1:2 Listen, O heavens,
pay attention, O earth! 1
For the Lord speaks:
“I raised children, 2 I brought them up, 3
but 4 they have rebelled 5 against me!
1:3 An ox recognizes its owner,
a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food; 6
but Israel does not recognize me, 7
my people do not understand.”
1:13 Do not bring any more meaningless 8 offerings;
I consider your incense detestable! 9
You observe new moon festivals, Sabbaths, and convocations,
but I cannot tolerate sin-stained celebrations! 10
1:20 But if you refuse and rebel,
you will be devoured 11 by the sword.”
Know for certain that the Lord has spoken. 12
1:21 How tragic that the once-faithful city
has become a prostitute! 13
She was once a center of 14 justice,
fairness resided in her,
but now only murderers. 15
10:7 But he does not agree with this,
his mind does not reason this way, 16
for his goal is to destroy,
and to eliminate many nations. 17
14:30 The poor will graze in my pastures; 18
the needy will rest securely.
But I will kill your root by famine;
it will put to death all your survivors. 19
16:6 We have heard about Moab’s pride,
their great arrogance,
their boasting, pride, and excess. 20
But their boastful claims are empty! 21
19:12 But where, oh where, are your wise men? 22
Let them tell you, let them find out
what the Lord who commands armies has planned for Egypt.
22:13 But look, there is outright celebration! 23
You say, “Kill the ox and slaughter the sheep,
eat meat and drink wine.
Eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” 24
23:12 He said,
“You will no longer celebrate,
oppressed 25 virgin daughter Sidon!
Get up, travel to Cyprus,
but you will find no relief there.” 26
28:28 Grain is crushed,
though one certainly does not thresh it forever.
The wheel of one’s wagon rolls over it,
but his horses do not crush it.
29:5 But the horde of invaders will be like fine dust,
the horde of tyrants 27 like chaff that is blown away.
It will happen suddenly, in a flash.
30:5 all will be put to shame 28
because of a nation that cannot help them,
who cannot give them aid or help,
but only shame and disgrace.”
30:20 The sovereign master 29 will give you distress to eat
and suffering to drink; 30
but your teachers will no longer be hidden;
your eyes will see them. 31
41:28 I look, but there is no one,
among them there is no one who serves as an adviser,
that I might ask questions and receive answers.
45:5 I am the Lord, I have no peer, 32
there is no God but me.
I arm you for battle, 33 even though you do not recognize 34 me.
45:6 I do this 35 so people 36 will recognize from east to west
that there is no God but me;
I am the Lord, I have no peer.
50:7 But the sovereign Lord helps me,
so I am not humiliated.
For that reason I am steadfastly resolved; 37
I know I will not be put to shame.
53:4 But he lifted up our illnesses,
he carried our pain; 38
even though we thought he was being punished,
attacked by God, and afflicted for something he had done. 39
54:8 In a burst 40 of anger I rejected you 41 momentarily,
but with lasting devotion I will have compassion on you,”
says your protector, 42 the Lord.
57:1 The godly 43 perish,
but no one cares. 44
Honest people disappear, 45
when no one 46 minds 47
that the godly 48 disappear 49 because of 50 evil. 51
57:18 I have seen their behavior, 52
but I will heal them and give them rest,
and I will once again console those who mourn. 53
57:20 But the wicked are like a surging sea
that is unable to be quiet;
its waves toss up mud and sand.
59:2 But your sinful acts have alienated you from your God;
your sins have caused him to reject you and not listen to your prayers. 54
60:2 For, look, darkness covers the earth
and deep darkness covers 55 the nations,
but the Lord shines on you;
his splendor 56 appears over you.
60:15 You were once abandoned
and despised, with no one passing through,
but I will make you 57 a permanent source of pride
and joy to coming generations.
65:6 Look, I have decreed: 58
I will not keep silent, but will pay them back;
I will pay them back exactly what they deserve, 59
65:15 Your names will live on in the curse formulas of my chosen ones. 60
The sovereign Lord will kill you,
but he will give his servants another name.
1 sn The personified heavens and earth are summoned to God’s courtroom as witnesses against God’s covenant people. Long before this Moses warned the people that the heavens and earth would be watching their actions (see Deut 4:26; 30:19; 31:28; 32:1).
2 tn Or “sons” (NAB, NASB).
sn “Father” and “son” occur as common terms in ancient Near Eastern treaties and covenants, delineating the suzerain and vassal as participants in the covenant relationship. The prophet uses these terms, the reference to heavens and earth as witnesses, and allusions to deuteronomic covenant curses (1:7-9, 19-20) to set his prophecy firmly against the backdrop of Israel’s covenantal relationship with Yahweh.
