59:11 Do not strike them dead suddenly,
because then my people might forget the lesson. 3
Use your power to make them homeless vagabonds and then bring them down,
O Lord who shields us! 4
1 tn Heb “and also through Jehu son of Hanani the word of the
2 tn Heb “angering him by the work of his hands, so that he was like the house of Jeroboam, and because of how he struck it down.”
3 tn Heb “do not kill them, lest my people forget.”
4 tn Heb “make them roam around by your strength and bring them down, O our shield, the Lord.”
5 tn Heb “to him.” The referent (Hosea) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Heb “I will visit.” The verb פָּקַד (paqad, “to visit”) has a very broad range of meanings: (1) “to pay attention to; to look at” (a) favorably: to look after; to provide for; to care for; (b) unfavorably: to seek vengeance for; to punish for; (2) militarily: (a) “to muster; to enroll”; (b) “to inspect; to review”; (3) leadership: (a) “to rule over; to oversee”; (b) Hiphil: “to appoint an overseer” (see BDB 823 s.v. פָּקַד; HALOT 955-58 s.v. פקד). In this context, the nuance “to punish” or “to take vengeance” (see 1b above) is most appropriate. Cf. KJV, ASV “I will avenge”; NAB, NASB, NRSV “I will punish.”
7 tn Heb “house” (so NAB, NRSV); NCV “family”; CEV “descendants.”
8 tn The plural form of דָּם (dam, “blood”) refers to “bloodshed” (BDB 196 s.v. דָּם 2.f). This is an example of a plural of abnormal condition (GKC 400 §124.n). The plural is used to represent natural objects which are found in an unnatural or abnormal condition. The plural is used because the natural object is normally found as a whole or in one unit, but in the abnormal condition the object is found in many parts. Normally, blood is contained as a whole within the body. However, when a brutal murder occurs, blood is shed and literally spilled all over the place. Cf. NIV “the massacre”; TEV, CEV, NLT “the murders.”
9 tn Heb “I will visit the bloodshed of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu.”
10 tn Heb “the kingdom of the house of Israel” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV). This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.
11 sn The proper name יִזְרְעֶאל (yizré’e’l, “Jezreel”) sounds like יִשְׂרָאֵל (yisra’el, “Israel”). This phonetic wordplay associates the sin at Jezreel with the judgment on Israel, stressing poetic justice.
12 tn The translation “put your sword back in its place” for this phrase is given in L&N 85.52.