1:16 1 Wash! Cleanse yourselves!
Remove your sinful deeds 2
from my sight.
Stop sinning!
22:7 Your very best valleys were full of chariots; 4
horsemen confidently took their positions 5 at the gate.
26:16 O Lord, in distress they looked for you;
they uttered incantations because of your discipline. 6
33:4 Your plunder 7 disappears as if locusts were eating it; 8
they swarm over it like locusts! 9
33:11 You conceive straw, 10
you give birth to chaff;
your breath is a fire that destroys you. 11
44:27 who says to the deep sea, ‘Be dry!
I will dry up your sea currents,’
49:17 Your children hurry back,
while those who destroyed and devastated you depart.
50:1 This is what the Lord says:
“Where is your mother’s divorce certificate
by which I divorced her?
Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? 12
Look, you were sold because of your sins; 13
because of your rebellious acts I divorced your mother. 14
57:7 On every high, elevated hill you prepare your bed;
you go up there to offer sacrifices.
60:1 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!
The splendor 15 of the Lord shines on you!
1 sn Having demonstrated the people’s guilt, the Lord calls them to repentance, which will involve concrete action in the socio-economic realm, not mere emotion.
2 sn This phrase refers to Israel’s covenant treachery (cf. Deut 28:10; Jer 4:4; 21:12; 23:2, 22; 25:5; 26:3; 44:22; Hos 9:15; Ps 28:4). In general, the noun ַמעַלְלֵיכֶם (ma’alleykhem) can simply be a reference to deeds, whether good or bad. However, Isaiah always uses it with a negative connotation (cf. 3:8, 10).
3 tn This sentence opens with the conjunction יַעַן כִּי (ya’an ki, “because”). Consequently some take vv. 5-6 with what precedes, as another reason why Ahaz might be tempted to fear (see v. 4). However, it is more likely that vv. 5-6 give the basis for the Lord’s announcement in vv. 7-9. The conjunction יַעַן כִּי here introduces the basis for judgment (as in 3:16; 8:6; 29:13), which is then followed by the formal announcement of judgment.
4 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
5 tn Heb “taking a stand, take their stand.” The infinitive absolute emphasizes the following finite verb. The translation attempts to bring out this emphasis with the adverb “confidently.”
6 tn The meaning of this verse is unclear. It appears to read literally, “O Lord, in distress they visit you, they pour out [?] an incantation, your discipline to them.” פָּקַד (paqad) may here carry the sense of “seek with interest” (cf. Ezek 23:21 and BDB 823 s.v.) or “seek in vain” (cf. Isa 34:16), but it is peculiar for the Lord to be the object of this verb. צָקוּן (tsaqun) may be a Qal perfect third plural form from צוּק (tsuq, “pour out, melt”), though the verb is not used of pouring out words in its two other occurrences. Because of the appearance of צַר (tsar, “distress”) in the preceding line, it is tempting to emend the form to a noun and derive it from צוּק (“be in distress”) The term לַחַשׁ (lakhash) elsewhere refers to an incantation (Isa 3:3; Jer 8:17; Eccl 10:11) or amulet (Isa 3:20). Perhaps here it refers to ritualistic prayers or to magical incantations used to ward off evil.
7 tn The pronoun is plural; the statement is addressed to the nations who have stockpiled plunder from their conquests of others.
8 tn Heb “and your plunder is gathered, the gathering of the locust.”
9 tn Heb “like a swarm of locusts swarming on it.”
10 tn The second person verb and pronominal forms in this verse are plural. The hostile nations are the addressed, as the next verse makes clear.
11 sn The hostile nations’ plans to destroy God’s people will come to nothing; their hostility will end up being self-destructive.
12 sn The Lord challenges the exiles (Zion’s children) to bring incriminating evidence against him. The rhetorical questions imply that Israel accused the Lord of divorcing his wife (Zion) and selling his children (the Israelites) into slavery to pay off a debt.
13 sn The Lord admits that he did sell the Israelites, but it was because of their sins, not because of some debt he owed. If he had sold them to a creditor, they ought to be able to point him out, but the preceding rhetorical question implies they would not be able to do so.
14 sn The Lord admits he did divorce Zion, but that too was the result of the nation’s sins. The force of the earlier rhetorical question comes into clearer focus now. The question does not imply that a certificate does not exist and that no divorce occurred. Rather, the question asks for the certificate to be produced so the accuser can see the reason for the divorce in black and white. The Lord did not put Zion away arbitrarily.
15 tn Or “glory” (so most English versions).