Yesaya 17:13

17:13 Though these people make an uproar as loud as the roaring of powerful waves, ¹ 

when he shouts at ²  them, they will flee to a distant land,

driven before the wind like dead weeds on the hills,

or like dead thistles ³  before a strong gale.

Yesaya 57:13

57:13 When you cry out for help, let your idols ⁴  help you!

The wind blows them all away, ⁵ 

a breeze carries them away. ⁶ 

But the one who looks to me for help ⁷  will inherit the land

and will have access to ⁸  my holy mountain.”

[17:13]  ¹ tn Heb “the peoples are in an uproar like the uproar of mighty waters.”

[17:13]  ² tn Or “rebukes.” The verb and related noun are used in theophanies of God’s battle cry which terrifies his enemies. See, for example, Pss 18:15; 76:7; 106:9; Isa 50:2; Nah 1:4, and A. Caquot, TDOT 3:49-53.

[17:13]  ³ tn Or perhaps “tumbleweed” (NAB, NIV, CEV); KJV “like a rolling thing.”

[57:13]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew text has קִבּוּצַיִךְ (qibbutsayikh, “your gatherings”), an otherwise unattested noun from the verbal root קָבַץ (qavats, “gather”). Perhaps this alludes to their religious assemblies and by metonymy to their rituals. Since idolatry is a prominent theme in the context, some understand this as a reference to a collection of idols. The second half of the verse also favors this view.

[57:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “all of them a wind lifts up.”

[57:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “a breath takes [them] away.”

[57:13]  ⁷ tn Or “seeks refuge in me.” “Seeking refuge” is a metonymy for “being loyal to.”

[57:13]  ⁸ tn Heb “possess, own.” The point seems to be that he will have free access to God’s presence, as if God’s temple mount were his personal possession.