2:2 The kings of the earth 2 form a united front; 3
the rulers collaborate 4
against the Lord and his anointed king. 5
61:1 The spirit of the sovereign Lord is upon me,
because the Lord has chosen 6 me. 7
He has commissioned 8 me to encourage 9 the poor,
to help 10 the brokenhearted,
to decree the release of captives,
and the freeing of prisoners,
1 tn Or “designate” (i.e., by anointing with oil).
2 sn The expression kings of the earth refers somewhat hyperbolically to the kings who had been conquered by and were subject to the Davidic king.
3 tn Or “take their stand.” The Hebrew imperfect verbal form describes their action as underway.
4 tn Or “conspire together.” The verbal form is a Niphal from יָסַד (yasad). BDB 413-14 s.v. יָסַד defines the verb as “establish, found,” but HALOT 417 s.v. II יסד proposes a homonym meaning “get together, conspire” (an alternate form of סוּד, sud).
5 tn Heb “and against his anointed one.” The Davidic king is the referent (see vv. 6-7).
6 tn Heb “anointed,” i.e., designated to carry out an assigned task.
7 sn The speaker is not identified, but he is distinct from the Lord and from Zion’s suffering people. He possesses the divine spirit, is God’s spokesman, and is sent to release prisoners from bondage. The evidence suggests he is the Lord’s special servant, described earlier in the servant songs (see 42:1-4, 7; 49:2, 9; 50:4; see also 51:16).
8 tn Or “sent” (NAB); NCV “has appointed me.”
9 tn Or “proclaim good news to.”
10 tn Heb “to bind up [the wounds of].”