Yesaya 39:2

39:2 Hezekiah welcomed ¹  them and showed them his storehouse with its silver, gold, spices, and high-quality olive oil, as well as his whole armory and everything in his treasuries. Hezekiah showed them everything in his palace and in his whole kingdom. ² 

Yesaya 22:10

22:10 You counted the houses in Jerusalem, ³ 

and demolished houses so you could have material to reinforce the wall. ⁴ 

Yesaya 37:28

37:28 I know where you live

and everything you do

and how you rage against me. ⁵ 

Yesaya 57:12

57:12 I will denounce your so-called righteousness and your deeds, ⁶ 

but they will not help you.

Yesaya 8:2

8:2 Then I will summon ⁷  as my reliable witnesses Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah.”

Yesaya 9:11

9:11 Then the Lord provoked ⁸  their adversaries to attack them, ⁹ 

he stirred up ¹⁰  their enemies –

Yesaya 9:13

9:13 The people did not return to the one who struck them,

they did not seek reconciliation ¹¹  with the Lord who commands armies.

Yesaya 22:9

22:9 You saw the many breaks

in the walls of the city of David; ¹² 

you stored up water in the lower pool.

Yesaya 28:9

28:9 Who is the Lord ¹³  trying to teach?

To whom is he explaining a message? ¹⁴ 

Those just weaned from milk!

Those just taken from their mother’s breast! ¹⁵ 

Yesaya 37:18

37:18 It is true, Lord, that the kings of Assyria have destroyed all the nations ¹⁶  and their lands.

Yesaya 38:6

38:6 and rescue you and this city from the king of Assyria. I will shield this city.”’”

Yesaya 9:17

9:17 So the sovereign master was not pleased ¹⁷  with their young men,

he took no pity ¹⁸  on their orphans and widows;

for the whole nation was godless ¹⁹  and did wicked things, ²⁰ 

every mouth was speaking disgraceful words. ²¹ 

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ²² 

Yesaya 37:2

37:2 Eliakim the palace supervisor, Shebna the scribe, and the leading priests, ²³  clothed in sackcloth, sent this message to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz:

Yesaya 49:25

49:25 Indeed,” says the Lord,

“captives will be taken from a warrior;

spoils will be rescued from a conqueror.

I will oppose your adversary

and I will rescue your children.

Yesaya 53:12

53:12 So I will assign him a portion with the multitudes, ²⁴ 

he will divide the spoils of victory with the powerful, ²⁵ 

because he willingly submitted ²⁶  to death

and was numbered with the rebels,

when he lifted up the sin of many

and intervened ²⁷  on behalf of the rebels.”

Yesaya 2:20

2:20 At that time ²⁸  men will throw

their silver and gold idols,

which they made for themselves to worship, ²⁹ 

into the caves where rodents and bats live, ³⁰ 

Yesaya 4:4

4:4 At that time ³¹  the sovereign master ³²  will wash the excrement ³³  from Zion’s women,

he will rinse the bloodstains from Jerusalem’s midst, ³⁴ 

as he comes to judge

and to bring devastation. ³⁵ 

Yesaya 5:12

5:12 They have stringed instruments, ³⁶  tambourines, flutes,

and wine at their parties.

So they do not recognize what the Lord is doing,

they do not perceive what he is bringing about. ³⁷ 

Yesaya 8:4

8:4 for before the child knows how to cry out, ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria ³⁸  will be carried off by the king of Assyria.” ³⁹ 

Yesaya 8:12

8:12 “Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ every time these people say the word. ⁴⁰ 

Don’t be afraid of what scares them; don’t be terrified.

Yesaya 9:4

9:4 For their oppressive yoke

and the club that strikes their shoulders,

the cudgel the oppressor uses on them, ⁴¹ 

you have shattered, as in the day of Midian’s defeat. ⁴² 

Yesaya 10:2

10:2 to keep the poor from getting fair treatment,

and to deprive ⁴³  the oppressed among my people of justice,

so they can steal what widows own,

and loot what belongs to orphans. ⁴⁴ 

Yesaya 10:15

10:15 Does an ax exalt itself over the one who wields it,

or a saw magnify itself over the one who cuts with it? ⁴⁵ 

As if a scepter should brandish the one who raises it,

or a staff should lift up what is not made of wood!

