52:13 “Look, my servant will succeed! 1
He will be elevated, lifted high, and greatly exalted 2 –
52:14 (just as many were horrified by the sight of you) 3
he was so disfigured 4 he no longer looked like a man; 5
1 tn Heb “act wisely,” which by metonymy means “succeed.”
2 tn This piling up of synonyms emphasizes the degree of the servant’s coming exaltation.
3 tn Some witnesses read “him,” which is more consistent with the context, where the servant is spoken about, not addressed. However, it is possible that the Lord briefly addresses the servant here. The present translation assumes the latter view and places the phrase in parentheses.
4 tn Heb “such was the disfigurement.” The noun מִשְׁחַת (mishkhat) occurs only here. It may be derived from the verbal root שָׁחַת (shakhat, “be ruined”; see BDB 1007-8 s.v. שָׁחַת). The construct form appears here before a prepositional phrase (cf. GKC 421 §130.a).
5 tn Heb “from a man his appearance.” The preposition מִן (min) here carries the sense “away from,” i.e., “so as not to be.” See BDB 583 s.v.