1:13 You are too just 1 to tolerate 2 evil;
you are unable to condone 3 wrongdoing.
So why do you put up with such treacherous people? 4
Why do you say nothing when the wicked devour 5 those more righteous than they are? 6
1:16 Because of his success 7 he offers sacrifices to his throw net
and burns incense to his dragnet; 8
for because of them he has plenty of food, 9
and more than enough to eat. 10
1 tn Heb “[you] are too pure of eyes.” God’s “eyes” here signify what he looks at with approval. His “eyes” are “pure” in that he refuses to tolerate any wrongdoing in his presence.
2 tn Heb “to see.” Here “see” is figurative for “tolerate,” “put up with.”
3 tn Heb “to look at.” Cf. NEB “who canst not countenance wrongdoing”; NASB “You can not look on wickedness with favor.”
4 tn Heb “Why do you look at treacherous ones?” The verb בָּגַד (bagad, “be treacherous”) is often used of those who are disloyal or who violate agreements. See S. Erlandsson, TDOT 1:470-73.
5 tn Or “swallow up.”
6 tn Heb “more innocent than themselves.”
7 tn Heb “therefore.”
8 sn The fishing implements (throw net and dragnet) represent Babylonian military might. The prophet depicts the Babylonians as arrogantly worshiping their own power (sacrifices…burns incense, see also v. 11b).
9 tn Heb “for by them his portion is full [or, “fat”].”
10 tn Heb “and his food is plentiful [or, “fat”].”