Yesaya 13:19

13:19 Babylon, the most admired ⁴⁶  of kingdoms,

the Chaldeans’ source of honor and pride, ⁴⁷ 

will be destroyed by God

just as Sodom and Gomorrah were. ⁴⁸ 

Yesaya 18:5

18:5 For before the harvest, when the bud has sprouted,

and the ripening fruit appears, ⁴⁹ 

he will cut off the unproductive shoots ⁵⁰  with pruning knives;

he will prune the tendrils. ⁵¹ 

Yesaya 20:4

20:4 so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, both young and old. They will be in undergarments and barefoot, with the buttocks exposed; the Egyptians will be publicly humiliated. ⁵² 

Yesaya 29:10

29:10 For the Lord has poured out on you

a strong urge to sleep deeply. ⁵³ 

He has shut your eyes (the prophets),

and covered your heads (the seers).

Yesaya 29:23

29:23 For when they see their children,

whom I will produce among them, ⁵⁴ 

they will honor ⁵⁵  my name.

They will honor the Holy One of Jacob; ⁵⁶ 

they will respect ⁵⁷  the God of Israel.

Yesaya 30:22

30:22 You will desecrate your silver-plated idols ⁵⁸ 

and your gold-plated images. ⁵⁹ 

You will throw them away as if they were a menstrual rag,

saying to them, “Get out!”

Yesaya 31:2

31:2 Yet he too is wise ⁶⁰  and he will bring disaster;

he does not retract his decree. ⁶¹ 

He will attack the wicked nation, ⁶² 

and the nation that helps ⁶³  those who commit sin. ⁶⁴ 

Yesaya 37:12

37:12 Were the nations whom my predecessors ⁶⁵  destroyed – the nations of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph, and the people of Eden in Telassar – rescued by their gods? ⁶⁶ 

Yesaya 41:4

41:4 Who acts and carries out decrees? ⁶⁷ 

Who ⁶⁸  summons the successive generations from the beginning?

I, the Lord, am present at the very beginning,

and at the very end – I am the one. ⁶⁹ 

Yesaya 53:8-9

53:8 He was led away after an unjust trial ⁷⁰  –

but who even cared? ⁷¹ 

Indeed, he was cut off from the land of the living; ⁷² 

because of the rebellion of his own ⁷³  people he was wounded.

53:9 They intended to bury him with criminals, ⁷⁴ 

but he ended up in a rich man’s tomb, ⁷⁵ 

because ⁷⁶  he had committed no violent deeds,

nor had he spoken deceitfully.

Yesaya 57:13

57:13 When you cry out for help, let your idols ⁷⁷  help you!

The wind blows them all away, ⁷⁸ 

a breeze carries them away. ⁷⁹ 

But the one who looks to me for help ⁸⁰  will inherit the land

and will have access to ⁸¹  my holy mountain.”

Yesaya 5:24

5:24 Therefore, as flaming fire ⁸²  devours straw,

and dry grass disintegrates in the flames,

so their root will rot,

and their flower will blow away like dust. ⁸³ 

For they have rejected the law of the Lord who commands armies,

they have spurned the commands ⁸⁴  of the Holy One of Israel. ⁸⁵ 

Yesaya 8:7

8:7 So look, the sovereign master ⁸⁶  is bringing up against them the turbulent and mighty waters of the Euphrates River ⁸⁷  – the king of Assyria and all his majestic power. It will reach flood stage and overflow its banks. ⁸⁸ 

Yesaya 31:1

Egypt Will Disappoint

31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, ⁸⁹ 

those who rely on war horses,

and trust in Egypt’s many chariots ⁹⁰ 

and in their many, many horsemen. ⁹¹ 

But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel ⁹² 

and do not seek help from the Lord.

Yesaya 36:7

36:7 Perhaps you will tell me, ‘We are trusting in the Lord our God.’ But Hezekiah is the one who eliminated his high places and altars and then told the people of Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You must worship at this altar.’

Yesaya 37:16

37:16 “O Lord who commands armies, O God of Israel, who is enthroned on the cherubim! ⁹³  You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the sky ⁹⁴  and the earth.

