Discovery BoxIsaiah 2:4 
Context2:4 He will judge disputes between nations;
he will settle cases for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares, 1
and their spears into pruning hooks. 2
Nations will not take up the sword against other nations,
and they will no longer train for war.
Isaiah 21:2
Context21:2 I have received a distressing message: 3
“The deceiver deceives,
the destroyer destroys.
Attack, you Elamites!
Lay siege, you Medes!
I will put an end to all the groaning!” 4
Isaiah 24:16
Context24:16 From the ends of the earth we 5 hear songs –
the Just One is majestic. 6
But I 7 say, “I’m wasting away! I’m wasting away! I’m doomed!
Deceivers deceive, deceivers thoroughly deceive!” 8
Isaiah 31:2
Context31:2 Yet he too is wise 9 and he will bring disaster;
he does not retract his decree. 10
He will attack the wicked nation, 11
and the nation that helps 12 those who commit sin. 13
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 42:14
Context42:14 “I have been inactive 14 for a long time;
I kept quiet and held back.
Like a woman in labor I groan;
I pant and gasp. 15
Isaiah 42:22
Context42:22 But these people are looted and plundered;
all of them are trapped in pits 16
and held captive 17 in prisons.
They were carried away as loot with no one to rescue them;
they were carried away as plunder, and no one says, “Bring that back!” 18
Isaiah 44:11
Context44:11 Look, all his associates 19 will be put to shame;
the craftsmen are mere humans. 20
Let them all assemble and take their stand!
They will panic and be put to shame.
Isaiah 44:26
Context44:26 who fulfills the oracles of his prophetic servants 21
and brings to pass the announcements 22 of his messengers,
who says about Jerusalem, 23 ‘She will be inhabited,’
and about the towns of Judah, ‘They will be rebuilt,
her ruins I will raise up,’
Isaiah 53:11
Context53:11 Having suffered, he will reflect on his work,
he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. 24
“My servant 25 will acquit many, 26
for he carried their sins. 27
Isaiah 65:1
Context65:1 “I made myself available to those who did not ask for me; 28
I appeared to those who did not look for me. 29
I said, ‘Here I am! Here I am!’
to a nation that did not invoke 30 my name.
1 sn Instead of referring to the large plow as a whole, the plowshare is simply the metal tip which actually breaks the earth and cuts the furrow.
2 sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:93; M. Klingbeil, NIDOTTE 1:1117-18). It was a short knife with a curved hook at the end sharpened on the inside like a sickle. Breaking weapons and fashioning agricultural implements indicates a transition from fear and stress to peace and security.
3 tn Heb “a severe revelation has been related to me.”
4 sn This is often interpreted to mean “all the groaning” that Babylon has caused others.
5 sn The identity of the subject is unclear. Apparently in vv. 15-16a an unidentified group responds to the praise they hear in the west by exhorting others to participate.
6 tn Heb “Beauty belongs to the just one.” These words may summarize the main theme of the songs mentioned in the preceding line.
7 sn The prophet seems to contradict what he hears the group saying. Their words are premature because more destruction is coming.
8 tn Heb “and [with] deception deceivers deceive.”
tn Verse 16b is a classic example of Hebrew wordplay. In the first line (“I’m wasting away…”) four consecutive words end with hireq yod ( ִי); in the second line all forms are derived from the root בָּגַד (bagad). The repetition of sound draws attention to the prophet’s lament.
9 sn This statement appears to have a sarcastic tone. The royal advisers who are advocating an alliance with Egypt think they are wise, but the Lord possesses wisdom as well and will thwart their efforts.
10 tn Heb “and he does not turn aside [i.e., “retract”] his words”; NIV “does not take back his words.”
11 tn Heb “and he will arise against the house of the wicked.”
12 sn That is, Egypt.
13 tn Heb “and against the help of the doers of sin.”
14 tn Heb “silent” (so NASB, NIV, TEV, NLT); CEV “have held my temper.”
