22:11 You made a reservoir between the two walls
for the water of the old pool –
but you did not trust in 1 the one who made it; 2
you did not depend on 3 the one who formed it long ago!
31:8 Assyria will fall by a sword, but not one human-made; 4
a sword not made by humankind will destroy them. 5
They will run away from this sword 6
and their young men will be forced to do hard labor.
49:2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword,
he hid me in the hollow of his hand;
he made me like a sharpened 7 arrow,
he hid me in his quiver. 8
1 tn Heb “look at”; NAB, NRSV “did not look to.”
2 tn The antecedent of the third feminine singular suffix here and in the next line is unclear. The closest feminine noun is “pool” in the first half of the verse. Perhaps this “old pool” symbolizes the entire city, which had prospered because of God’s provision and protection through the years.
3 tn Heb “did not see.”
4 tn Heb “Assyria will fall by a sword, not of a man.”
5 tn Heb “and a sword not of humankind will devour him.”
6 tn Heb “he will flee for himself from before a sword.”
7 tn Or perhaps, “polished” (so KJV, ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV); NASB “a select arrow.”
8 sn The figurative language emphasizes the servant’s importance as the Lord’s effective instrument. The servant’s mouth, which stands metonymically for his words, is compared to a sharp sword because he will be an effective spokesman on God’s behalf (see 50:4). The Lord holds his hand on the servant, ready to draw and use him at the appropriate time. The servant is like a sharpened arrow reserved in a quiver for just the right moment.