3:4 He said to me, “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak my words to them. 3:5 For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible speech 1 and difficult language, 2 but 3 to the house of Israel – 3:6 not to many peoples of unintelligible speech and difficult language, whose words you cannot understand 4 – surely if 5 I had sent you to them, they would listen to you! 3:7 But the house of Israel is unwilling to listen to you, 6 because they are not willing to listen to me, 7 for the whole house of Israel is hard-headed and hard-hearted. 8
1 tn Heb “deep of lip” (in the sense of incomprehensible).
2 tn Heb “heavy of tongue.” Similar language occurs in Exod 4:10; Isa 33:19.
3 tn The conjunction “but” is not in the Hebrew text, but is implied from the context.
4 tn Heb “hear.”
5 tc The MT reads “if not” but most ancient versions translate only “if.” The expression occurs with this sense in Isa 5:9; 14:24. See also Ezek 34:8; 36:5; 38:19.
6 sn Moses (Exod 3:19) and Isaiah (Isa 6:9-10) were also told that their messages would not be received.
7 sn A similar description of Israel’s disobedience is given in 1 Sam 8:7.
8 tn Heb “hard of forehead and stiff of heart.”