Yesaya 1:8

1:8 Daughter Zion ¹  is left isolated,

like a hut in a vineyard,

or a shelter in a cucumber field;

she is a besieged city. ² 

Yesaya 8:10

8:10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted!

Issue your orders, but they will not be executed! ³ 

For God is with us! ⁴ 

Yesaya 8:22

8:22 When one looks out over the land, he sees ⁵  distress and darkness, gloom ⁶  and anxiety, darkness and people forced from the land. ⁷ 

Yesaya 14:4

14:4 you will taunt the king of Babylon with these words: ⁸ 

“Look how the oppressor has met his end!

Hostility ⁹  has ceased!

Yesaya 14:17

14:17 Is this the one who made the world like a desert,

who ruined its ¹⁰  cities,

and refused to free his prisoners so they could return home?”’ ¹¹ 

Yesaya 15:6

15:6 For the waters of Nimrim are gone; ¹² 

the grass is dried up,

the vegetation has disappeared,

and there are no plants.

Yesaya 17:2

17:2 The cities of Aroer are abandoned. ¹³ 

They will be used for herds,

which will lie down there in peace. ¹⁴ 

Yesaya 19:15

19:15 Egypt will not be able to do a thing,

head or tail, shoots and stalk. ¹⁵ 

Yesaya 24:11

24:11 They howl in the streets because of what happened to the wine; ¹⁶ 

all joy turns to sorrow; ¹⁷ 

celebrations disappear from the earth. ¹⁸ 

Yesaya 28:11

28:11 For with mocking lips and a foreign tongue

he will speak to these people. ¹⁹ 

Yesaya 29:17

Changes are Coming

29:17 In just a very short time ²⁰ 

Lebanon will turn into an orchard,

and the orchard will be considered a forest. ²¹ 

Yesaya 30:7

30:7 Egypt is totally incapable of helping. ²² 

For this reason I call her

‘Proud one ²³  who is silenced.’” ²⁴ 

Yesaya 30:9

30:9 For these are rebellious people –

they are lying children,

children unwilling to obey the Lord’s law. ²⁵ 

Yesaya 33:11

33:11 You conceive straw, ²⁶ 

you give birth to chaff;

your breath is a fire that destroys you. ²⁷ 

Yesaya 33:24

33:24 No resident of Zion ²⁸  will say, “I am ill”;

the people who live there will have their sin forgiven.

Yesaya 34:3

34:3 Their slain will be left unburied, ²⁹ 

their corpses will stink; ³⁰ 

the hills will soak up their blood. ³¹ 

Yesaya 34:12

34:12 Her nobles will have nothing left to call a kingdom

and all her officials will disappear. ³² 

Yesaya 38:11

38:11 “I thought,

‘I will no longer see the Lord ³³  in the land of the living,

I will no longer look on humankind with the inhabitants of the world. ³⁴ 

Yesaya 40:27

40:27 Why do you say, Jacob,

Why do you say, Israel,

“The Lord is not aware of what is happening to me, ³⁵ 

My God is not concerned with my vindication”? ³⁶ 

Yesaya 45:5

45:5 I am the Lord, I have no peer, ³⁷ 

there is no God but me.

I arm you for battle, ³⁸  even though you do not recognize ³⁹  me.

Yesaya 45:22

45:22 Turn to me so you can be delivered, ⁴⁰ 

all you who live in the earth’s remote regions!

For I am God, and I have no peer.

Yesaya 46:2

46:2 Together they bend low and kneel down;

they are unable to rescue the images; ⁴¹ 

they themselves ⁴²  head off into captivity. ⁴³ 

Yesaya 47:5

47:5 “Sit silently! Go to a hiding place, ⁴⁴ 

O daughter of the Babylonians!

Indeed, ⁴⁵  you will no longer be called ‘Queen of kingdoms.’

Yesaya 48:7

48:7 Now they come into being, ⁴⁶  not in the past;

before today you did not hear about them,

so you could not say,

‘Yes, ⁴⁷  I know about them.’