Yesaya 57:11

57:11 Whom are you worried about?

Whom do you fear, that you would act so deceitfully

and not remember me

or think about me? ⁹⁵ 

Because I have been silent for so long, ⁹⁶ 

you are not afraid of me. ⁹⁷ 

Yesaya 57:15

57:15 For this is what the high and exalted one says,

the one who rules ⁹⁸  forever, whose name is holy:

“I dwell in an exalted and holy place,

but also with the discouraged and humiliated, ⁹⁹ 

in order to cheer up the humiliated

and to encourage the discouraged. ¹⁰⁰ 

Yesaya 66:2

66:2 My hand made them; ¹⁰¹ 

that is how they came to be,” ¹⁰²  says the Lord.

I show special favor ¹⁰³  to the humble and contrite,

who respect what I have to say. ¹⁰⁴ 

[39:2]  ¹ tn Heb “was happy with”; NAB, NASB “was pleased”; NIV “received the envoys gladly.”

[39:2]  ² tn Heb “there was nothing which Hezekiah did not show them in his house and in all his kingdom.”

[22:10]  ³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[22:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “you demolished the houses to fortify the wall.”

[37:28]  ⁵ tc Heb “your going out and your coming in and how you have raged against me.” Several scholars have suggested that this line is probably dittographic (note the beginning of the next line). However, most English translations include the statement in question at the end of v. 28 and the beginning of v. 29. Interestingly, the LXX does not have this clause at the end of v. 28 and the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a does not have it at the beginning of v. 29. In light of this ambiguous manuscript evidence, it appears best to retain the clause in both verses.

[57:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “I, I will declare your righteousness and your deeds.”

[8:2]  ⁷ tn The form in the text is a cohortative with prefixed vav (ו), suggesting that the Lord is announcing what he will do. Some prefer to change the verb to an imperative, “and summon as witnesses,” a reading that finds support from the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a. Another option is to point the prefixed conjunction as a vav consecutive and translate, “So I summoned as witnesses.” In this case Isaiah is recalling his response to the Lord’s commission. In any case, the reference to witnesses suggests that the name and the child who bears it will function as signs.

[9:11]  ⁸ tn The translation assumes that the prefixed verb with vav (ו) consecutive continues the narrative of past judgment.

[9:11]  ⁹ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “adversaries of Rezin against him [i.e., them].” The next verse describes how the Syrians (over whom Rezin ruled, see 7:1, 8) and the Philistines encroached on Israel’s territory. Since the Syrians and Israelites were allies by 735 b.c. (see 7:1), the hostilities described probably occurred earlier, while Israel was still pro-Assyrian. In this case one might understand the phrase צָרֵי רְצִין (tsare rÿtsin, “adversaries of Rezin”) as meaning “adversaries sent from Rezin.” However, another option, the one chosen in the translation above, is to emend the phrase to צָרָיו (tsarayv, “his [i.e., their] adversaries”). This creates tighter parallelism with the next line (note “his [i.e., their] enemies”). The phrase in the Hebrew text may be explained as virtually dittographic.

[9:11]  ¹⁰ tn The prefixed verbal form is understood as a preterite, used, as is often the case in poetry, without vav consecutive. Note that prefixed forms with vav consecutive both precede (וַיְשַׂגֵּב, vaysaggev, “and he provoked”) and follow in v. 12 (וַיֹּאכְלוּ, vayyo’khÿlu, “and they devoured”) this verb.

[9:13]  ¹¹ tn This verse describes the people’s response to the judgment described in vv. 11-12. The perfects are understood as indicating simple past.

[22:9]  ¹² tn Heb “the breaks of the city of David, you saw that they were many.”

[28:9]  ¹³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[28:9]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Who is he teaching knowledge? For whom is he explaining a message?” The translation assumes that the Lord is the subject of the verbs “teaching” and “explaining,” and that the prophet is asking the questions. See v. 12. According to some vv. 9-10 record the people’s sarcastic response to the Lord’s message through Isaiah.

[28:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “from the breasts.” The words “their mother’s” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The translation assumes that this is the prophet’s answer to the questions asked in the first half of the verse. The Lord is trying to instruct people who are “infants” morally and ethically.

