5:3 So the Lord 1 will hand the people of Israel 2 over to their enemies 3
until the time when the woman in labor 4 gives birth. 5
Then the rest of the king’s 6 countrymen will return
to be reunited with the people of Israel. 7
5:6 They will rule 8 the land of Assyria with the sword,
the land of Nimrod 9 with a drawn sword. 10
Our king 11 will rescue us from the Assyrians
should they attempt to invade our land
and try to set foot in our territory.
1 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the
2 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the people of Israel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
3 tn The words “to their enemies” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
4 sn The woman in labor. Personified, suffering Jerusalem is the referent. See 4:9-10.
5 sn Gives birth. The point of the figurative language is that Jerusalem finally finds relief from her suffering. See 4:10.
6 tn Heb “his”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7 tn Heb “to the sons of Israel.” The words “be reunited with” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
sn The rest of the king’s brothers are the coming king’s fellow Judahites, while the sons of Israel are the northern tribes. The verse pictures the reunification of the nation under the Davidic king. See Isa 11:12-13; Jer 31:2-6, 15-20; Ezek 37; Hos 1:11; 3:5.
8 tn Or perhaps “break”; or “defeat.”
9 sn According to Gen 10:8-12, Nimrod, who was famous as a warrior and hunter, founded Assyria.
10 tc The MT reads “in her gates,” but the text should be emended to בַּפְּתִיחָה (baptikhah, “with a drawn sword”).
11 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the coming king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.