Yesaya 1:26

1:26 I will reestablish honest judges as in former times,

wise advisers as in earlier days. ¹ 

Then you will be called, ‘The Just City,

Faithful Town.’”

Yesaya 10:22

10:22 For though your people, Israel, are as numerous as ²  the sand on the seashore, only a remnant will come back. ³  Destruction has been decreed; ⁴  just punishment ⁵  is about to engulf you. ⁶ 

Yesaya 24:16

24:16 From the ends of the earth we ⁷  hear songs –

the Just One is majestic. ⁸ 

But I ⁹  say, “I’m wasting away! I’m wasting away! I’m doomed!

Deceivers deceive, deceivers thoroughly deceive!” ¹⁰ 

Yesaya 26:9

26:9 I ¹¹  look for ¹²  you during the night,

my spirit within me seeks you at dawn,

for when your judgments come upon the earth,

those who live in the world learn about justice. ¹³ 

Yesaya 42:6

42:6 “I, the Lord, officially commission you; ¹⁴ 

I take hold of your hand.

I protect you ¹⁵  and make you a covenant mediator for people, ¹⁶ 

and a light ¹⁷  to the nations, ¹⁸ 

Yesaya 51:1

There is Hope for the Future

51:1 “Listen to me, you who pursue godliness, ¹⁹ 

who seek the Lord!

Look at the rock from which you were chiseled,

at the quarry ²⁰  from which you were dug! ²¹ 

Yesaya 51:7

51:7 Listen to me, you who know what is right,

you people who are aware of my law! ²² 

Don’t be afraid of the insults of men;

don’t be discouraged because of their abuse!

Yesaya 53:11

53:11 Having suffered, he will reflect on his work,

he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. ²³ 

“My servant ²⁴  will acquit many, ²⁵ 

for he carried their sins. ²⁶ 

Yesaya 54:14

54:14 You will be reestablished when I vindicate you. ²⁷ 

You will not experience oppression; ²⁸ 

indeed, you will not be afraid.

You will not be terrified, ²⁹ 

for nothing frightening ³⁰  will come near you.

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 ³¹  bronze,

instead of stones, I will bring you ³²  iron.

I will make prosperity ³³  your overseer,

and vindication your sovereign ruler. ³⁴ 

Yesaya 60:21

60:21 All of your people will be godly; ³⁵ 

they will possess the land permanently.

I will plant them like a shoot;

they will be the product of my labor,

through whom I reveal my splendor. ³⁶ 

Yesaya 61:10

61:10 I ³⁷  will greatly rejoice ³⁸  in the Lord;

I will be overjoyed because of my God. ³⁹ 

For he clothes me in garments of deliverance;

he puts on me a robe symbolizing vindication. ⁴⁰ 

I look like a bridegroom when he wears a turban as a priest would;

I look like a bride when she puts on her jewelry. ⁴¹ 

Yesaya 62:1-2

The Lord Takes Delight in Zion

62:1 “For the sake of Zion I will not be silent;

for the sake of Jerusalem ⁴²  I will not be quiet,

until her vindication shines brightly ⁴³ 

and her deliverance burns like a torch.”

62:2 Nations will see your vindication,

and all kings your splendor.

You will be called by a new name

that the Lord himself will give you. ⁴⁴ 

[1:26]  ¹ tn Heb “I will restore your judges as in the beginning; and your counselors as in the beginning.” In this context, where social injustice and legal corruption are denounced (see v. 23), the “judges” are probably government officials responsible for making legal decisions, while the “advisers” are probably officials who helped the king establish policies. Both offices are also mentioned in 3:2.

[10:22]  ² tn Heb “are like.”

