4:17 This announcement is by the decree of the sentinels;
this decision is by the pronouncement of the holy ones,
so that 1 those who are alive may understand
that the Most High has authority over human kingdoms, 2
and he bestows them on whomever he wishes.
He establishes over them even the lowliest of human beings.’
20:29 Such is the lot God allots the wicked,
and the heritage of his appointment 3 from God.”
2:7 The king says, 4 “I will announce the Lord’s decree. He said to me: 5
‘You are my son! 6 This very day I have become your father!
148:6 He established them so they would endure; 7
he issued a decree that will not be revoked. 8
14:24 9 The Lord who commands armies makes this solemn vow:
“Be sure of this:
Just as I have intended, so it will be;
just as I have planned, it will happen.
14:25 I will break Assyria 10 in my land,
I will trample them 11 underfoot on my hills.
Their yoke will be removed from my people,
the burden will be lifted from their shoulders. 12
14:26 This is the plan I have devised for the whole earth;
my hand is ready to strike all the nations.” 13
14:27 Indeed, 14 the Lord who commands armies has a plan,
and who can possibly frustrate it?
His hand is ready to strike,
and who can possibly stop it? 15
23:9 The Lord who commands armies planned it –
to dishonor the pride that comes from all her beauty, 16
to humiliate all the dignitaries of the earth.
46:10 who announces the end from the beginning
and reveals beforehand 17 what has not yet occurred,
who says, ‘My plan will be realized,
I will accomplish what I desire,’
46:11 who summons an eagle 18 from the east,
from a distant land, one who carries out my plan.
Yes, I have decreed, 19
yes, I will bring it to pass;
I have formulated a plan,
yes, I will carry it out.
1 tc The present translation follows an underlying reading of עַל־דִּבְרַת (’al-divrat, “so that”) rather than MT עַד־דִּבְרַת (’ad-divrat, “until”).
2 tn Aram “the kingdom of man”; NASB “the realm of mankind”; NCV “every kingdom on earth.”
3 tn For the word אִמְרוֹ (’imro) some propose reading “his appointment,” and the others, “his word.” Driver shows that “the heritage of his appointment” means “his appointed heritage” (see GKC 440 §135.n).
4 tn The words “the king says” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The speaker is the Lord’s chosen king.
5 tn Or “I will relate the decree. The
6 sn ‘You are my son!’ The Davidic king was viewed as God’s “son” (see 2 Sam 7:14; Ps 89:26-27). The idiom reflects ancient Near Eastern adoption language associated with covenants of grant, by which a lord would reward a faithful subject by elevating him to special status, referred to as “sonship.” Like a son, the faithful subject received an “inheritance,” viewed as an unconditional, eternal gift. Such gifts usually took the form of land and/or an enduring dynasty. See M. Weinfeld, “The Covenant of Grant in the Old Testament and in the Ancient Near East,” JAOS 90 (1970): 184-203, for general discussion and some striking extra-biblical parallels.
7 tn Or “forever and ever.”
8 tn Heb “and it will not pass away.”
9 sn Having announced the downfall of the Chaldean empire, the Lord appends to this prophecy a solemn reminder that the Assyrians, the major Mesopotamian power of Isaiah’s day, would be annihilated, foreshadowing what would subsequently happen to Babylon and the other hostile nations.
10 tn Heb “to break Assyria.”
11 tn Heb “him.” This is a collective singular referring to the nation, or a reference to the king of Assyria who by metonymy stands for the entire nation.
12 tn Heb “and his [i.e., Assyria’s] yoke will be removed from them [the people?], and his [Assyria’s] burden from his [the nation’s?] shoulder will be removed.” There are no antecedents in this oracle for the suffixes in the phrases “from them” and “from his shoulder.” Since the Lord’s land and hills are referred to in the preceding line and the statement seems to echo 10:27, it is likely that God’s people are the referents of the suffixes; the translation uses “my people” to indicate this.
13 tn Heb “and this is the hand that is outstretched over all the nations.”
14 tn Or “For” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
15 tn Heb “His hand is outstretched and who will turn it back?”
16 tn Heb “the pride of all the beauty.”
17 tn Or “from long ago”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV “from ancient times.”
18 tn Or, more generally, “a bird of prey” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV; see 18:6).
19 tn Heb “spoken”; KJV “I have spoken it.”