[37:18]  ¹⁶ tn The Hebrew text here has “all the lands,” but the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:17 has “the nations.”

[9:17]  ¹⁷ tn The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has לא יחמול (“he did not spare”) which is an obvious attempt to tighten the parallelism (note “he took no pity” in the next line). Instead of taking שָׂמַח (samakh) in one of its well attested senses (“rejoice over, be pleased with”), some propose, with support from Arabic, a rare homonymic root meaning “be merciful.”

[9:17]  ¹⁸ tn The translation understands the prefixed verbs יִשְׂמַח (yismakh) and יְרַחֵם (yÿrakhem) as preterites without vav (ו) consecutive. (See v. 11 and the note on “he stirred up.”)

[9:17]  ¹⁹ tn Or “defiled”; cf. ASV “profane”; NAB “profaned”; NIV “ungodly.”

[9:17]  ²⁰ tn מֵרַע (mera’) is a Hiphil participle from רָעַע (ra’a’, “be evil”). The intransitive Hiphil has an exhibitive force here, indicating that they exhibited outwardly the evidence of an inward condition by committing evil deeds.

[9:17]  ²¹ tn Or “foolishness” (NASB), here in a moral-ethical sense.

[9:17]  ²² tn Heb “in all this his anger is not turned, and still his hand is outstretched.”

[9:17]  sn See the note at 9:12.

[37:2]  ²³ tn Heb “elders of the priests” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NCV “the older priests”; NRSV, TEV, CEV “the senior priests.”

[53:12]  ²⁴ tn Scholars have debated the precise meaning of the term רַבִּים (rabbim) that occurs five times in this passage (Isa 52:14, 15; 53:11, 12 [2x]). Its two broad categories of translation are “much”/“many” and “great” (HALOT 1171-72 s.v. I רַב). Unlike other Hebrew terms for might or strength, this term is linked with numbers or abundance. In all sixteen uses outside of Isaiah 52:13-53:12 (articular and plural) it signifies an inclusive meaning: “the majority” or “the multitude” (J. Jeremias, TDNT 6:536-37). This term occurs in parallelism with עֲצוּמִים (’atsumim), which normally signifies “numerous” or “large” or “powerful” (through large numbers). Like רַבִּים (rabbim), it refers to greatness in numbers (cf. Deut 4:38; 7:1; 9:1; 11:34). It emphasizes the multitudes with whom the Servant will share the spoil of his victory. As J. Olley wrote: “Yahweh has won the victory and vindicates his Servant, giving to him many subservient people, together with their spoils. These numerous peoples in turn receive blessing, sharing in the “peace” resulting from Yahweh’s victory and the Servant’s suffering” (John W. Olley, “‘The Many’: How Is Isa 53,12a to Be Understood,” Bib 68 [1987]: 330-56).

[53:12]  ²⁵ sn The servant is compared here to a warrior who will be richly rewarded for his effort and success in battle.

[53:12]  ²⁶ tn Heb “because he laid bare his life”; traditionally, ASV “because he (+ hath KJV) poured out his soul (life NIV) unto death.”

[53:12]  ²⁷ tn The Hiphil of פָּגַע (paga’) can mean “cause to attack” (v. 6), “urge, plead verbally” (Jer 15:11; 36:25), or “intervene militarily” (Isa 59:16). Perhaps the third nuance fits best here, for military imagery is employed in the first two lines of the verse.

[2:20]  ²⁸ tn Or “in that day” (KJV).

[2:20]  ²⁹ tn Or “bow down to.”

[2:20]  ³⁰ tn Heb “to the shrews and to the bats.” On the meaning of חֲפַרְפָּרָה (khafarparah, “shrew”), see HALOT 341 s.v. חֲפַרְפָּרָה. The BHS text as it stands (לַחְפֹּר פֵּרוֹת, perot lakhpor), makes no sense. Based on Theodotion’s transliteration and a similar reading in the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a, most scholars suggest that the MT mistakenly divided a noun (a hapax legomenon) that should be translated “moles,” “shrews,” or “rodents.”

[4:4]  ³¹ tn Heb “when” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); CEV “after”; NRSV “once.”

