Discovery BoxIsaiah 33:11-14 
Contextyou give birth to chaff;
your breath is a fire that destroys you. 2
33:12 The nations will be burned to ashes; 3
like thorn bushes that have been cut down, they will be set on fire.
33:13 You who are far away, listen to what I have done!
You who are close by, recognize my strength!”
33:14 Sinners are afraid in Zion;
They say, 6 ‘Who among us can coexist with destructive fire?
Who among us can coexist with unquenchable 7 fire?’
1 tn The second person verb and pronominal forms in this verse are plural. The hostile nations are the addressed, as the next verse makes clear.
2 sn The hostile nations’ plans to destroy God’s people will come to nothing; their hostility will end up being self-destructive.
3 tn Heb “will be a burning to lime.” See Amos 2:1.
4 tn Or “trembling” (ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “shake with fear.”
5 tn Or “the defiled”; TEV “The sinful people of Zion”; NLT “The sinners in Jerusalem.”
6 tn The words “they say” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
7 tn Or “perpetual”; or “everlasting” (KJV, ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).
