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
61:4 They will rebuild the perpetual ruins
and restore the places that were desolate; 6
they will reestablish the ruined cities,
the places that have been desolate since ancient times.
61:5 7 “Foreigners will take care of 8 your sheep;
foreigners will work in your fields and vineyards.
61:6 You will be called, ‘the Lord’s priests,
servants of our God.’ 9
You will enjoy 10 the wealth of nations
and boast about 11 the riches you receive from them. 12
61:10 I 13 will greatly rejoice 14 in the Lord;
I will be overjoyed because of my God. 15
For he clothes me in garments of deliverance;
he puts on me a robe symbolizing vindication. 16
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. 17
61:11 For just as the ground produces its crops
and a garden yields its produce,
so the sovereign Lord will cause deliverance 18 to grow,
and give his people reason to praise him in the sight of all the nations. 19
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 “and the formerly desolate places they will raise up.”
7 sn The Lord speaks in vv. 7-8 (and possibly v. 9). It is not clear where the servant’s speech (see vv. 1-3a) ends and the Lord’s begins. Perhaps the direct address to the people signals the beginning of the Lord’s speech.
8 tn Heb “will stand [in position] and shepherd.”
9 tn The Hebrew text adds, “it will be said concerning you.”
10 tn Heb “eat” (KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “feed on”; NLT “be fed with.”
11 tc The form in the Hebrew text is probably a corruption of יִתְאַמְּרוּ (yit’ammÿru), a Hitpael from אָמַר (’amar), meaning “boast about” (see HALOT 67 s.v. II אמר, HALOT 416 s.v. ימר, and BDB 56 s.v. אָמַר).
12 tn Heb “their glory” (i.e., riches).
13 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.
14 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
15 tn Heb “my being is happy in my God”; NAB “in my God is the joy of my soul.”
16 tn Heb “robe of vindication”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV “robe of righteousness.”
17 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.
18 tn Or perhaps, “righteousness,” but the context seems to emphasize deliverance and restoration (see v. 10 and 62:1).
19 tn Heb “and praise before all the nations.”