[4:4]  ³² tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonai).

[4:4]  ³³ tn The word refers elsewhere to vomit (Isa 28:8) and fecal material (Isa 36:12). Many English versions render this somewhat euphemistically as “filth” (e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV). Ironically in God’s sight the beautiful jewelry described earlier is nothing but vomit and feces, for it symbolizes the moral decay of the city’s residents (cf. NLT “moral filth”).

[4:4]  ³⁴ sn See 1:21 for a related concept.

[4:4]  ³⁵ tn Heb “by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of burning.” The precise meaning of the second half of the verse is uncertain. רוּחַ (ruakh) can be understood as “wind” in which case the passage pictures the Lord using a destructive wind as an instrument of judgment. However, this would create a mixed metaphor, for the first half of the verse uses the imagery of washing and rinsing to depict judgment. Perhaps the image would be that of a windstorm accompanied by heavy rain. רוּחַ can also mean “spirit,” in which case the verse may be referring to the Lord’s Spirit or, more likely, to a disposition that the Lord brings to the task of judgment. It is also uncertain if בָּעַר (ba’ar) here means “burning” or “sweeping away, devastating.”

[5:12]  ³⁶ tn Two types of stringed instruments are specifically mentioned in the Hebrew text, the כִּנּוֹר (kinnor, “zither”) and נֶבֶל (nevel, “harp”).

[5:12]  ³⁷ tn Heb “the work of the Lord they do not look at, and the work of his hands they do not see.” God’s “work” can sometimes be his creative deeds, but in this context it is the judgment that he is planning to bring upon his people (cf. vv. 19, 26; 10:12; 28:21).

[8:4]  ³⁸ map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.

[8:4]  ³⁹ sn The child’s name foreshadows what will happen to Judah’s enemies; when their defeat takes place, the child will be a reminder that God predicted the event and brought it to pass. As such the child will be a reminder of God’s protective presence with his people.

[8:12]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ with respect to all which these people say, ‘Conspiracy.’” The verb translated “do not say” is second masculine plural, indicating that this exhortation is directed to Isaiah and other followers of the Lord (see v. 16).

[8:12]  sn The background of this command is uncertain. Perhaps the “conspiracy” in view is the alliance between Israel and Syria. Some of the people may even have thought that individuals in Judah were plotting with Israel and Syria to overthrow the king.

[9:4]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “for the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the scepter of the oppressor against him.” The singular pronouns are collective, referring to the people. The oppressed nation is compared to an ox weighed down by a heavy yoke and an animal that is prodded and beaten.

[9:4]  ⁴² sn This alludes to Gideon’s victory over Midian (Judg 7-8), when the Lord delivered Israel from an oppressive foreign invader.

[10:2]  ⁴³ tn Or “rob” (ASV, NASB, NCV, NRSV); KJV “take away the right from the poor.”

[10:2]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “so that widows are their plunder, and they can loot orphans.”

[10:2]  sn On the socio-economic background of vv. 1-2, see the note at 1:23.

[10:15]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “the one who pushes it back and forth”; KJV “him that shaketh it”; ASV “him that wieldeth it.”

[13:19]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “most beautiful” (NCV, TEV).

[13:19]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “the beauty of the pride of the Chaldeans.”

[13:19]  sn The Chaldeans were a group of tribes who lived in southern Mesopotamia. The established the so-called neo-Babylonian empire in the late seventh century b.c. Their most famous king, Nebuchadnezzar, conquered Judah in 605 b.c. and destroyed Jerusalem in 586 b.c.

[13:19]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “and Babylon…will be like the overthrow by God of Sodom and Gomorrah.” On מַהְפֵּכַת (mahpekhat, “overthrow”) see the note on the word “destruction” in 1:7.

[18:5]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “and the unripe, ripening fruit is maturing.”

[18:5]  ⁵⁰ tn On the meaning of זַלְזַל (zalzal, “shoot [of the vine] without fruit buds”) see HALOT 272 s.v. *זַלְזַל.

[18:5]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “the tendrils he will remove, he will cut off.”

[20:4]  ⁵² tn Heb “lightly dressed and barefoot, and bare with respect to the buttocks, the nakedness of Egypt.”

