup the Lord passed to you,

which was full of his anger! ⁹ 

You drained dry

the goblet full of intoxicating wine. ¹⁰ 

Yesaya 51:21

51:21 So listen to this, oppressed one,

who is drunk, but not from wine!

Yesaya 63:6

63:6 I trampled nations in my anger,

I made them drunk ¹¹  in my rage,

I splashed their blood on the ground.” ¹² 

[29:9]  ¹ tn The form הִתְמַהְמְהוּ (hitmahmÿhu) is a Hitpalpel imperative from מָהַהּ (mahah, “hesitate”). If it is retained, one might translate “halt and be amazed.” The translation assumes an emendation to הִתַּמְּהוּ (hittammÿhu), a Hitpael imperative from תָּמַה (tamah, “be amazed”). In this case, the text, like Hab 1:5, combines the Hitpael and Qal imperatival forms of תָּמַה (tamah). A literal translation might be “Shock yourselves and be shocked!” The repetition of sound draws attention to the statement. The imperatives here have the force of an emphatic assertion. On this use of the imperative in Hebrew, see GKC 324 §110.c and IBHS 572 §34.4c.

[29:9]  ² tn Heb “Blind yourselves and be blind!” The Hitpalpel and Qal imperatival forms of שָׁעַע (sha’a’, “be blind”) are combined to draw attention to the statement. The imperatives have the force of an emphatic assertion.

[29:9]  ³ tc Some prefer to emend the perfect form of the verb to an imperative (e.g., NAB, NCV, NRSV), since the people are addressed in the immediately preceding and following contexts.

[29:9]  ⁴ tc Some prefer to emend the perfect form of the verb to an imperative (e.g., NAB, NCV, NRSV), since the people are addressed in the immediately preceding and following contexts.

[49:26]  ⁵ sn Verse 26a depicts siege warfare and bloody defeat. The besieged enemy will be so starved they will their own flesh. The bloodstained bodies lying on the blood-soaked battle site will look as if they collapsed in drunkenness.

[49:26]  ⁶ tn Heb “flesh” (so KJV, NASB).

[49:26]  ⁷ tn Heb “your redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[49:26]  ⁸ tn Heb “the powerful [one] of Jacob.” See 1:24.

[51:17]  ⁹ tn Heb “[you] who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his anger.”

[51:17]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the goblet, the cup [that causes] staggering, you drank, you drained.”

[63:6]  ¹¹ sn See Isa 49:26 and 51:23 for similar imagery.

[63:6]  ¹² tn Heb “and I brought down to the ground their juice.” “Juice” refers to their blood (see v. 3).