3 sn The normal word pair for giving birth to and raising children is יָלַד (yalad, “to give birth to”) and גָּדַל (gadal, “to grow, raise”). The pair גָּדַל and רוּם (rum, “to raise up”) probably occur here to highlight the fact that Yahweh made something important of Israel (cf. R. Mosis, TDOT 2:403).
4 sn Against the backdrop of Yahweh’s care for his chosen people, Israel’s rebellion represents abhorrent treachery. The conjunction prefixed to a nonverbal element highlights the sad contrast between Yahweh’s compassionate care for His people and Israel’s thankless rebellion.
5 sn To rebel carries the idea of “covenant treachery.” Although an act of פֶּשַׁע (pesha’, “rebellion”) often signifies a breach of the law, the legal offense also represents a violation of an existing covenantal relationship (E. Carpenter and M. Grisanti, NIDOTTE 3:707).
6 tn Heb “and the donkey the feeding trough of its owner.” The verb in the first line does double duty in the parallelism.
7 tn Although both verbs have no object, the parallelism suggests that Israel fails to recognize the Lord as the one who provides for their needs. In both clauses, the placement of “Israel” and “my people” at the head of the clause focuses the reader’s attention on the rebellious nation (C. van der Merwe, J. Naudé, J. Kroeze, A Biblical Hebrew Reference Grammar, 346-47).
8 tn Or “worthless” (NASB, NCV, CEV); KJV, ASV “vain.”
9 sn Notice some of the other practices that Yahweh regards as “detestable”: homosexuality (Lev 18:22-30; 20:13), idolatry (Deut 7:25; 13:15), human sacrifice (Deut 12:31), eating ritually unclean animals (Deut 14:3-8), sacrificing defective animals (Deut 17:1), engaging in occult activities (Deut 18:9-14), and practicing ritual prostitution (1 Kgs 14:23).
10 tn Heb “sin and assembly” (these two nouns probably represent a hendiadys). The point is that their attempts at worship are unacceptable to God because the people’s everyday actions in the socio-economic realm prove they have no genuine devotion to God (see vv. 16-17).
11 sn The wordplay in the Hebrew draws attention to the options. The people can obey, in which case they will “eat” v. 19 (תֹּאכֵלוּ [to’khelu], Qal active participle of אָכַל) God’s blessing, or they can disobey, in which case they will be devoured (Heb “eaten,” תְּאֻכְּלוּ, [tÿ’ukkÿlu], Qal passive/Pual of אָכַל) by God’s judgment.
12 tn Heb “for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” The introductory כִּי (ki) may be asseverative (as reflected in the translation) or causal/explanatory, explaining why the option chosen by the people will become reality (it is guaranteed by the divine word).
13 tn Heb “How she has become a prostitute, the faithful city!” The exclamatory אֵיכָה (’ekhah, “how!”) is used several times as the beginning of a lament (see Lam 1:1; 2;1; 4:1-2). Unlike a number of other OT passages that link references to Israel’s harlotry to idolatry, Isaiah here makes the connection with social and moral violations.
14 tn Heb “filled with.”
15 tn Or “assassins.” This refers to the oppressive rich and/or their henchmen. R. Ortlund (Whoredom, 78) posits that it serves as a synecdoche for all varieties of criminals, the worst being mentioned to imply all lesser ones. Since Isaiah often addressed his strongest rebuke to the rulers and leaders of Israel, he may have in mind the officials who bore the responsibility to uphold justice and righteousness.
16 tn Heb “but he, not so does he intend, and his heart, not so does it think.”
17 tn Heb “for to destroy [is] in his heart, and to cut off nations, not a few.”
18 tc The Hebrew text has, “the firstborn of the poor will graze.” “Firstborn” may be used here in an idiomatic sense to indicate the very poorest of the poor. See BDB 114 s.v. בְּכוֹר. The translation above assumes an emendation of בְּכוֹרֵי (bÿkhorey, “firstborn of”) to בְּכָרַי (bekharay, “in my pastures”).
19 tn Heb “your remnant” (so NAB, NRSV).
20 tn עֶבְרָה (’evrah) often means “anger, fury,” but here it appears to refer to boastful outbursts or excessive claims. See HALOT 782 s.v. עֶבְרָה.
21 tn Heb “not so his boasting.”
22 tn Heb “Where are they? Where are your wise men?” The juxtaposition of the interrogative pronouns is emphatic. See HALOT 38 s.v. אֶי.