15 sn The imagery depicts the Lord as a warrior who is eager to fight and can no longer hold himself back from the attack.
16 tc The Hebrew text has בַּחוּרִים (bakhurim, “young men”), but the text should be emended to בְּהוֹרִים (bÿhorim, “in holes”).
17 tn Heb “and made to be hidden”; NAB, NASB, NIV, TEV “hidden away in prisons.”
18 tn Heb “they became loot and there was no one rescuing, plunder and there was no one saying, ‘Bring back’.”
19 tn The pronoun “his” probably refers to the one who forms/casts an idol (v. 10), in which case it refers to the craftsman’s associates in the idol-manufacturing guild.
20 sn The point seems to be this: If the idols are the mere products of human hands, then those who trust in them will be disappointed, for man-made gods are incapable of helping their “creators.”
21 tn Heb “the word of his servant.” The following context indicates that the Lord’s prophets are in view.
22 tn Heb “counsel.” The Hebrew term עֵצָה (’etsah) probably refers here to the divine plan as announced by the prophets. See HALOT 867 s.v. I עֵצָה.
23 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
24 tn Heb “he will be satisfied by his knowledge,” i.e., “when he knows.” The preposition is understood as temporal and the suffix as a subjective genitive. Some take בְּדַעְתּוֹ (bÿda’to, “by his knowledge”) with what follows and translate “by knowledge of him,” understanding the preposition as instrumental and the suffix as objective.
25 sn The song ends as it began (cf. 52:13-15), with the Lord announcing the servant’s vindication and exaltation.
26 tn Heb “he will acquit, a righteous one, my servant, many.” צַדִּיק (tsadiq) may refer to the servant, but more likely it is dittographic (note the preceding verb יַצְדִּיק, yatsdiq). The precise meaning of the verb (the Hiphil of צָדַק, tsadaq) is debated. Elsewhere the Hiphil is used at least six times in the sense of “make righteous” in a legal sense, i.e., “pronounce innocent, acquit” (see Exod 23:7; Deut 25:1; 1 Kgs 8:32 = 2 Chr 6:23; Prov 17:15; Isa 5:23). It can also mean “render justice” (as a royal function, see 2 Sam 15:4; Ps 82:3), “concede” (Job 27:5), “vindicate” (Isa 50:8), and “lead to righteousness” (by teaching and example, Dan 12:3). The preceding context and the next line suggest a legal sense here. Because of his willingness to carry the people’s sins, the servant is able to “acquit” them.
sn Some (e.g., H. M. Orlinsky, “The So-called ‘Suffering Servant’ in Isaiah 53,22,” VTSup 14 [1967]: 3-133) object to this legal interpretation of the language, arguing that it would be unjust for the righteous to suffer for the wicked and for the wicked to be declared innocent. However, such a surprising development is consistent with the ironic nature of this song. It does seem unfair for the innocent to die for the guilty. But what is God to do when all have sinned and wandered off like stray sheep (cf. v. 6)? Covenant law demands punishment, but punishment in this case would mean annihilation of what God has created. God’s justice, as demanded by the law, must be satisfied. To satisfy his justice, he does something seemingly unjust. He punishes his sinless servant, the only one who has not strayed off! In the progress of biblical revelation, we discover that the sinless servant is really God in the flesh, who offers himself because he is committed to the world he has created. If his justice can only be satisfied if he himself endures the punishment, then so be it. What appears to be an act of injustice is really love satisfying the demands of justice!
27 tn The circumstantial clause (note the vav [ו] + object + subject + verb pattern) is understood as causal here. The prefixed verb form is either a preterite or an imperfect used in a customary manner.
28 tn Heb “I allowed myself to be sought by those who did not ask.”
29 tn Heb “I allowed myself to be found by those who did not seek.”
30 tn Heb “call out in”; NASB, NIV, NRSV “call on.”
