Discovery BoxIsaiah 14:30 
Context14:30 The poor will graze in my pastures; 1
the needy will rest securely.
But I will kill your root by famine;
it will put to death all your survivors. 2
Isaiah 27:6
Context27:6 The time is coming when Jacob will take root; 3
Israel will blossom and grow branches.
The produce 4 will fill the surface of the world. 5
Isaiah 11:10
Context11:10 At that time 6 a root from Jesse 7 will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance, 8 and his residence will be majestic.
Isaiah 14:29
Context14:29 Don’t be so happy, all you Philistines,
just because the club that beat you has been broken! 9
For a viper will grow out of the serpent’s root,
and its fruit will be a darting adder. 10
Isaiah 40:24
Context40:24 Indeed, they are barely planted;
yes, they are barely sown;
yes, they barely take root in the earth,
and then he blows on them, causing them to dry up,
and the wind carries them away like straw.
Isaiah 53:2
Context53:2 He sprouted up like a twig before God, 11
like a root out of parched soil; 12
he had no stately form or majesty that might catch our attention, 13
no special appearance that we should want to follow him. 14
1 tc The Hebrew text has, “the firstborn of the poor will graze.” “Firstborn” may be used here in an idiomatic sense to indicate the very poorest of the poor. See BDB 114 s.v. בְּכוֹר. The translation above assumes an emendation of בְּכוֹרֵי (bÿkhorey, “firstborn of”) to בְּכָרַי (bekharay, “in my pastures”).
2 tn Heb “your remnant” (so NAB, NRSV).
3 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “the coming ones, let Jacob take root.” הַבָּאִים (habba’im, “the coming ones”) should probably be emended to יָמִים בָאִים (yamim va’im, “days [are] coming”) or בְּיָמִים הַבָּאִים (biyamim habba’im, “in the coming days”).
4 tn Heb “fruit” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
5 sn This apparently refers to a future population explosion. See 26:18.
6 tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
8 tn Heb “ a root from Jesse, which stands for a signal flag of the nations, of him nations will inquire” [or “seek”].
9 sn The identity of this “club” (also referred to as a “serpent” in the next line) is uncertain. It may refer to an Assyrian king, or to Ahaz. For discussion see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:331-32. The viper/adder referred to in the second half of the verse is his successor.
10 tn Heb “flying burning one.” The designation “burning one” may allude to the serpent’s appearance or the effect of its poisonous bite. (See the note at 6:2.) The qualifier “flying” probably refers to the serpent’s quick, darting movements, though one might propose a homonym here, meaning “biting.” (See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 1:332, n. 18.) Some might think in terms of a mythological flying, fire breathing dragon (cf. NAB “a flying saraph”; CEV “a flying fiery dragon”), but this proposal does not make good sense in 30:6, where the phrase “flying burning one” appears again in a list of desert animals.
11 tn Heb “before him.” Some suggest an emendation to “before us.” If the third singular suffix of the Hebrew text is retained, it probably refers to the Lord (see v. 1b). For a defense of this reading, see R. Whybray, Isaiah 40-66 (NCBC), 173-74.
12 sn The metaphor in this verse suggests insignificance.
13 tn Heb “that we might see him.” The vav conjunctive prefixed to the imperfect introduces a result clause here. See GKC 504-5 §166.a.
14 tn Heb “that we should desire him.” The vav conjunctive prefixed to the imperfect introduces a result clause here. See GKC 504-5 §166.a.
