25:8 he will swallow up death permanently. 1
The sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from every face,
and remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth.
Indeed, the Lord has announced it! 2
38:14 Like a swallow or a thrush I chirp,
I coo 3 like a dove;
my eyes grow tired from looking up to the sky. 4
O sovereign master, 5 I am oppressed;
help me! 6
1 sn The image of the Lord “swallowing” death would be especially powerful, for death was viewed in Canaanite mythology and culture as a hungry enemy that swallows its victims. See the note at 5:14.
2 tn Heb “has spoken” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
3 tn Or “moan” (ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); KJV, CEV “mourn.”
4 tn Heb “my eyes become weak, toward the height.”
5 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in v. 16 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
6 tn Heb “stand surety for me.” Hezekiah seems to be picturing himself as a debtor who is being exploited; he asks that the Lord might relieve his debt and deliver him from the oppressive creditor.