23 tn Heb “happiness and joy.”
24 tn The prophet here quotes what the fatalistic people are saying. The introductory “you say” is supplied in the translation for clarification; the concluding verb “we die” makes it clear the people are speaking. The six verbs translated as imperatives are actually infinitives absolute, functioning here as finite verbs.
25 tn Or “violated, raped,” the point being that Daughter Sidon has lost her virginity in the most brutal manner possible.
26 tn Heb “[to the] Kittim, get up, cross over; even there there will be no rest for you.” On “Kittim” see the note on “Cyprus” at v. 1.
27 tn Or “violent men”; cf. NASB “the ruthless ones.”
28 tn The present translation follows the marginal (Qere) reading of the Hebrew text; the consonantal text (Kethib) has “made to stink, decay.”
29 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonai).
30 tn Heb “and the Master will give to you bread – distress, and water – oppression.”
31 tn Heb “but your teachers will no longer be hidden, your eyes will be seeing your teachers.” The translation assumes that the form מוֹרֶיךָ (morekha) is a plural participle, referring to spiritual leaders such as prophets and priests. Another possibility is that the form is actually singular (see GKC 273-74 §93.ss) or a plural of respect, referring to God as the master teacher. See HALOT 560-61 s.v. III מוֹרֶה. For discussion of the views, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:560.
32 tn Heb “and there is none besides.” On the use of עוֹד (’od) here, see BDB 729 s.v. 1.c.
33 tn Heb “gird you” (so NASB) or “strengthen you” (so NIV).
34 tn Or “know” (NAB, NCV, NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT); NIV “have not acknowledged.”
35 tn The words “I do this” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
36 tn Heb “they” (so KJV, ASV); TEV, CEV “everyone”; NLT “all the world.”
37 tn Heb “Therefore I set my face like flint.”
38 sn Illness and pain stand by metonymy (or perhaps as metaphors) for sin and its effects, as vv. 11-12 make clear.
39 tn The words “for something he had done” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The group now realizes he suffered because of his identification with them, not simply because he was a special target of divine anger.
40 tn According to BDB 1009 s.v. שֶׁטֶף the noun שֶׁצֶף here is an alternate form of שֶׁטֶף (shetef, “flood”). Some relate the word to an alleged Akkadian cognate meaning “strength.”
41 tn Heb “I hid my face from you.”
42 tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.
43 tn Or “righteous” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “the just man”; TEV “Good people.”
44 tn Or perhaps, “understands.” Heb “and there is no man who sets [it] upon [his] heart.”
45 tn Heb “Men of loyalty are taken away.” The Niphal of אָסַף (’asaf) here means “to die.”
46 tn The Hebrew term בְּאֵין (bÿ’en) often has the nuance “when there is no.” See Prov 8:24; 11;14; 14:4; 15:22; 26:20; 29:18.
47 tn Or “realizes”; Heb “understands” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).
48 tn Or “righteous” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “the just man.”
49 tn Heb “are taken away.” The Niphal of אָסַף (’asaf) here means “to die.”
50 tn The term מִפְּנֵי (mippÿne, “from the face of”) often has a causal nuance. It also appears with the Niphal of אָסַף (’asaph, “gather”) in 2 Chr 12:5: אֲשֶׁר־נֶאֶסְפוּ אֶל־יְרוּשָׁלַם מִפְּנֵי שִׁישָׁק (’asher-ne’esphu ’el-yÿrushalam mippÿney shishaq, “who had gathered at Jerusalem because of [i.e., due to fear of] Shishak”).
51 tn The translation assumes that this verse, in proverbial fashion, laments society’s apathy over the persecution of the godly. The second half of the verse observes that such apathy results in more widespread oppression. Since the next verse pictures the godly being taken to a place of rest, some interpret the second half of v. 1 in a more positive vein. According to proponents of this view, God removes the godly so that they might be spared suffering and calamity, a fact which the general populace fails to realize.
52 tn Heb “his ways” (so KJV, NASB, NIV); TEV “how they acted.”
53 tn Heb “and I will restore consolation to him, to his mourners.”
54 tn Heb “and your sins have caused [his] face to be hidden from you so as not to hear.”
55 tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).
56 tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.”
57 tn Heb “Instead of your being abandoned and despised, with no one passing through, I will make you.”
58 tn Heb “Look, it is written before me.”
59 tn Heb “I will pay back into their lap.”
60 tn Heb “you will leave your name for an oath to my chosen ones.”
sn For an example of such a curse formula see Jer 29:22.