9:3 Even if they were to hide on the top of Mount Carmel,
I would hunt them down and take them from there.
Even if they tried to hide from me 1 at the bottom of the sea,
from there 2 I would command the Sea Serpent 3 to bite them.
9:4 Even when their enemies drive them into captivity, 4
from there 5 I will command the sword to kill them.
I will not let them out of my sight;
they will experience disaster, not prosperity.” 6
1 tn Heb “from before my eyes.”
2 tn Or perhaps simply, “there,” if the מ (mem) prefixed to the adverb is dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem).
3 sn If the article indicates a definite serpent, then the mythological Sea Serpent, symbolic of the world’s chaotic forces, is probably in view. See Job 26:13 and Isa 27:1 (where it is also called Leviathan). Elsewhere in the OT this serpent is depicted as opposing the
4 tn Heb “Even if they go into captivity before their enemies.”
5 tn Or perhaps simply, “there,” if the מ (mem) prefixed to the adverb is dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem).
6 tn Heb “I will set my eye on them for disaster, not good.”