Yesaya 49:24

49:24 Can spoils be taken from a warrior,

or captives be rescued from a conqueror? ¹ 

Yesaya 66:21

66:21 And I will choose some of them as priests and Levites,” says the Lord.

Yesaya 6:6

6:6 But then one of the seraphs flew toward me. In his hand was a hot coal he had taken from the altar with tongs.

Yesaya 23:16

23:16 “Take the harp,

go through the city,

forgotten prostitute!

Play it well,

play lots of songs,

so you’ll be noticed!” ² 

Yesaya 39:7

39:7 ‘Some of your very own descendants whom you father ³  will be taken away and will be made eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’”

Yesaya 47:2-3

47:2 Pick up millstones and grind flour!

Remove your veil,

strip off your skirt,

expose your legs,

cross the streams!

47:3 Let your private parts be exposed!

Your genitals will be on display! ⁴ 

I will get revenge;

I will not have pity on anyone,” ⁵ 

Yesaya 56:12

56:12 Each one says, ⁶ 

‘Come on, I’ll get some wine!

Let’s guzzle some beer!

Tomorrow will be just like today!

We’ll have everything we want!’ ⁷ 

Yesaya 8:1

A Sign-Child is Born

8:1 The Lord told me, “Take a large tablet ⁸  and inscribe these words ⁹  on it with an ordinary stylus: ¹⁰  ‘Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.’ ¹¹ 

Yesaya 14:2

14:2 Nations will take them and bring them back to their own place. Then the family of Jacob will make foreigners their servants as they settle in the Lord’s land. ¹²  They will make their captors captives and rule over the ones who oppressed them.

Yesaya 28:19

28:19 Whenever it sweeps by, it will overtake you;

indeed, ¹³  every morning it will sweep by,

it will come through during the day and the night.” ¹⁴ 

When this announcement is understood,

it will cause nothing but terror.

Yesaya 36:17

36:17 until I come and take you to a land just like your own – a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.

Yesaya 37:14

37:14 Hezekiah took the letter ¹⁵  from the messengers and read it. ¹⁶  Then Hezekiah went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it out before the Lord.

Yesaya 44:14-15

44:14 He cuts down cedars

and acquires a cypress ¹⁷  or an oak.

He gets ¹⁸  trees from the forest;

he plants a cedar ¹⁹  and the rain makes it grow.

44:15 A man uses it to make a fire; ²⁰ 

he takes some of it and warms himself.

Yes, he kindles a fire and bakes bread.

Then he makes a god and worships it;

he makes an idol and bows down to it. ²¹ 

Yesaya 53:8

53:8 He was led away after an unjust trial ²²  –

but who even cared? ²³ 

Indeed, he was cut off from the land of the living; ²⁴ 

because of the rebellion of his own ²⁵  people he was wounded.

Yesaya 57:13

57:13 When you cry out for help, let your idols ²⁶  help you!

The wind blows them all away, ²⁷ 

a breeze carries them away. ²⁸ 

But the one who looks to me for help ²⁹  will inherit the land

and will have access to ³⁰  my holy mountain.”

Yesaya 40:2

40:2 “Speak kindly to ³¹  Jerusalem, ³²  and tell her

that her time of warfare is over, ³³ 

that her punishment is completed. ³⁴ 

For the Lord has made her pay double ³⁵  for all her sins.”

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 51:22

51:22 This is what your sovereign master, ³⁶  the Lord your God, says:

“Look, I have removed from your hand

the cup of intoxicating wine, ³⁷ 

the goblet full of my anger. ³⁸ 

You will no longer have to drink it.

Yesaya 52:5

52:5 And now, what do we have here?” ³⁹  says the Lord.

“Indeed my people have been carried away for nothing,

those who rule over them taunt,” ⁴⁰  says the Lord,

“and my name is constantly slandered ⁴¹  all day long.

[49:24]  ¹ tc The Hebrew text has צָדִיק (tsadiq, “a righteous [one]”), but this makes no sense in the parallelism. The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a reads correctly עריץ (“violent [one], tyrant”; see v. 25).

[23:16]  ² tn Heb “so you will be remembered.”

[39:7]  ³ tn Heb “Some of your sons, who go out from you, whom you father.”

[47:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “Your shame will be seen.” In this context “shame” is a euphemism referring to the genitals.

[47:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “I will not meet a man.” The verb פָּגַע (pagah) apparently carries the nuance “meet with kindness” here (cf. 64:5, and see BDB 803 s.v. Qal.2).

[56:12]  ⁶ tn The words “each one says” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[56:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “great, [in] abundance, very much,” i.e., “very great indeed.” See HALOT 452 s.v. יֶתֶר.

[8:1]  ⁸ sn Probably made of metal, wood, or leather. See HALOT 193 s.v. גִּלָּיוֹן.

