9:14 So the Lord cut off Israel’s head and tail,
both the shoots and stalk 1 in one day.
9:15 The leaders and the highly respected people 2 are the head,
the prophets who teach lies are the tail.
9:16 The leaders of this nation were misleading people,
and the people being led were destroyed. 3
1 sn The metaphor in this line is that of a reed being cut down.
2 tn Heb “the elder and the one lifted up with respect to the face.” For another example of the Hebrew idiom, see 2 Kgs 5:1.
3 tn Heb “and the ones being led were swallowed up.” Instead of taking מְבֻלָּעִים (mÿbulla’im) from בָּלַע (bala’, “to swallow”), HALOT 134 s.v. בלע proposes a rare homonymic root בלע (“confuse”) here.