[29:10]  ⁵³ tn Heb “a disposition [or “spirit”] of deep sleep.” Through this mixed metaphor (sleep is likened to a liquid which one pours and in turn symbolizes spiritual dullness) the prophet emphasizes that God himself has given the people over to their spiritual insensitivity as a form of judgment.

[29:23]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “for when he sees his children, the work of my hands in his midst.”

[29:23]  ⁵⁵ tn Or “treat as holy” (also in the following line); NASB, NRSV “will sanctify.”

[29:23]  ⁵⁶ 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]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “fear,” in the sense of “stand in awe of.”

[30:22]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “the platings of your silver idols.”

[30:22]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “the covering of your gold image.”

[31:2]  ⁶⁰ sn This statement appears to have a sarcastic tone. The royal advisers who are advocating an alliance with Egypt think they are wise, but the Lord possesses wisdom as well and will thwart their efforts.

[31:2]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “and he does not turn aside [i.e., “retract”] his words”; NIV “does not take back his words.”

[31:2]  ⁶² tn Heb “and he will arise against the house of the wicked.”

[31:2]  ⁶³ sn That is, Egypt.

[31:2]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “and against the help of the doers of sin.”

[37:12]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “forefathers”; NCV “ancestors.”

[37:12]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “Did the gods of the nations whom my fathers destroyed rescue them – Gozan and Haran, and Rezeph and the sons of Eden who are in Telassar?”

[41:4]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “Who acts and accomplishes?”; NASB “Who has performed and accomplished it.”

[41:4]  ⁶⁸ tn The interrogative particle is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[41:4]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “I, the Lord, [am with] the first, and with the last ones I [am] he.”

[53:8]  ⁷⁰ tn The precise meaning of this line is uncertain. The present translation assumes that מִן (min) here has an instrumental sense (“by, through”) and understands עֹצֶר וּמִמִּשְׁפָּט (’otser umimmishpat, “coercion and legal decision”) as a hendiadys meaning “coercive legal decision,” thus “an unjust trial.” Other interpretive options include: (1) “without [for this sense of מִן, see BDB 578 s.v. 1.b] hindrance and proper judicial process,” i.e., “unfairly and with no one to defend him,” (2) “from [in the sense of “after,” see BDB 581 s.v. 4.b] arrest and judgment.”

[53:8]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “and his generation, who considers?” (NASB similar). Some understand “his generation” as a reference to descendants. In this case the question would suggest that he will have none. However, אֶת (’et) may be taken here as specifying a new subject (see BDB 85 s.v. I אֵת 3). If “his generation” refers to the servant’s contemporary generation, one may then translate, “As for his contemporary generation, who took note?” The point would be that few were concerned about the harsh treatment he received.

[53:8]  ⁷² sn The “land of the living” is an idiom for the sphere where people live, in contrast to the underworld realm of the dead. See, for example, Ezek 32:23-27.

[53:8]  ⁷³ tn The Hebrew text reads “my people,” a reading followed by most English versions, but this is problematic in a context where the first person plural predominates, and where God does not appear to speak again until v. 11b. Therefore, it is preferable to read with the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a עמו (“his people”). In this case, the group speaking in these verses is identified as the servant’s people (compare פְּשָׁעֵנוּ [pÿsha’enu, “our rebellious deeds”] in v. 5 with פֶּשַׁע עַמִּי [pesha’ ’ammi, “the rebellion of his people”] in v. 8).

[53:9]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “one assigned his grave with criminals.” The subject of the singular is impersonal; English typically uses “they” in such constructions.

