5:24 Therefore, as flaming fire 1 devours straw,
and dry grass disintegrates in the flames,
so their root will rot,
and their flower will blow away like dust. 2
For they have rejected the law of the Lord who commands armies,
they have spurned the commands 3 of the Holy One of Israel. 4
In earlier times he 7 humiliated
the land of Zebulun,
and the land of Naphtali; 8
but now he brings honor 9
to the way of the sea,
the region beyond the Jordan,
and Galilee of the nations. 10
18:7 At that time
tribute will be brought to the Lord who commands armies,
by a people that are tall and smooth-skinned,
a people that are feared far and wide,
a nation strong and victorious,
whose land rivers divide. 12
The tribute 13 will be brought to the place where the Lord who commands armies has chosen to reside, on Mount Zion. 14
40:26 Look up at the sky! 19
Who created all these heavenly lights? 20
He is the one who leads out their ranks; 21
he calls them all by name.
Because of his absolute power and awesome strength,
not one of them is missing.
49:7 This is what the Lord,
the protector 22 of Israel, their Holy One, 23 says
to the one who is despised 24 and rejected 25 by nations, 26
a servant of rulers:
“Kings will see and rise in respect, 27
princes will bow down,
because of the faithful Lord,
the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.”
49:23 Kings will be your children’s 28 guardians;
their princesses will nurse your children. 29
With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you
and they will lick the dirt on 30 your feet.
Then you will recognize that I am the Lord;
those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.
51:13 Why do you forget 31 the Lord, who made you,
who stretched out the sky 32
and founded the earth?
Why do you constantly tremble all day long 33
at the anger of the oppressor,
when he makes plans to destroy?
Where is the anger of the oppressor? 34
60:9 Indeed, the coastlands 35 look eagerly for me,
the large ships 36 are in the lead,
bringing your sons from far away,
along with their silver and gold,
to honor the Lord your God, 37
the Holy One of Israel, 38 for he has bestowed honor on you.
65:12 I predestine you to die by the sword, 39
all of you will kneel down at the slaughtering block, 40
because I called to you, and you did not respond,
I spoke and you did not listen.
You did evil before me; 41
you chose to do what displeases me.”
1 tn Heb “a tongue of fire” (so NASB), referring to a tongue-shaped flame.
2 sn They are compared to a flowering plant that withers quickly in a hot, arid climate.
3 tn Heb “the word.”
4 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
5 sn In the Hebrew text (BHS) the chapter division comes one verse later than in the English Bible; 9:1 (8:23 HT). Thus 9:2-21 in the English Bible = 9:1-20 in the Hebrew text. Beginning with 10:1 the verse numbers in the English Bible and the Hebrew Bible are again the same.
6 tn The Hebrew text reads, “Indeed there is no gloom for the one to whom there was anxiety for her.” The feminine singular pronominal suffix “her” must refer to the land (cf. vv. 22a, 23b). So one could translate, “Indeed there will be no gloom for the land which was anxious.” In this case the statement introduces the positive message to follow. Some assume an emendation of לֹא (lo’, “no”) to לוֹ (lo, “to him”) and of לָהּ (lah, “to her”) to לוֹ (lo, “to him”), yielding this literal reading: “indeed there is gloom for him, for the one to whom there was anxiety for him.” In this case the statement concludes the preceding description of judgment.
7 tn The Lord must be understood as the subject of the two verbs in this verse.
8 sn The statement probably alludes to the Assyrian conquest of Israel in ca. 734-733
9 tn Heb Just as in earlier times he humiliated…, [in] the latter times he has brought honor.” The main verbs in vv. 1b-4 are Hebrew perfects. The prophet takes his rhetorical stance in the future age of restoration and describes future events as if they have already occurred. To capture the dramatic effect of the original text, the translation uses the English present or present perfect.
10 sn These three geographical designations may refer to provinces established by the Assyrians in 734-733
11 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.”
12 tn On the interpretive difficulties of this verse, see the notes at v. 2, where the same terminology is used.