Yesaya 48:19

48:19 Your descendants would have been as numerous as sand, ⁴⁸ 

and your children ⁴⁹  like its granules.

Their name would not have been cut off

and eliminated from my presence. ⁵⁰ 

Yesaya 57:20

57:20 But the wicked are like a surging sea

that is unable to be quiet;

its waves toss up mud and sand.

Yesaya 62:7

62:7 Don’t allow him to rest until he reestablishes Jerusalem, ⁵¹ 

until he makes Jerusalem the pride ⁵²  of the earth.

[1:8]  ¹ tn Heb “daughter of Zion” (so KJV, NASB, NIV). The genitive is appositional, identifying precisely which daughter is in view. By picturing Zion as a daughter, the prophet emphasizes her helplessness and vulnerability before the enemy.

[1:8]  ² tn Heb “like a city besieged.” Unlike the preceding two comparisons, which are purely metaphorical, this third one identifies the reality of Israel’s condition. In this case the comparative preposition, as in v. 7b, has the force, “in every way like,” indicating that all the earmarks of a siege are visible because that is indeed what is taking place. The verb form in MT is Qal passive participle of נָצַר (natsar, “guard”), but since this verb is not often used of a siege (see BDB 666 s.v. I נָצַר), some prefer to repoint the form as a Niphal participle from II צוּר (tsur, “besiege”). However, the latter is not attested elsewhere in the Niphal (see BDB 848 s.v. II צוּר).

[8:10]  ³ tn Heb “speak a word, but it will not stand.”

[8:10]  ⁴ sn In these vv. 9-10 the tone shifts abruptly from judgment to hope. Hostile nations like Assyria may attack God’s people, but eventually they will be destroyed, for God is with his people, sometimes to punish, but ultimately to vindicate. In addition to being a reminder of God’s presence in the immediate crisis faced by Ahaz and Judah, Immanuel (whose name is echoed in this concluding statement) was a guarantee of the nation’s future greatness in fulfillment of God’s covenantal promises. Eventually God would deliver his people from the hostile nations (vv. 9-10) through another child, an ideal Davidic ruler who would embody God’s presence in a special way (see 9:6-7). Jesus the Messiah is the fulfillment of the Davidic ideal prophesied by Isaiah, the one whom Immanuel foreshadowed. Through the miracle of the incarnation he is literally “God with us.” Matthew realized this and applied Isaiah’s ancient prophecy of Immanuel’s birth to Jesus (Matt 1:22-23). The first Immanuel was a reminder to the people of God’s presence and a guarantee of a greater child to come who would manifest God’s presence in an even greater way. The second Immanuel is “God with us” in a heightened and infinitely superior sense. He “fulfills” Isaiah’s Immanuel prophecy by bringing the typology intended by God to realization and by filling out or completing the pattern designed by God. Of course, in the ultimate fulfillment of the type, the incarnate Immanuel’s mother must be a virgin, so Matthew uses a Greek term (παρθένος, parqenos), which carries that technical meaning (in contrast to the Hebrew word עַלְמָה [’almah], which has the more general meaning “young woman”). Matthew draws similar analogies between NT and OT events in 2:15, 18. The linking of these passages by analogy is termed “fulfillment.” In 2:15 God calls Jesus, his perfect Son, out of Egypt, just as he did his son Israel in the days of Moses, an historical event referred to in Hos 11:1. In so doing he makes it clear that Jesus is the ideal Israel prophesied by Isaiah (see Isa 49:3), sent to restore wayward Israel (see Isa 49:5, cf. Matt 1:21). In 2:18 Herod’s slaughter of the infants is another illustration of the oppressive treatment of God’s people by foreign tyrants. Herod’s actions are analogous to those of the Assyrians, who deported the Israelites, causing the personified land to lament as inconsolably as a mother robbed of her little ones (Jer 31:15).

[8:22]  ⁵ tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV, NASB).

