4:3 He will arbitrate 1 between many peoples
and settle disputes between many 2 distant nations. 3
They will beat their swords into plowshares, 4
and their spears into pruning hooks. 5
Nations will not use weapons 6 against other nations,
and they will no longer train for war.
4:4 Each will sit under his own grapevine
or under his own fig tree without any fear. 7
The Lord who commands armies has decreed it. 8
1 tn Or “judge.”
2 tn Or “mighty” (NASB); KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV “strong”; TEV “among the great powers.”
3 tn Heb “[for many nations] to a distance.”
4 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.
5 sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (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.
6 tn Heb “take up the sword.”
7 tn Heb “and there will be no one making [him] afraid.”
8 tn Heb “for the mouth of the