Yesaya 5:2

5:2 He built a hedge around it, ¹  removed its stones,

and planted a vine.

He built a tower in the middle of it,

and constructed a winepress.

He waited for it to produce edible grapes,

but it produced sour ones instead. ² 

Yesaya 6:13

6:13 Even if only a tenth of the people remain in the land, it will again be destroyed, ³  like one of the large sacred trees ⁴  or an Asherah pole, when a sacred pillar on a high place is thrown down. ⁵  That sacred pillar symbolizes the special chosen family.” ⁶ 

Yesaya 7:20

7:20 At that time ⁷  the sovereign master will use a razor hired from the banks of the Euphrates River, ⁸  the king of Assyria, to shave the head and the pubic hair; ⁹  it will also shave off the beard.

Yesaya 9:7

9:7 His dominion will be vast ¹⁰ 

and he will bring immeasurable prosperity. ¹¹ 

He will rule on David’s throne

and over David’s kingdom, ¹² 

establishing it ¹³  and strengthening it

by promoting justice and fairness, ¹⁴ 

from this time forward and forevermore.

The Lord’s intense devotion to his people ¹⁵  will accomplish this.

Yesaya 10:13

10:13 For he says:

“By my strong hand I have accomplished this,

by my strategy that I devised.

I invaded the territory of nations, ¹⁶ 

and looted their storehouses.

Like a mighty conqueror, ¹⁷  I brought down rulers. ¹⁸ 

Yesaya 13:20

13:20 No one will live there again;

no one will ever reside there again. ¹⁹ 

No bedouin ²⁰  will camp ²¹  there,

no shepherds will rest their flocks ²²  there.

Yesaya 14:1

14:1 The Lord will certainly have compassion on Jacob; ²³  he will again choose Israel as his special people ²⁴  and restore ²⁵  them to their land. Resident foreigners will join them and unite with the family ²⁶  of Jacob.

Yesaya 22:25

22:25 “At that time,” ²⁷  says the Lord who commands armies, “the peg fastened into a solid place will come loose. It will be cut off and fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut off.” ²⁸  Indeed, ²⁹  the Lord has spoken.

Yesaya 29:23

29:23 For when they see their children,

whom I will produce among them, ³⁰ 

they will honor ³¹  my name.

They will honor the Holy One of Jacob; ³² 

they will respect ³³  the God of Israel.

Yesaya 30:16

30:16 You say, ‘No, we will flee on horses,’

so you will indeed flee.

You say, ‘We will ride on fast horses,’

so your pursuers will be fast.

Yesaya 30:29

30:29 You will sing

as you do in the evening when you are celebrating a festival.

You will be happy like one who plays a flute

as he goes to the mountain of the Lord, the Rock who shelters Israel. ³⁴ 

Yesaya 31:1

Egypt Will Disappoint

31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, ³⁵ 

those who rely on war horses,

and trust in Egypt’s many chariots ³⁶ 

and in their many, many horsemen. ³⁷ 

But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel ³⁸ 

and do not seek help from the Lord.

Yesaya 31:4

The Lord Will Defend Zion

31:4 Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me:

“The Lord will be like a growling lion,

like a young lion growling over its prey. ³⁹ 

Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it,

it is not afraid of their shouts

or intimidated by their yelling. ⁴⁰ 

In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend

to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill. ⁴¹ 

Yesaya 37:24

37:24 Through your messengers you taunted the sovereign master, ⁴² 

‘With my many chariots I climbed up

the high mountains,

the slopes of Lebanon.

I cut down its tall cedars

and its best evergreens.

I invaded its most remote regions, ⁴³ 

its thickest woods.

Yesaya 37:33

37:33 So this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:

‘He will not enter this city,

nor will he shoot an arrow here. ⁴⁴ 

He will not attack it with his shielded warriors, ⁴⁵ 

nor will he build siege works against it.

Yesaya 41:2

41:2 Who stirs up this one from the east? ⁴⁶ 

Who ⁴⁷  officially commissions him for service? ⁴⁸ 

He hands nations over to him, ⁴⁹ 

and enables him to subdue ⁵⁰  kings.

He makes them like dust with his sword,

like windblown straw with his bow. ⁵¹ 

Yesaya 45:18

45:18 For this is what the Lord says,

the one who created the sky –

he is the true God, ⁵² 

the one who formed the earth and made it;

he established it,

he did not create it without order, ⁵³ 

he formed it to be inhabited –

“I am the Lord, I have no peer.

Yesaya 45:20

45:20 Gather together and come!

Approach together, you refugees from the nations!