[8:22]  ⁶ tn The precise meaning of מְעוּף (mÿ’uf) is uncertain; the word occurs only here. See BDB 734 s.v. מָעוּף.

[8:22]  ⁷ tn Heb “ and darkness, pushed.” The word מְנֻדָּח (mÿnudakh) appears to be a Pual participle from נדח (“push”), but the Piel is unattested for this verb and the Pual occurs only here.

[14:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “you will lift up this taunt over the king of Babylon, saying.”

[14:4]  ⁹ tc The word in the Hebrew text (מַדְהֵבָה, madhevah) is unattested elsewhere and of uncertain meaning. Many (following the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a) assume a dalet-resh (ד-ר) confusion and emend the form to מַרְהֵבָה (marhevah, “onslaught”). See HALOT 548 s.v. II *מִדָּה and HALOT 633 s.v. *מַרְהֵבָה.

[14:17]  ¹⁰ tc The pronominal suffix is masculine, even though its antecedent appears to be the grammatically feminine noun “world.” Some have suggested that the form עָרָיו (’arayv, plural noun with third masculine singular suffix) should be emended to עָרֶיהָ (’areha, plural noun with third feminine singular suffix). This emendation may be unnecessary in light of other examples of lack of agreement a suffix and its antecedent noun.

[14:17]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and his prisoners did not let loose to [their] homes.” This really means, “he did not let loose his prisoners and send them back to their homes.’ On the elliptical style, see GKC 366 §117.o.

[15:6]  ¹² tn Heb “are waste places”; cf. NRSV “are a desolation.”

[17:2]  ¹³ tn Three cities are known by this name in the OT: (1) an Aroer located near the Arnon, (2) an Aroer in Ammon, and (3) an Aroer of Judah. (See BDB 792-93 s.v. עֲרֹעֵר, and HALOT 883 s.v. II עֲרוֹעֵר.) There is no mention of an Aroer in Syrian territory. For this reason some want to emend the text here to עֲזֻבוֹת עָרַיהָ עֲדֵי עַד (’azuvot ’arayha ’adey ’ad, “her cities are permanently abandoned”). However, Aroer near the Arnon was taken by Israel and later conquered by the Syrians. (See Josh 12:2; 13:9, 16; Judg 11:26; 2 Kgs 10:33). This oracle pertains to Israel as well as Syria (note v. 3), so it is possible that this is a reference to Israelite and/or Syrian losses in Transjordan.

[17:2]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and they lie down and there is no one scaring [them].”

[19:15]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “And there will not be for Egypt a deed, which head and tail, shoot and stalk can do.” In 9:14-15 the phrase “head or tail” refers to leaders and prophets, respectively. This interpretation makes good sense in this context, where both leaders and advisers (probably including prophets and diviners) are mentioned (vv. 11-14). Here, as in 9:14, “shoots and stalk” picture a reed, which symbolizes the leadership of the nation in its entirety.

[24:11]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “[there is] an outcry over the wine in the streets.”

[24:11]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “all joy turns to evening,” the darkness of evening symbolizing distress and sorrow.

[24:11]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the joy of the earth disappears.”

[28:11]  ¹⁹ sn This verse alludes to the coming Assyrian invasion, when the people will hear a foreign language that sounds like gibberish to them. The Lord is the subject of the verb “will speak,” as v. 12 makes clear. He once spoke in meaningful terms, but in the coming judgment he will speak to them, as it were, through the mouth of foreign oppressors. The apparent gibberish they hear will be an outward reminder that God has decreed their defeat.

[29:17]  ²⁰ tn The Hebrew text phrases this as a rhetorical question, “Is it not yet a little, a short [time]?”

[29:17]  ²¹ sn The meaning of this verse is debated, but it seems to depict a reversal in fortunes. The mighty forest of Lebanon (symbolic of the proud and powerful, see 2:13; 10:34) will be changed into a common orchard, while the common orchard (symbolic of the oppressed and lowly) will grow into a great forest. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:538.

[30:7]  ²² tn Heb “As for Egypt, with vanity and emptiness they help.”

