1:20 But if you refuse and rebel,
you will be devoured 1 by the sword.”
Know for certain that the Lord has spoken. 2
3:15 Why do you crush my people
and grind the faces of the poor?” 3
The sovereign Lord who commands armies 4 has spoken.
30:21 You 5 will hear a word spoken behind you, saying,
“This is the correct 6 way, walk in it,”
whether you are heading to the right or the left.
1 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.
2 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).
3 sn The rhetorical question expresses the Lord’s outrage at what the leaders have done to the poor. He finds it almost unbelievable that they would have the audacity to treat his people in this manner.
4 tn Heb “the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” On the title “the Lord who commands armies,” see the note at 1:9.
sn The use of this title, which also appears in v. 1, forms an inclusio around vv. 1-15. The speech begins and ends with a reference to “the master, the Lord who commands armies.”
5 tn Heb “your ears” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
6 tn The word “correct’ is supplied in the translation for clarification.