[53:9]  ⁷⁵ tn This line reads literally, “and with the rich in his death.” בְּמֹתָיו (bÿmotayv) combines a preposition, a plural form of the noun מוֹת (mot), and a third masculine singular suffix. The plural of the noun is problematic and the יו may be the result of virtual dittography. The form should probably be emended to בָּמָתוֹ (bamato, singular noun). The relationship between this line and the preceding one is uncertain. The parallelism appears to be synonymous (note “his grave” and “in his death”), but “criminals” and “the rich” hardly make a compatible pair in this context, for they would not be buried in the same kind of tomb. Some emend עָשִׁיר (’ashir, “rich”) to עָשֵׂי רָע (’ase ra’, “doers of evil”) but the absence of the ayin (ע) is not readily explained in this graphic environment. Others suggest an emendation to שְׂעִירִים (sÿ’irim, “he-goats, demons”), but the meaning in this case is not entirely transparent and the proposal assumes that the form suffered from both transposition and the inexplicable loss of a final mem. Still others relate עָשִׁיר (’ashir) to an alleged Arabic cognate meaning “mob.” See HALOT 896 s.v. עָשִׁיר. Perhaps the parallelism is antithetical, rather than synonymous. In this case, the point is made that the servant’s burial in a rich man’s tomb, in contrast to a criminal’s burial, was appropriate, for he had done nothing wrong.

[53:9]  ⁷⁶ tn If the second line is antithetical, then עַל (’al) is probably causal here, explaining why the servant was buried in a rich man’s tomb, rather than that of criminal. If the first two lines are synonymous, then עַל is probably concessive: “even though….”

[57:13]  ⁷⁷ 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]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “all of them a wind lifts up.”

[57:13]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “a breath takes [them] away.”

[57:13]  ⁸⁰ tn Or “seeks refuge in me.” “Seeking refuge” is a metonymy for “being loyal to.”

[57:13]  ⁸¹ 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.

[5:24]  ⁸² tn Heb “a tongue of fire” (so NASB), referring to a tongue-shaped flame.

[5:24]  ⁸³ sn They are compared to a flowering plant that withers quickly in a hot, arid climate.

[5:24]  ⁸⁴ tn Heb “the word.”

[5:24]  ⁸⁵ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[8:7]  ⁸⁶ tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[8:7]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “the mighty and abundant waters of the river.” The referent of “the river” here, the Euphrates River, has been specified in the translation for clarity. As the immediately following words indicate, these waters symbolize the Assyrian king and his armies which will, as it were, inundate the land.

[8:7]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “it will go up over all its stream beds and go over all its banks.”

[31:1]  ⁸⁹ tn Heb “Woe [to] those who go down to Egypt for help.”

[31:1]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “and trust in chariots for they are many.”

[31:1]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “and in horsemen for they are very strong [or “numerous”].”

[31:1]  ⁹² sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[37:16]  ⁹³ sn Cherubim (singular “cherub”) refers to the images of winged angelic creatures that were above the ark of the covenant.

[37:16]  ⁹⁴ tn Or “the heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

[57:11]  ⁹⁵ tn Heb “you do not place [it] on your heart.”

[57:11]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “Is it not [because] I have been silent, and from long ago?”

[57:11]  ⁹⁷ sn God’s patience with sinful Israel has caused them to think that they can sin with impunity and suffer no consequences.

[57:15]  ⁹⁸ tn Heb “the one who dwells forever.” שֹׁכֵן עַד (shokhen ’ad) is sometimes translated “the one who lives forever,” and understood as a reference to God’s eternal existence. However, the immediately preceding and following descriptions (“high and exalted” and “holy”) emphasize his sovereign rule. In the next line, he declares, “I dwell in an exalted and holy [place],” which refers to the place from which he rules. Therefore it is more likely that שֹׁכֵן עַד (shokhen ’ad) means “I dwell [in my lofty palace] forever” and refers to God’s eternal kingship.

[57:15]  ⁹⁹ tn Heb “and also with the crushed and lowly of spirit.” This may refer to the repentant who have humbled themselves (see 66:2) or more generally to the exiles who have experienced discouragement and humiliation.

[57:15]  ¹⁰⁰ tn Heb “to restore the lowly of spirit and to restore the heart of the crushed.”

[66:2]  ¹⁰¹ tn Heb “all these.” The phrase refers to the heavens and earth, mentioned in the previous verse.

[66:2]  ¹⁰² tn Heb “and all these were.” Some prefer to emend וַיִּהְיוּ (vayyihyu, “and they were”) to וְלִי הָיוּ (vÿli hayu, “and to me they were”), i.e., “and they belong to me.”

[66:2]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “and to this one I look” (KJV and NASB both similar).

[66:2]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “to the humble and the lowly in spirit and the one who trembles at my words.”