2:4 He will judge disputes between nations;
he will settle cases for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares, 1
and their spears into pruning hooks. 2
Nations will not take up the sword against other nations,
and they will no longer train for war.
47:13 You are tired out from listening to so much advice. 4
Let them take their stand –
the ones who see omens in the sky,
who gaze at the stars,
who make monthly predictions –
let them rescue you from the disaster that is about to overtake you! 5
48:1 Listen to this, O family of Jacob, 6
you who are called by the name ‘Israel,’
and are descended from Judah, 7
who take oaths in the name of the Lord,
and invoke 8 the God of Israel –
but not in an honest and just manner. 9
62:4 You will no longer be called, “Abandoned,”
and your land will no longer be called “Desolate.”
Indeed, 10 you will be called “My Delight is in Her,” 11
and your land “Married.” 12
For the Lord will take delight in you,
and your land will be married to him. 13
1 sn Instead of referring to the large plow as a whole, the plowshare is simply the metal tip which actually breaks the earth and cuts the furrow.
2 sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:93; M. Klingbeil, NIDOTTE 1:1117-18). It was a short knife with a curved hook at the end sharpened on the inside like a sickle. Breaking weapons and fashioning agricultural implements indicates a transition from fear and stress to peace and security.
3 tn Heb “and the house of Jacob will take possession of them [i.e., the nations], on the land of the Lord, as male servants and female servants.”
4 tn Heb “you are tired because of the abundance of your advice.”
5 tn Heb “let them stand and rescue you – the ones who see omens in the sky, who gaze at the stars, who make known by months – from those things which are coming upon you.”
6 tn Heb “house of Jacob”; TEV, CEV “people of Israel.”
7 tc The Hebrew text reads literally “and from the waters of Judah came out.” מִמֵּי (mimme) could be a corruption of מִמְּעֵי (mimmÿ’e, “from the inner parts of”; cf. NASB, NIV, NLT, NRSV) as suggested in the above translation. Some translations (ESV, NKJV) retain the MT reading because the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa, which corrects a similar form to “from inner parts of” in 39:7, does not do it here.
8 tn Heb “cause to remember”; KJV, ASV “make mention of.”
9 tn Heb “not in truth and not in righteousness.”
10 tn Or “for”; KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “but.”
11 tn Hebrew חֶפְצִי־בָהּ (kheftsi-vah), traditionally transliterated “Hephzibah” (so KJV, ASV, NIV).
12 tn Hebrew בְּעוּלָה (bÿ’ulah), traditionally transliterated “Beulah” (so KJV, ASV, NIV).
13 tn That is, the land will be restored to the Lord’s favor and once again enjoy his blessing and protection. To indicate the land’s relationship to the Lord, the words “to him” have been supplied at the end of the clause.