[10:22]  ³ sn The twofold appearance of the statement “a remnant will come back” (שְׁאָר יָשׁוּב, she’ar yashuv) in vv. 21-22 echoes and probably plays off the name of Isaiah’s son Shear-jashub (see 7:3). In its original context the name was meant to encourage Ahaz (see the note at 7:3), but here it has taken on new dimensions. In light of Ahaz’s failure and the judgment it brings down on the land, the name Shear-jashub now foreshadows the destiny of the nation. According to vv. 21-22, there is good news and bad news. The good news is that a remnant of God’s people will return; the bad news is that only a remnant will be preserved and come back. Like the name Immanuel, this name foreshadows both judgment (see the notes at 7:25 and 8:8) and ultimate restoration (see the note at 8:10).

[10:22]  ⁴ tn Or “predetermined”; cf. ASV, NASB “is determined”; TEV “is in store.”

[10:22]  ⁵ tn צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah) often means “righteousness,” but here it refers to God’s just judgment.

[10:22]  ⁶ tn Or “is about to overflow.”

[24:16]  ⁷ sn The identity of the subject is unclear. Apparently in vv. 15-16a an unidentified group responds to the praise they hear in the west by exhorting others to participate.

[24:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “Beauty belongs to the just one.” These words may summarize the main theme of the songs mentioned in the preceding line.

[24:16]  ⁹ sn The prophet seems to contradict what he hears the group saying. Their words are premature because more destruction is coming.

[24:16]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and [with] deception deceivers deceive.”

[24:16]  tn Verse 16b is a classic example of Hebrew wordplay. In the first line (“I’m wasting away…”) four consecutive words end with hireq yod ( ִי); in the second line all forms are derived from the root בָּגַד (bagad). The repetition of sound draws attention to the prophet’s lament.

[26:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “with my soul I.” This is a figure for the speaker himself (“I”).

[26:9]  ¹² tn Or “long for, desire.” The speaker acknowledges that he is eager to see God come in judgment (see vv. 8, 9b).

[26:9]  ¹³ tn The translation understands צֶדֶק (tsedeq) in the sense of “justice,” but it is possible that it carries the nuance “righteousness,” in which case one might translate, “those who live in the world learn to live in a righteous manner” (cf. NCV).

[42:6]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “call you in righteousness.” The pronoun “you” is masculine singular, referring to the servant. See the note at 41:2.

[42:6]  ¹⁵ tn The translation assumes the verb is derived from the root נָצַר (natsar, “protect”). Some prefer to derive it from the root יָצַר (yatsar, “form”).

[42:6]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “a covenant of people.” A person cannot literally be a covenant; בְּרִית (bÿrit) is probably metonymic here, indicating a covenant mediator. The precise identity of עָם (’am, “people”) is uncertain. In v. 5 עָם refers to mankind, and the following reference to “nations” also favors this. But in 49:8, where the phrase בְּרִית עָם occurs again, Israel seems to be in view.

[42:6]  ¹⁷ sn Light here symbolizes deliverance from bondage and oppression; note the parallelism in 49:6b and in 51:4-6.

[42:6]  ¹⁸ tn Or “the Gentiles” (so KJV, ASV, NIV); the same Hebrew word can be translated “nations” or “Gentiles” depending on the context.

[51:1]  ¹⁹ tn Or “righteousness” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NAB “justice”; NLT “hope for deliverance.”

[51:1]  ²⁰ tn Heb “the excavation of the hole.”

[51:1]  ²¹ sn The “rock” and “quarry” refer here to Abraham and Sarah, the progenitors of the nation.

[51:7]  ²² tn Heb “people (who have) my law in their heart.”

[53:11]  ²³ tn Heb “he will be satisfied by his knowledge,” i.e., “when he knows.” The preposition is understood as temporal and the suffix as a subjective genitive. Some take בְּדַעְתּוֹ (bÿda’to, “by his knowledge”) with what follows and translate “by knowledge of him,” understanding the preposition as instrumental and the suffix as objective.

[53:11]  ²⁴ sn The song ends as it began (cf. 52:13-15), with the Lord announcing the servant’s vindication and exaltation.