Those who carry wooden idols know nothing,

those who pray to a god that cannot deliver.

Yesaya 47:8

47:8 So now, listen to this,

O one who lives so lavishly, ⁵⁴ 

who lives securely,

who says to herself, ⁵⁵ 

‘I am unique! No one can compare to me! ⁵⁶ 

I will never have to live as a widow;

I will never lose my children.’ ⁵⁷ 

Yesaya 49:9

49:9 You will say ⁵⁸  to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’

and to those who are in dark dungeons, ⁵⁹  ‘Emerge.’ ⁶⁰ 

They will graze beside the roads;

on all the slopes they will find pasture.

Yesaya 49:23

49:23 Kings will be your children’s ⁶¹  guardians;

their princesses will nurse your children. ⁶² 

With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you

and they will lick the dirt on ⁶³  your feet.

Then you will recognize that I am the Lord;

those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.

Yesaya 50:1

50:1 This is what the Lord says:

“Where is your mother’s divorce certificate

by which I divorced her?

Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? ⁶⁴ 

Look, you were sold because of your sins; ⁶⁵ 

because of your rebellious acts I divorced your mother. ⁶⁶ 

Yesaya 50:11

50:11 Look, all of you who start a fire

and who equip yourselves with ⁶⁷  flaming arrows, ⁶⁸ 

walk ⁶⁹  in the light ⁷⁰  of the fire you started

and among the flaming arrows you ignited! ⁷¹ 

This is what you will receive from me: ⁷² 

you will lie down in a place of pain. ⁷³ 

Yesaya 56:3

56:3 No foreigner who becomes a follower of ⁷⁴  the Lord should say,

‘The Lord will certainly ⁷⁵  exclude me from his people.’

The eunuch should not say,

‘Look, I am like a dried-up tree.’”

Yesaya 58:9

58:9 Then you will call out, and the Lord will respond;

you will cry out, and he will reply, ‘Here I am.’

You must ⁷⁶  remove the burdensome yoke from among you

and stop pointing fingers and speaking sinfully.

Yesaya 58:14

58:14 Then you will find joy in your relationship to the Lord, ⁷⁷ 

and I will give you great prosperity, ⁷⁸ 

and cause crops to grow on the land I gave to your ancestor Jacob.” ⁷⁹ 

Know for certain that the Lord has spoken. ⁸⁰ 

Yesaya 64:7

64:7 No one invokes ⁸¹  your name,

or makes an effort ⁸²  to take hold of you.

For you have rejected us ⁸³ 

and handed us over to our own sins. ⁸⁴ 

Yesaya 65:12

65:12 I predestine you to die by the sword, ⁸⁵ 

all of you will kneel down at the slaughtering block, ⁸⁶ 

because I called to you, and you did not respond,

I spoke and you did not listen.

You did evil before me; ⁸⁷ 

you chose to do what displeases me.”

Yesaya 65:22

65:22 No longer will they build a house only to have another live in it, ⁸⁸ 

or plant a vineyard only to have another eat its fruit, ⁸⁹ 

for my people will live as long as trees, ⁹⁰ 

and my chosen ones will enjoy to the fullest what they have produced. ⁹¹ 

[5:2]  ¹ tn Or, “dug it up” (so NIV); KJV “fenced it.’ See HALOT 810 s.v. עזק.

[5:2]  ² tn Heb “wild grapes,” i.e., sour ones (also in v. 4).

[5:2]  sn At this point the love song turns sour as the Lord himself breaks in and completes the story (see vv. 3-6). In the final line of v. 2 the love song presented to the Lord becomes a judgment speech by the Lord.

[6:13]  ³ tn Or “be burned” (NRSV); NIV “laid waste.”

[6:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “like a massive tree or like a big tree” (perhaps, “like a terebinth or like an oak”).

[6:13]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew text has “which in the felling, a sacred pillar in them.” Some take מַצֶּבֶת (matsevet) as “stump,” and translate, “which, when chopped down, have a stump remaining in them.” But elsewhere מַצֶּבֶת refers to a memorial pillar (2 Sam 18:18) and the word resembles מַצֶּבָה (matsevah, “sacred pillar”). בָּם (bam, “in them”) may be a corruption of בָּמָה (bamah, “high place”; the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has במה). אֳשֶׁר (’asher, “which”) becomes a problem in this case, but one might emend the form to וּכְּאֲשֵׁרָה (ukÿ’asherah, “or like an Asherah pole”) and translate, “like one of the large sacred trees or an Asherah pole.” Though the text is difficult, the references to sacred trees and a sacred pillar suggest that the destruction of a high place is in view, an apt metaphor for the judgment of idolatrous Judah.

