37:22 From the north he comes in golden splendor; 3
around God is awesome majesty.
5:4 He will assume his post 4 and shepherd the people 5 by the Lord’s strength,
by the sovereign authority of the Lord his God. 6
They will live securely, 7 for at that time he will be honored 8
even in the distant regions of 9 the earth.
5:2 (5:1) As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, 10
seemingly insignificant 11 among the clans of Judah –
from you a king will emerge who will rule over Israel on my behalf, 12
one whose origins 13 are in the distant past. 14
1:16 Shave your heads bald as you mourn for the children you love; 15
shave your foreheads as bald 16 as an eagle, 17
for they are taken from you into exile.
1 tn The words “and sovereign” are added in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
2 tn Heb “head.”
3 tn The MT has “out of the north comes gold.” Left in that sense the line seems irrelevant. The translation “golden splendor” (with RV, RSV, NRSV, NIV) depends upon the context of theophany. Others suggest “golden rays” (Dhorme), the aurora borealis (Graetz, Gray), or some mythological allusion (Pope), such as Baal’s palace. Golden rays or splendor is what is intended, although the reference is not to a natural phenomenon – it is something that would suggest the glory of God.
4 tn Heb “stand up”; NAB “stand firm”; NASB “will arise.”
5 tn The words “the people” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
6 tn Heb “by the majesty of the name of the
7 tn The words “in peace” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Perhaps וְיָשָׁבוּ (vÿyashavu, “and they will live”) should be emended to וְשָׁבוּ (vÿshavu, “and they will return”).
8 tn Heb “be great.”
9 tn Or “to the ends of.”
10 sn Ephrathah is either an alternate name for Bethlehem or the name of the district in which Bethlehem was located. See Ruth 4:11.
11 tn Heb “being small.” Some omit לִהְיוֹת (lihyot, “being”) because it fits awkwardly and appears again in the next line.
12 tn Heb “from you for me one will go out to be a ruler over Israel.”
13 tn Heb “his goings out.” The term may refer to the ruler’s origins (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) or to his activities.
14 tn Heb “from the past, from the days of antiquity.” Elsewhere both phrases refer to the early periods in the history of the world or of the nation of Israel. For מִקֶּדֶם (miqqedem, “from the past”) see Neh 12:46; Pss 74:12; 77:11; Isa 45:21; 46:10. For מִימֵי עוֹלָם (mimey ’olam, “from the days of antiquity”) see Isa 63:9, 11; Amos 9:11; Mic 7:14; Mal 3:4. In Neh 12:46 and Amos 9:11 the Davidic era is in view.
15 tn Heb “over the sons of your delight.”
16 tn Heb “make wide your baldness.”
17 tn Or “a vulture” (cf. NIV, TEV); CEV “a buzzard.” The Hebrew term נֶשֶׁר (nesher) refers to the griffon vulture or eagle.