11:15 The Lord will divide 4 the gulf 5 of the Egyptian Sea; 6
he will wave his hand over the Euphrates River 7 and send a strong wind, 8
he will turn it into seven dried-up streams, 9
and enable them to walk across in their sandals.
30:26 The light of the full moon will be like the sun’s glare
and the sun’s glare will be seven times brighter,
like the light of seven days, 10
when the Lord binds up his people’s fractured bones 11
and heals their severe wound. 12
37:33 So this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
‘He will not enter this city,
nor will he shoot an arrow here. 22
He will not attack it with his shielded warriors, 23
nor will he build siege works against it.
44:23 Shout for joy, O sky, for the Lord intervenes; 24
shout out, you subterranean regions 25 of the earth.
O mountains, give a joyful shout;
you too, O forest and all your trees! 26
For the Lord protects 27 Jacob;
he reveals his splendor through Israel. 28
45:9 One who argues with his creator is in grave danger, 29
one who is like a mere 30 shard among the other shards on the ground!
The clay should not say to the potter, 31
“What in the world 32 are you doing?
Your work lacks skill!” 33
45:13 It is me – I stir him up and commission him; 34
I will make all his ways level.
He will rebuild my city;
he will send my exiled people home,
but not for a price or a bribe,”
says the Lord who commands armies.
46:7 They put it on their shoulder and carry it;
they put it in its place and it just stands there;
it does not 35 move from its place.
Even when someone cries out to it, it does not reply;
it does not deliver him from his distress.
49:5 So now the Lord says,
the one who formed me from birth 36 to be his servant –
he did this 37 to restore Jacob to himself,
so that Israel might be gathered to him;
and I will be honored 38 in the Lord’s sight,
for my God is my source of strength 39 –
56:6 As for foreigners who become followers of 40 the Lord and serve him,
who love the name of the Lord and want to be his servants –
all who observe the Sabbath and do not defile it,
and who are faithful to 41 my covenant –
61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,
by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,
oil symbolizing joy, 42 instead of mourning,
a garment symbolizing praise, 43 instead of discouragement. 44
They will be called oaks of righteousness, 45
trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. 46
63:1 Who is this who comes from Edom, 47
dressed in bright red, coming from Bozrah? 48
Who 49 is this one wearing royal attire, 50
who marches confidently 51 because of his great strength?
“It is I, the one who announces vindication,
and who is able to deliver!” 52
63:7 I will tell of the faithful acts of the Lord,
of the Lord’s praiseworthy deeds.
I will tell about all 53 the Lord did for us,
the many good things he did for the family of Israel, 54
because of 55 his compassion and great faithfulness.
65:20 Never again will one of her infants live just a few days 56
or an old man die before his time. 57
Indeed, no one will die before the age of a hundred, 58
anyone who fails to reach 59 the age of a hundred will be considered cursed.
1 tn Heb “him” (so KJV, ASV, NASB); the singular refers to the leader or king who stands for the entire nation. This is specified by NCV, CEV as “the Assyrians.”
2 sn According to Judg 7:25, the Ephraimites executed the Midianite general Oreb at a rock which was subsequently named after the executed enemy.
3 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and his staff [will be] against the sea, and he will lift it in the way [or “manner”] of Egypt.” If the text is retained, “the sea” symbolizes Assyria’s hostility, the metaphor being introduced because of the reference to Egypt. The translation above assumes an emendation of עַל הַיָּם (’al hayyam, “against the sea”) to עַלֵיהֶם (’alehem, “against them”). The proposed shift from the third singular pronoun (note “beat him” earlier in the verse) to the plural is not problematic, for the singular is collective. Note that a third plural pronoun is used at the end of v. 25 (“their destruction”). The final phrase, “in the way/manner of Egypt,” probably refers to the way in which God used the staff of Moses to bring judgment down on Egypt.
4 tn The verb is usually understood as “put under the ban, destroy,” or emended to חָרָב (kharav, “dry up”). However, HALOT 354 s.v. II חרם proposes a homonymic root meaning “divide.”
5 tn Heb “tongue” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).
6 sn That is, the Red Sea.
7 tn Heb “the river”; capitalized in some English versions (e.g., ASV, NASB, NRSV) as a reference to the Euphrates River.
8 tn Heb “with the [?] of his wind” [or “breath”]. The Hebrew term עַיָם (’ayam) occurs only here. Some attempt to relate the word to an Arabic root and translate, “scorching [or “hot”] wind.” This interpretation fits especially well if one reads “dry up” in the previous line. Others prefer to emend the form to עֹצֶם (’otsem, “strong”). See HALOT 817 s.v. עֲצַם.
9 tn Heb “seven streams.” The Hebrew term נַחַל (nakhal, “stream”) refers to a wadi, or seasonal stream, which runs during the rainy season, but is otherwise dry. The context (see v. 15b) here favors the translation, “dried up streams.” The number seven suggests totality and completeness. Here it indicates that God’s provision for escape will be thorough and more than capable of accommodating the returning exiles.