[30:7]  ²³ tn Heb “Rahab” (רַהַב, rahav), which also appears as a name for Egypt in Ps 87:4. The epithet is also used in the OT for a mythical sea monster symbolic of chaos. See the note at 51:9. A number of English versions use the name “Rahab” (e.g., ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV) while others attempt some sort of translation (cf. CEV “a helpless monster”; TEV, NLT “the Harmless Dragon”).

[30:7]  ²⁴ tn The MT reads “Rahab, they, sitting.” The translation above assumes an emendation of הֵם שָׁבֶת (hem shavet) to הַמָּשְׁבָּת (hammashbat), a Hophal participle with prefixed definite article, meaning “the one who is made to cease,” i.e., “destroyed,” or “silenced.” See HALOT 444-45 s.v. ישׁב.

[30:9]  ²⁵ tn Or perhaps, “instruction” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); NCV, TEV “teachings.”

[33:11]  ²⁶ tn The second person verb and pronominal forms in this verse are plural. The hostile nations are the addressed, as the next verse makes clear.

[33:11]  ²⁷ sn The hostile nations’ plans to destroy God’s people will come to nothing; their hostility will end up being self-destructive.

[33:24]  ²⁸ tn The words “of Zion” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[34:3]  ²⁹ tn Heb “will be cast aside”; NASB, NIV “thrown out.”

[34:3]  ³⁰ tn Heb “[as for] their corpses, their stench will arise.”

[34:3]  ³¹ tn Heb “hills will dissolve from their blood.”

[34:12]  ³² tn Heb “will be nothing”; NCV, TEV, NLT “will all be gone.”

[38:11]  ³³ tn The Hebrew text has יָהּ יָהּ (yah yah, the abbreviated form of יְהוָה [yÿhvah] repeated), but this is probably a corruption of יְהוָה.

[38:11]  ³⁴ tc The Hebrew text has חָדֶל (khadel), which appears to be derived from a verbal root meaning “to cease, refrain.” But the form has probably suffered an error of transmission; the original form (attested in a few medieval Hebrew mss) was likely חֶלֶד (kheled, “world”).

[40:27]  ³⁵ tn Heb “my way is hidden from the Lord” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[40:27]  ³⁶ tn Heb “and from my God my justice passes away”; NRSV “my right is disregarded by my God.”

[45:5]  ³⁷ tn Heb “and there is none besides.” On the use of עוֹד (’od) here, see BDB 729 s.v. 1.c.

[45:5]  ³⁸ tn Heb “gird you” (so NASB) or “strengthen you” (so NIV).

[45:5]  ³⁹ tn Or “know” (NAB, NCV, NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT); NIV “have not acknowledged.”

[45:22]  ⁴⁰ tn The Niphal imperative with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose after the preceding imperative. The Niphal probably has a tolerative sense, “allow yourselves to be delivered, accept help.”

[46:2]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “[the] burden,” i.e., their images, the heavy burden carried by the animals.

[46:2]  ⁴² tn נַפְשָׁם (nafsham, “their souls/lives”) is equivalent here to a third masculine plural suffix, but the third feminine singular verb הָלָכָה (halakhah, “they go”) agrees with the feminine noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul, life”).

[46:2]  ⁴³ sn The downfall of Babylon is depicted here. The idols are carried off by the victorious enemy; the gods are likened to defeated captives who cower before the enemy and are taken into exile.

[47:5]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “darkness,” which may indicate a place of hiding where a fugitive would seek shelter and protection.

[47:5]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “For” (NASB, NRSV).

[48:7]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “are created” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “They are brand new.”

[48:7]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “look”; KJV, NASB “Behold.”

[48:19]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “like sand”; NCV “as many as the grains of sand.”

[48:19]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “and the issue from your inner parts.”

[48:19]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “and his name would not be cut off and would not be destroyed from before me.”

[62:7]  ⁵¹ tn “Jerusalem” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons; note the following line.

[62:7]  ⁵² tn Heb “[the object of] praise.”