61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,
by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,
oil symbolizing joy, 1 instead of mourning,
a garment symbolizing praise, 2 instead of discouragement. 3
They will be called oaks of righteousness, 4
trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. 5
61:9 Their descendants will be known among the nations,
their offspring among the peoples.
All who see them will recognize that
the Lord has blessed them.” 6
61:10 I 7 will greatly rejoice 8 in the Lord;
I will be overjoyed because of my God. 9
For he clothes me in garments of deliverance;
he puts on me a robe symbolizing vindication. 10
I look like a bridegroom when he wears a turban as a priest would;
I look like a bride when she puts on her jewelry. 11
61:11 For just as the ground produces its crops
and a garden yields its produce,
so the sovereign Lord will cause deliverance 12 to grow,
and give his people reason to praise him in the sight of all the nations. 13
1 tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”
2 tn Heb “garment of praise.”
3 tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”
4 tn Rather than referring to the character of the people, צֶדֶק (tsedeq) may carry the nuance “vindication” here, suggesting that God’s restored people are a testimony to his justice. See v. 2, which alludes to the fact that God will take vengeance against the enemies of his people. Cf. NAB “oaks of justice.”
5 tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”
6 tn Heb “all who see them will recognize them, that they [are] descendants [whom] the Lord has blessed.”
7 sn The speaker in vv. 10-11 is not identified, but it is likely that the personified nation (or perhaps Zion) responds here to the Lord’s promise of restoration.
8 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
9 tn Heb “my being is happy in my God”; NAB “in my God is the joy of my soul.”
10 tn Heb “robe of vindication”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV “robe of righteousness.”
11 tn Heb “like a bridegroom [who] acts like a priest [by wearing] a turban, and like a bride [who] wears her jewelry.” The words “I look” are supplied for stylistic reasons and clarification.
12 tn Or perhaps, “righteousness,” but the context seems to emphasize deliverance and restoration (see v. 10 and 62:1).
13 tn Heb “and praise before all the nations.”