[6:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “a holy offspring [is] its sacred pillar.” If מַצֶּבֶת (matsevet) is taken as “stump,” one can see in this statement a brief glimpse of hope. The tree (the nation) is chopped down, but the stump (a righteous remnant) remains from which God can restore the nation. However, if מַצֶּבֶת is taken as “sacred pillar” (מַצֶּבָה, matsevah; see the previous note), it is much more difficult to take the final statement in a positive sense. In this case “holy offspring” alludes to God’s ideal for his covenant people, the offspring of the patriarchs. Ironically that “holy” nation is more like a “sacred pillar” and it will be thrown down like a sacred pillar from a high place and its land destroyed like the sacred trees located at such shrines. Understood in this way, the ironic statement is entirely negative in tone, just like the rest of the preceding announcement of judgment. It also reminds the people of their failure; they did not oppose pagan religion, instead they embraced it. Now they will be destroyed in the same way they should have destroyed paganism.

[7:20]  ⁷ tn Heb “in that day” (so ASV, NASB); KJV “In the same day.”

[7:20]  ⁸ tn Heb “the river” (so KJV); NASB “the Euphrates.” The name of the river has been supplied in the present translation for clarity.

[7:20]  ⁹ tn Heb “the hair of the feet.” The translation assumes that the word “feet” is used here as a euphemism for the genitals. See BDB 920 s.v. רֶגֶל.

[9:7]  ¹⁰ tc The Hebrew text has לְםַרְבֵּה (lÿmarbeh), which is a corrupt reading. לם is dittographic; note the preceding word, שָׁלוֹם (shalom). The corrected text reads literally, “great is the dominion.”

[9:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and to peace there will be no end” (KJV and ASV both similar). On the political and socio-economic sense of שָׁלוֹם (shalom) in this context, see the note at v. 6 on “Prince of Peace.”

[9:7]  ¹² tn Heb “over the throne of David, and over his kingdom.” The referent of the pronoun “his” (i.e., David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:7]  ¹³ tn The feminine singular pronominal suffix on this form and the following one (translated “it” both times) refers back to the grammatically feminine noun “kingdom.”

[9:7]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “with/by justice and fairness”; ASV “with justice and with righteousness.”

[9:7]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the zeal of the Lord.” In this context the Lord’s “zeal” refers to his intense devotion to and love for his people which prompts him to vindicate them and to fulfill his promises to David and the nation.

[10:13]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “removed the borders of nations”; cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV “boundaries.”

[10:13]  ¹⁷ tc The consonantal text (Kethib) has כְּאַבִּיר (kÿ’abir, “like a strong one”); the marginal reading (Qere) is כַּבִיר (kavir, “mighty one”).

[10:13]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “and I brought down, like a strong one, ones sitting [or “living”].” The participle יוֹשְׁבִים (yoshÿvim, “ones sitting”) could refer to the inhabitants of the nations, but the translation assumes that it refers to those who sit on thrones, i.e., rulers. See BDB 442 s.v. יָשַׁב and HALOT 444 s.v. ישׁב.

[13:20]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “she will not be inhabited forever, and she will not be dwelt in to generation and generation (i.e., forever).” The Lord declares that Babylon, personified as a woman, will not be inhabited. In other words, her people will be destroyed and the Chaldean empire will come to a permanent end.

[13:20]  ²⁰ tn Or “Arab” (NAB, NASB, NIV); cf. CEV, NLT “nomads.”

[13:20]  ²¹ tn יַהֵל (yahel) is probably a corrupted form of יֶאֱהַל (ye’ehal). See GKC 186 §68.k.

[13:20]  ²² tn The words “their flocks” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The Hebrew text does not supply the object here, but see Jer 33:12.

[14:1]  ²³ tn The sentence begins with כִּי (ki), which is understood as asseverative (“certainly”) in the translation. Another option is to translate, “For the Lord will have compassion.” In this case one of the reasons for Babylon’s coming demise (13:22b) is the Lord’s desire to restore his people.

[14:1]  ²⁴ tn The words “as his special people” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[14:1]  ²⁵ tn Or “settle” (NASB, NIV, NCV, NLT).

[14:1]  ²⁶ tn Heb “house.”

[22:25]  ²⁷ tn Or “In that day” (KJV).

[22:25]  ²⁸ sn Eliakim’s authority, though seemingly secure, will eventually be removed, and with it his family’s prominence.

[22:25]  ²⁹ tn Or “for” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[29:23]  ³⁰ tn Heb “for when he sees his children, the work of my hands in his midst.”

