6:7 Will the Lord accept a thousand rams,
or ten thousand streams of olive oil?
Should I give him my firstborn child as payment for my rebellion,
my offspring – my own flesh and blood – for my sin? 1
6:16 You implement the regulations of Omri,
and all the practices of Ahab’s dynasty; 2
you follow their policies. 3
Therefore I will make you an appalling sight, 4
the city’s 5 inhabitants will be taunted derisively, 6
and nations will mock all of you.” 7
1 tn Heb “the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is often translated “soul,” but the word usually refers to the whole person; here “the sin of my soul” = “my sin.”
2 tn Heb “the edicts of Omri are kept, and all the deeds of the house of Ahab.”
3 tn Heb “and you walk in their plans.”
sn The Omride dynasty, of which Ahab was the most infamous king, had a reputation for implementing unjust and oppressive measures. See 1 Kgs 21.
4 tn The Hebrew term שַׁמָּה (shammah) can refer to “destruction; ruin,” or to the reaction it produces in those who witness the destruction.
5 tn Heb “her”; the referent (the city) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Heb “[an object] of hissing,” which was a way of taunting someone.
7 tc The translation assumes an emendation of the MT’s עַמִּי (’ammi, “my people”) to עַמִּים (’ammim, “nations”).
tn Heb “and the reproach of my people you will bear.” The second person verb is plural here, in contrast to the singular forms used in vv. 13-15.