13 tn The words “the tribute” are repeated here in the translation for clarity.
14 tn Heb “to the place of the name of the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts], Mount Zion.”
15 tn Heb “To your master and to you did my master send me to speak these words?” The rhetorical question expects a negative answer.
16 tn Heb “[Is it] not [also] to the men…?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Yes, it is.”
sn The chief adviser alludes to the horrible reality of siege warfare, when the starving people in the besieged city would resort to eating and drinking anything to stay alive.
17 tn Heb “was happy with”; NAB, NASB “was pleased”; NIV “received the envoys gladly.”
18 tn Heb “there was nothing which Hezekiah did not show them in his house and in all his kingdom.”
19 tn Heb “Lift on high your eyes and see.”
20 tn The words “heavenly lights” are supplied in the translation for clarification. See the following lines.
21 tn Heb “the one who brings out by number their host.” The stars are here likened to a huge army that the Lord leads out. Perhaps the next line pictures God calling roll. If so, the final line may be indicating that none of them dares “go AWOL.” (“AWOL” is a military acronym for “absent without leave.”)
22 tn Heb “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.
23 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
24 tc The Hebrew text reads literally “to [one who] despises life.” It is preferable to read with the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa לבזוי, which should be vocalized as a passive participle, לִבְזוּי (livzuy, “to the one despised with respect to life” [נֶפֶשׁ is a genitive of specification]). The consonantal sequence וי was probably misread as ה in the MT tradition. The contextual argument favors the 1QIsaa reading. As J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 2:294) points out, the three terse phrases “convey a picture of lowliness, worthlessness, and helplessness.”
25 tn MT’s Piel participle (“to the one who rejects”) does not fit contextually. The form should be revocalized as a Pual, “to the one rejected.”
26 tn Parallelism (see “rulers,” “kings,” “princes”) suggests that the singular גּוֹי (goy) be emended to a plural or understood in a collective sense (see 55:5).
27 tn For this sense of קוּם (qum), see Gen 19:1; 23:7; 33:10; Lev 19:32; 1 Sam 20:41; 25:41; 1 Kgs 2:19; Job 29:8.
28 tn Heb “your,” but Zion here stands by metonymy for her children (see v. 22b).
29 tn Heb “you.” See the preceding note.
30 tn Or “at your feet” (NAB, NIV); NLT “from your feet.”
31 tn Heb “and that you forget.”
32 tn Or “the heavens” (also in v. 16). The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
33 tn Heb “and that you tremble constantly all the day.”
34 tn The question anticipates the answer, “Ready to disappear!” See v. 14.
35 tn Or “islands” (NIV); CEV “distant islands”; TEV “distant lands.”
36 tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” See the note at 2:16.
37 tn Heb “to the name of the Lord your God.”
38 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
39 tn Heb “I assign you to the sword.” Some emend the Qal verb form מָנִיתִי (maniti, “I assign”) to the Piel מִנִּיתִי (minniti, “ I ordain”). The verb sounds like the name of the god Meni (מְנִי, mÿni, “Destiny, Fate”). The sound play draws attention to the irony of the statement. The sinners among God’s people worship the god Meni, apparently in an effort to ensure a bright destiny for themselves. But the Lord is the one who really determines their destiny and he has decreed their demise.
40 tn Or “at the slaughter”; NIV “for the slaughter”; NLT “before the executioner.”
41 tn Heb “that which is evil in my eyes.”
42 tn Heb “and I will set a sign among them.” The precise meaning of this statement is unclear. Elsewhere “to set a sign” means “perform a mighty act” (Ps 78:43; Jer 32:20), “make [someone] an object lesson” (Ezek 14:8), and “erect a [literal] standard” (Ps 74:4).
43 tn Some prefer to read “Put” (i.e., Libya).
44 sn That is, Lydia (in Asia Minor).
45 tn Heb “drawers of the bow” (KJV and ASV both similar).
46 sn Javan is generally identified today as Greece (so NIV, NCV, NLT).
47 tn Or “islands” (NIV).