[29:23]  ³¹ tn Or “treat as holy” (also in the following line); NASB, NRSV “will sanctify.”

[29:23]  ³² sn Holy One of Jacob is similar to the phrase “Holy One of Israel” common throughout Isaiah; see the sn at Isa 1:4.

[29:23]  ³³ tn Or “fear,” in the sense of “stand in awe of.”

[30:29]  ³⁴ tn Heb “[you will have] joy of heart, like the one going with a flute to enter the mountain of the Lord to the Rock of Israel.” The image here is not a foundational rock, but a rocky cliff where people could hide for protection (for example, the fortress of Masada).

[31:1]  ³⁵ tn Heb “Woe [to] those who go down to Egypt for help.”

[31:1]  ³⁶ tn Heb “and trust in chariots for they are many.”

[31:1]  ³⁷ tn Heb “and in horsemen for they are very strong [or “numerous”].”

[31:1]  ³⁸ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[31:4]  ³⁹ tn Heb “As a lion growls, a young lion over its prey.” In the Hebrew text the opening comparison is completed later in the verse (“so the Lord will come down…”), after a parenthesis describing how fearless the lion is. The present translation divides the verse into three sentences for English stylistic reasons.

[31:4]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “Though there is summoned against it fullness of shepherds, by their voice it is not terrified, and to their noise it does not respond.”

[31:4]  ⁴¹ tn Some prefer to translate the phrase לִצְבֹּא עַל (litsbo’ ’al) as “fight against,” but the following context pictures the Lord defending, not attacking, Zion.

[37:24]  ⁴² tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[37:24]  ⁴³ tn Heb “the height of its extremity”; ASV “its farthest height.”

[37:33]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “there” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV). In terms of English style “here” is expected in collocation with “this” in the previous line.

[37:33]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “[with] a shield” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[41:2]  ⁴⁶ sn The expression this one from the east refers to the Persian conqueror Cyrus, as later texts indicate (see 44:28-45:6; 46:11; 48:14-16).

[41:2]  ⁴⁷ tn The interrogative particle is understood by ellipsis.

[41:2]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “[in] righteousness called him to his foot.”

[41:2]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “he [the Lord] places before him [Cyrus] nations.”

[41:2]  ⁵⁰ tn The verb יַרְדְּ (yardÿ) is an otherwise unattested Hiphil form from רָדָה (radah, “rule”). But the Hiphil makes no sense with “kings” as object; one must understand an ellipsis and supply “him” (Cyrus) as the object. The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has יוֹרִד (yorid), which appears to be a Hiphil form from יָרַד (yarad, “go down”). Others suggest reading יָרֹד (yarod), a Qal form from רָדַד (radad, “beat down”).

[41:2]  ⁵¹ sn The point is that they are powerless before Cyrus’ military power and scatter before him.

[45:18]  ⁵² tn Heb “he [is] the God.” The article here indicates uniqueness.

[45:18]  ⁵³ tn Or “unformed.” Gen 1:2 describes the world as “unformed” (תֹהוּ, tohu) prior to God’s creative work, but God then formed the world and made it fit for habitation.

[47:8]  ⁵⁴ tn Or perhaps, “voluptuous one” (NAB); NAB “you sensual one”; NLT “You are a pleasure-crazy kingdom.”

[47:8]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “the one who says in her heart.”

[47:8]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “I [am], and besides me there is no other.” See Zeph 2:15.

[47:8]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “I will not live [as] a widow, and I will not know loss of children.”

[49:9]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “to say.” In the Hebrew text the infinitive construct is subordinated to what precedes.

[49:9]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “in darkness” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “the prisoners of darkness.”

[49:9]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “show yourselves” (so ASV, NAB, NASB).

[49:23]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “your,” but Zion here stands by metonymy for her children (see v. 22b).

[49:23]  ⁶² tn Heb “you.” See the preceding note.

[49:23]  ⁶³ tn Or “at your feet” (NAB, NIV); NLT “from your feet.”

[50:1]  ⁶⁴ sn The Lord challenges the exiles (Zion’s children) to bring incriminating evidence against him. The rhetorical questions imply that Israel accused the Lord of divorcing his wife (Zion) and selling his children (the Israelites) into slavery to pay off a debt.

[50:1]  ⁶⁵ sn The Lord admits that he did sell the Israelites, but it was because of their sins, not because of some debt he owed. If he had sold them to a creditor, they ought to be able to point him out, but the preceding rhetorical question implies they would not be able to do so.

