37:14 Hezekiah took the letter 1 from the messengers and read it. 2 Then Hezekiah went up to the Lord’s temple and spread it out before the Lord.
54:3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left;
your children will conquer 3 nations
and will resettle desolate cities.
65:2 I spread out my hands all day long
to my rebellious people,
who lived in a way that is morally unacceptable,
and who did what they desired. 4
1 tc The Hebrew text has the plural, “letters.” The final mem (ם) may be dittographic (note the initial mem on the form that immediately follows). Some Greek and Aramaic witnesses have the singular. If so, one still has to deal with the yod that is part of the plural ending. J. N. Oswalt refers to various commentators who have suggested ways to understand the plural form (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:652).
2 tn In the parallel text in 2 Kgs 19:14 the verb has the plural suffix, “them,” but this probably reflects a later harmonization to the preceding textual corruption (of “letter” to “letters”).
3 tn Or “take possession of”; NAB “shall dispossess.”
4 tn Heb “who walked [in] the way that is not good, after their thoughts.”