Discovery BoxIsaiah 46:2 
Context46:2 Together they bend low and kneel down;
they are unable to rescue the images; 1
they themselves 2 head off into captivity. 3
Isaiah 46:7
Context46:7 They put it on their shoulder and carry it;
they put it in its place and it just stands there;
it does not 4 move from its place.
Even when someone cries out to it, it does not reply;
it does not deliver him from his distress.
1 tn Heb “[the] burden,” i.e., their images, the heavy burden carried by the animals.
2 tn נַפְשָׁם (nafsham, “their souls/lives”) is equivalent here to a third masculine plural suffix, but the third feminine singular verb הָלָכָה (halakhah, “they go”) agrees with the feminine noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul, life”).
3 sn The downfall of Babylon is depicted here. The idols are carried off by the victorious enemy; the gods are likened to defeated captives who cower before the enemy and are taken into exile.
4 tn Or perhaps, “cannot,” here and in the following two lines. The imperfect forms can indicate capability.