[50:1]  ⁶⁶ sn The Lord admits he did divorce Zion, but that too was the result of the nation’s sins. The force of the earlier rhetorical question comes into clearer focus now. The question does not imply that a certificate does not exist and that no divorce occurred. Rather, the question asks for the certificate to be produced so the accuser can see the reason for the divorce in black and white. The Lord did not put Zion away arbitrarily.

[50:11]  ⁶⁷ tc Several more recent commentators have proposed an emendation of מְאַזְּרֵי (mÿ’azzÿre, “who put on”) to מְאִירִי (mÿ’iri, “who light”). However, both Qumran scrolls of Isaiah and the Vulgate support the MT reading (cf. NIV, ESV).

[50:11]  ⁶⁸ tn On the meaning of זִיקוֹת (ziqot, “flaming arrows”), see HALOT 268 s.v. זִיקוֹת.

[50:11]  ⁶⁹ tn The imperative is probably rhetorical and has a predictive force.

[50:11]  ⁷⁰ tn Or perhaps, “flame” (so ASV).

[50:11]  ⁷¹ sn Perhaps the servant here speaks to his enemies and warns them that they will self-destruct.

[50:11]  ⁷² tn Heb “from my hand” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[50:11]  ⁷³ sn The imagery may be that of a person who becomes ill and is forced to lie down in pain on a sickbed. Some see this as an allusion to a fiery place of damnation because of the imagery employed earlier in the verse.

[56:3]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “who attaches himself to.”

[56:3]  ⁷⁵ tn The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.

[58:9]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “if you.” In the Hebrew text vv. 9b-10 are one long conditional sentence. The protasis (“if” clauses appear in vv. 9b-10a), with the apodosis (“then” clause) appearing in v. 10b.

[58:14]  ⁷⁷ tn For a parallel use of the phrase “find joy in” (Hitpael of עָנַג [’anag] followed by the preposition עַל [’al]), see Ps 37:4.

[58:14]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “and I will cause you to ride upon the heights of the land.” The statement seems to be an allusion to Deut 32:13, where it is associated, as here, with God’s abundant provision of food.

[58:14]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “and I will cause you to eat the inheritance of Jacob your father.” The Hebrew term נַחֲלָה (nakhalah) likely stands by metonymy for the crops that grow on Jacob’s “inheritance” (i.e., the land he inherited as a result of God’s promise).

[58:14]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” The introductory כִּי (ki) may be asseverative (as reflected in the translation) or causal/explanatory, explaining why the preceding promise will become reality (because it is guaranteed by the divine word).

[64:7]  ⁸¹ tn Or “calls out in”; NASB, NIV, NRSV “calls on.”

[64:7]  ⁸² tn Or “rouses himself”; NASB “arouses himself.”

[64:7]  ⁸³ tn Heb “for you have hidden your face from us.”

[64:7]  ⁸⁴ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and you caused us to melt in the hand of our sin.” The verb וַתְּמוּגֵנוּ (vattÿmugenu) is a Qal preterite 2nd person masculine singular with a 1st person common plural suffix from the root מוּג (mug, “melt”). However, elsewhere the Qal of this verb is intransitive. If the verbal root מוּג (mug) is retained here, the form should be emended to a Polel pattern (וַתְּמֹגְגֵנוּ, vattÿmogÿgenu). The translation assumes an emendation to וַתְּמַגְּנֵנוּ (vattÿmaggÿnenu, “and you handed us over”). This form is a Piel preterite 2nd person masculine singular with a 1st person common plural suffix from the verbal root מִגֵּן (miggen, “hand over, surrender”; see HALOT 545 s.v. מגן and BDB 171 s.v. מָגָן). The point is that God has abandoned them to their sinful ways and no longer seeks reconciliation.

[65:12]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “I assign you to the sword.” Some emend the Qal verb form מָנִיתִי (maniti, “I assign”) to the Piel מִנִּיתִי (minniti, “ I ordain”). The verb sounds like the name of the god Meni (מְנִי, mÿni, “Destiny, Fate”). The sound play draws attention to the irony of the statement. The sinners among God’s people worship the god Meni, apparently in an effort to ensure a bright destiny for themselves. But the Lord is the one who really determines their destiny and he has decreed their demise.

[65:12]  ⁸⁶ tn Or “at the slaughter”; NIV “for the slaughter”; NLT “before the executioner.”

[65:12]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “that which is evil in my eyes.”

[65:22]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “they will not build, and another live [in it].”

[65:22]  ⁸⁹ tn Heb “they will not plant, and another eat.”

[65:22]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “for like the days of the tree [will be] the days of my people.”

[65:22]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “the work of their hands” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “their hard-won gains.”