¹ tn Heb “there,” referring to the foreign nations to which they were exiled. The translation makes the referent clear.

¹ tn Heb “to whom a messenger was sent, and look, they came.” Foreign alliances are in view here.

¹ tn Heb “and I am estranged to my brothers, and a foreigner to the sons of my mother.”

¹ sn Psalm 59. The psalmist calls down judgment on his foreign enemies, whom he compares to ravenous wild dogs.

¹ sn This refers to the foreigners whom the king of Assyria settled in the land (see v. 35a).

² tn The terms “Levite, resident foreigner, orphan, and widow” are collective singulars in the Hebrew text (also in v. 13).

⁵ sn On the Hebrew ger (גֵּר) “resident foreigner,” see notes at Exod 12:19 and Deut 29:11.

¹ tn Heb “And if the hand of a foreigner and resident with you reaches” (cf. v. 26 for this idiom).

² sn On the Hebrew ger (גֵּר) “resident foreigner” see notes at Exod 12:19 and Deut 29:11.

³ tn On the Hebrew ger (גֵּר) “resident foreigner” see notes at Exod 12:19 and Deut 29:11.

⁴ sn This is probably a case of deliberate ambiguity (double entendre). The adjective “foreigners” is used for both foreign people (so Jer 30:8; 51:51) and foreign gods (so Jer 2:25; 3:13). See also Jer 16:13 for the idea of having to serve other gods in the lands of exile.

² sn Heb “have made this city foreign.” The verb here is one that is built off of the noun and adjective, which relate to foreign nations. Comparison may be made to Jer 2:21, where the adjective refers to the strange, wild vine as opposed to the choice vine the Lord planted, and to 5:19 and 8:19, where the noun is used of worshiping foreign gods. Israel through its false worship has “denationalized” itself in its relation to God.

² tn Heb “foreign woman” (so ASV). The term נָכְרִיָּה (nokhriyyah, “foreign woman”) often refers to a prostitute (e.g., Prov 2:6; 5:20; 6:24; 7:5). While not all foreign women in Israel were prostitutes, their prospects for economic survival were meager and many turned to prostitution to earn a living. Some English versions see this term referring to an adulteress as opposed to a prostitute (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

¹ tn Grk “the time of your sojourn,” picturing the Christian’s life in this world as a temporary stay in a foreign country (cf. 1:1).

¹ sn A similar attitude toward non-Israelites is found in Isa 56:3-8. There the term is נֵכָר (nekar, “foreigner”) and specifically the descendant (בֶּן, ben) of a nekar who becomes a follower of the Lord. Likewise the resident foreigner גֵּר (ger) in this verse is one who has given allegiance to the Lord (see notes at Exod 12:19 and Deut 29:11). What is new for the resident foreigner (גֵּר, ger) in this prophecy is having an inheritance in Israel. Previously the resident foreigner could own a house but not land.

⁴ sn See the study note on Jer 25:9 for the use of this epithet for foreign rulers. The term emphasizes God’s sovereignty over history.

³ tn Heb “You sat for them [the lovers, i.e., the foreign gods] beside the road like an Arab in the desert.”

³ tn Heb “on one who strikes him down.” This individual is the king (“foreign leader”) of the oppressing nation (which NLT specifies as “the Assyrians”).

² sn This alludes to Gideon’s victory over Midian (Judg 7-8), when the Lord delivered Israel from an oppressive foreign invader.

² tn Heb “a scepter of wickedness.” The “scepter” symbolizes royal authority; when collocated with “wickedness” the phrase refers to an oppressive foreign conqueror.