10 sn Light here symbolizes restoration of divine blessing and prosperity. The number “seven” is used symbolically to indicate intensity. The exact meaning of the phrase “the light of seven days” is uncertain; it probably means “seven times brighter” (see the parallel line).
11 tn Heb “the fracture of his people” (so NASB).
sn The Lord is here compared to a physician setting a broken bone in a bandage or cast.
12 tn Heb “the injury of his wound.” The joining of synonyms emphasizes the severity of the wound. Another option is to translate, “the wound of his blow.” In this case the pronominal suffix might refer to the Lord, not the people, yielding the translation, “the wound which he inflicted.”
13 sn For a discussion of this title see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 229-30.
14 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
15 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the chief adviser) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
16 tn Heb “the field of the washer”; traditionally “the fuller’s field” (so KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV).
17 tn Heb “To your master and to you did my master send me to speak these words?” The rhetorical question expects a negative answer.
18 tn Heb “[Is it] not [also] to the men…?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Yes, it is.”
sn The chief adviser alludes to the horrible reality of siege warfare, when the starving people in the besieged city would resort to eating and drinking anything to stay alive.
19 tn Heb “all the words of the chief adviser whom his master, the king of Assyria, sent to taunt the living God.”
20 tn Heb “and rebuke the words which the Lord your God hears.”
21 tn Heb “and lift up a prayer on behalf of the remnant that is found.”
22 tn Heb “there” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV). In terms of English style “here” is expected in collocation with “this” in the previous line.
23 tn Heb “[with] a shield” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV).
24 tn Heb “acts”; NASB, NRSV “has done it”; NLT “has done this wondrous thing.”
25 tn Heb “lower regions.” This refers to Sheol and forms a merism with “sky” in the previous line. See Pss 63:9; 71:20.
26 tn Heb “O forest and all the trees in it”; NASB, NRSV “and every tree in it.”
27 tn Heb “redeems.” See the note at 41:14.
28 tn That is, by delivering Israel. Cf. NCV “showed his glory when he saved Israel”; TEV “has shown his greatness by saving his people Israel.”
29 tn Heb “Woe [to] the one who argues with the one who formed him.”
30 tn The words “one who is like a mere” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and clarification.
31 tn Heb “Should the clay say to the one who forms it?” The rhetorical question anticipates a reply, “Of course not!”
32 tn The words “in the world” are supplied in the translation to approximate in English idiom the force of the sarcastic question.
33 tn Heb “your work, there are no hands for it,” i.e., “your work looks like something made by a person who has no hands.”
34 tn Heb “I stir him up in righteousness”; NASB “I have aroused him.” See the note at 41:2. Cyrus (cf. 44:28) is in view here.
35 tn Or perhaps, “cannot,” here and in the following two lines. The imperfect forms can indicate capability.
36 tn Heb “from the womb” (so KJV, NASB).
37 tn The words “he did this” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text the infinitive construct of purpose is subordinated to the previous statement.
38 tn The vav (ו) + imperfect is translated here as a result clause; one might interpret it as indicating purpose, “and so I might be honored.”
39 tn Heb “and my God is [perhaps, “having been”] my strength.” The disjunctive structure (vav [ו] + subject + verb) is interpreted here as indicating a causal circumstantial clause.
40 tn Heb “who attach themselves to.”
41 tn Heb “and take hold of”; NAB “hold to”; NIV, NRSV “hold fast.”
42 tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”
43 tn Heb “garment of praise.”
44 tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”
45 tn Rather than referring to the character of the people, צֶדֶק (tsedeq) may carry the nuance “vindication” here, suggesting that God’s restored people are a testimony to his justice. See v. 2, which alludes to the fact that God will take vengeance against the enemies of his people. Cf. NAB “oaks of justice.”
46 tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”
47 sn Edom is here an archetype for the Lord’s enemies. See 34:5.
48 tn Heb “[in] bright red garments, from Bozrah.”
49 tn The interrogative particle is understood by ellipsis; note the first line of the verse.
50 tn Heb “honored in his clothing”; KJV, ASV “glorious in his apparel.”
51 tc The Hebrew text has צָעָה (tsa’ah), which means “stoop, bend” (51:14). The translation assumes an emendation to צָעַד (tsa’ad, “march”; see BDB 858 s.v. צָעָה).
52 tn Heb “I, [the one] speaking in vindication [or “righteousness”], great to deliver.”
53 tn Heb “according to all which.”
54 tn Heb “greatness of goodness to the house of Israel which he did for them.”
55 tn Heb “according to.”
56 tn Heb “and there will not be from there again a nursing infant of days,” i.e., one that lives just a few days.
57 tn Heb “or an old [man] who does not fill out his days.”
58 tn Heb “for the child as a son of one hundred years will die.” The point seems to be that those who die at the age of a hundred will be considered children, for the average life span will be much longer than that. The category “child” will be redefined in light of the expanded life spans that will characterize this new era.
59 tn Heb “the one who misses.” חָטָא (khata’) is used here in its basic sense of “miss the mark.” See HALOT 305 s.v. חטא. Another option is to translate, “and the sinner who reaches the age of a hundred will be cursed.”