[8:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “write” (so KJV, ASV, NIV, NRSV).

[8:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “with the stylus of a man.” The significance of the qualifying genitive “a man” is uncertain. For various interpretations see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:219, n. 1.

[8:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “quickly, [the] plunder; it hurries, [the] loot.” The first word (מַהֵר, maher) is either a Piel imperative (“hurry [to]”) or infinitive (“hurrying,” or “quickly”). The third word (חָשׁ, khash) is either a third masculine singular perfect or a masculine singular participle, in either case from the root חוּשׁ (khush, “hurry”). Perhaps it is best to translate, “One hastens to the plunder, one hurries to the loot.” In this case מַהֵר is understood as an infinitive functioning as a verb, the subject of חוּשׁ is taken as indefinite, and the two nouns are understood as adverbial accusatives. As we discover in v. 3, this is the name of the son to be born to Isaiah through the prophetess.

[14:2]  ¹² tn Heb “and the house of Jacob will take possession of them [i.e., the nations], on the land of the Lord, as male servants and female servants.”

[28:19]  ¹³ tn Or “for” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[28:19]  ¹⁴ tn The words “it will come through” are supplied in the translation. The verb “will sweep by” does double duty in the parallel structure.

[37:14]  ¹⁵ tc The Hebrew text has the plural, “letters.” The final mem (ם) may be dittographic (note the initial mem on the form that immediately follows). Some Greek and Aramaic witnesses have the singular. If so, one still has to deal with the yod that is part of the plural ending. J. N. Oswalt refers to various commentators who have suggested ways to understand the plural form (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:652).

[37:14]  ¹⁶ tn In the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:14 the verb has the plural suffix, “them,” but this probably reflects a later harmonization to the preceding textual corruption (of “letter” to “letters”).

[44:14]  ¹⁷ tn It is not certain what type of tree this otherwise unattested noun refers to. Cf. ASV “a holm-tree” (NRSV similar).

[44:14]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “strengthens for himself,” i.e., “secures for himself” (see BDB 55 s.v. אָמֵץ Pi.2).

[44:14]  ¹⁹ tn Some prefer to emend אֹרֶן (’oren) to אֶרֶז (’erez, “cedar”), but the otherwise unattested noun appears to have an Akkadian cognate, meaning “cedar.” See H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 44-45. HALOT 90 s.v. I אֹרֶן offers the meaning “laurel.”

[44:15]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and it becomes burning [i.e., firewood] for a man”; NAB “to serve man for fuel.”

[44:15]  ²¹ tn Or perhaps, “them.”

[53:8]  ²² 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]  ²³ 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]  ²⁴ 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]  ²⁵ 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).

[57:13]  ²⁶ 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]  ²⁷ tn Heb “all of them a wind lifts up.”

[57:13]  ²⁸ tn Heb “a breath takes [them] away.”

[57:13]  ²⁹ tn Or “seeks refuge in me.” “Seeking refuge” is a metonymy for “being loyal to.”

[57:13]  ³⁰ 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.

[40:2]  ³¹ tn Heb “speak to the heart of Jerusalem.” Jerusalem is personified as a woman.

[40:2]  ³² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[40:2]  ³³ tn Heb “that she is filled [with] her warfare.” Some understand צָבָא (tsavah, “warfare”) as meaning “hard service” or “compulsory labor” in this context.

[40:2]  ³⁴ tn Heb “that her punishment is accepted [as satisfactory].”

[40:2]  ³⁵ tn Heb “for she has received from the hand of the Lord double.” The principle of the double portion in punishment is also seen in Jer 16:18; 17:18 and Rev 18:6. For examples of the double portion in Israelite law, see Exod 22:4, 7, 9 (double restitution by a thief) and Deut 21:17 (double inheritance portion for the firstborn).

[51:22]  ³⁶ tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[51:22]  ³⁷ tn Heb “the cup of [= that causes] staggering” (so ASV, NAB, NRSV); NASB “the cup of reeling.”

[51:22]  ³⁸ tn Heb “the goblet of the cup of my anger.”

[52:5]  ³⁹ tn Heb “and now what [following the marginal reading (Qere)] to me here?”

[52:5]  ⁴⁰ tn The verb appears to be a Hiphil form from the root יָלַל (yalal, “howl”), perhaps here in the sense of “mock.” Some emend the form to יְהוֹלָּלוֹ (yÿhollalo) and understand a Polel form of the root הָלַל meaning here “mock, taunt.”

[52:5]  ⁴¹ tn The verb is apparently a Hitpolal form (with assimilated tav, ת) from the root נָאַץ (na’ats), but GKC 151-52 §55.b explains it as a mixed form, combining Pual and Hitpolel readings.