[53:11]  ²⁵ tn Heb “he will acquit, a righteous one, my servant, many.” צַדִּיק (tsadiq) may refer to the servant, but more likely it is dittographic (note the preceding verb יַצְדִּיק, yatsdiq). The precise meaning of the verb (the Hiphil of צָדַק, tsadaq) is debated. Elsewhere the Hiphil is used at least six times in the sense of “make righteous” in a legal sense, i.e., “pronounce innocent, acquit” (see Exod 23:7; Deut 25:1; 1 Kgs 8:32 = 2 Chr 6:23; Prov 17:15; Isa 5:23). It can also mean “render justice” (as a royal function, see 2 Sam 15:4; Ps 82:3), “concede” (Job 27:5), “vindicate” (Isa 50:8), and “lead to righteousness” (by teaching and example, Dan 12:3). The preceding context and the next line suggest a legal sense here. Because of his willingness to carry the people’s sins, the servant is able to “acquit” them.

[53:11]  sn Some (e.g., H. M. Orlinsky, “The So-called ‘Suffering Servant’ in Isaiah 53,22,” VTSup 14 [1967]: 3-133) object to this legal interpretation of the language, arguing that it would be unjust for the righteous to suffer for the wicked and for the wicked to be declared innocent. However, such a surprising development is consistent with the ironic nature of this song. It does seem unfair for the innocent to die for the guilty. But what is God to do when all have sinned and wandered off like stray sheep (cf. v. 6)? Covenant law demands punishment, but punishment in this case would mean annihilation of what God has created. God’s justice, as demanded by the law, must be satisfied. To satisfy his justice, he does something seemingly unjust. He punishes his sinless servant, the only one who has not strayed off! In the progress of biblical revelation, we discover that the sinless servant is really God in the flesh, who offers himself because he is committed to the world he has created. If his justice can only be satisfied if he himself endures the punishment, then so be it. What appears to be an act of injustice is really love satisfying the demands of justice!

[53:11]  ²⁶ tn The circumstantial clause (note the vav [ו] + object + subject + verb pattern) is understood as causal here. The prefixed verb form is either a preterite or an imperfect used in a customary manner.

[54:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “in righteousness [or “vindication”] you will be established.” The precise meaning of צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah) here is uncertain. It could mean “righteousness, justice,” indicating that the city will be a center for justice. But the context focuses on deliverance, suggesting that the term means “deliverance, vindication” here.

[54:14]  ²⁸ tn Heb “Be far from oppression!” The imperative is used here in a rhetorical manner to express certainty and assurance. See GKC 324 §110.c.

[54:14]  ²⁹ tn Heb “from terror.” The rhetorical command, “be far” is understood by ellipsis here. Note the preceding context.

[54:14]  ³⁰ tn Heb “it,” i.e., the “terror” just mentioned.

[60:17]  ³¹ tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the preceding lines).

[60:17]  ³² 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]  ³³ tn Or “peace” (KJV and many other English versions).

[60:17]  ³⁴ 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.

[60:21]  ³⁵ tn Or “righteous” (NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “just.”

[60:21]  ³⁶ tn Heb “a shoot of his planting, the work of my hands, to reveal splendor.”

[61:10]  ³⁷ sn The speaker in vv. 10-11 is not identified, but it is likely that the personified nation (or perhaps Zion) responds here to the Lord’s promise of restoration.

[61:10]  ³⁸ tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.

[61:10]  ³⁹ tn Heb “my being is happy in my God”; NAB “in my God is the joy of my soul.”

[61:10]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “robe of vindication”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV “robe of righteousness.”

[61:10]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “like a bridegroom [who] acts like a priest [by wearing] a turban, and like a bride [who] wears her jewelry.” The words “I look” are supplied for stylistic reasons and clarification.

[62:1]  ⁴² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[62:1]  ⁴³ tn Heb “goes forth like brightness.”

[62:2]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “which the mouth of the Lord will designate.”