21:4 My heart palpitates, 1
I shake in fear; 2
the twilight I desired
has brought me terror.
21:5 Arrange the table,
lay out 3 the carpet,
eat and drink! 4
Get up, you officers,
smear oil on the shields! 5
1 tn Heb “wanders,” perhaps here, “is confused.”
2 tn Heb “shuddering terrifies me.”
3 tn The precise meaning of the verb in this line is debated. Some prefer to derive the form from the homonymic צָפֹה (tsafoh, “keep watch”) and translate “post a guard” (cf. KJV “watch in the watchtower”; ASV “set the watch”).
4 tn The verbal forms in the first three lines are infinitives absolute, which are functioning here as finite verbs. It is uncertain if the forms should have an imperatival or indicative/descriptive force here.
5 sn Smearing the shields with oil would make them more flexible and effective in battle. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:394.