32:29 I wish that they were wise and could understand this,
and that they could comprehend what will happen to them.”
32:1 Listen, O heavens, and I will speak;
hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
1:3 An ox recognizes its owner,
a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food; 3
but Israel does not recognize me, 4
my people do not understand.”
5:12 They have stringed instruments, 5 tambourines, flutes,
and wine at their parties.
So they do not recognize what the Lord is doing,
they do not perceive what he is bringing about. 6
7:2 They do not realize 7
that I remember all of their wicked deeds.
Their evil deeds have now surrounded them;
their sinful deeds are always before me. 8
1 tn Heb “the commandments of the
2 tn Heb “and walk in his ways” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
3 tn Heb “and the donkey the feeding trough of its owner.” The verb in the first line does double duty in the parallelism.
4 tn Although both verbs have no object, the parallelism suggests that Israel fails to recognize the Lord as the one who provides for their needs. In both clauses, the placement of “Israel” and “my people” at the head of the clause focuses the reader’s attention on the rebellious nation (C. van der Merwe, J. Naudé, J. Kroeze, A Biblical Hebrew Reference Grammar, 346-47).
5 tn Two types of stringed instruments are specifically mentioned in the Hebrew text, the כִּנּוֹר (kinnor, “zither”) and נֶבֶל (nevel, “harp”).
6 tn Heb “the work of the Lord they do not look at, and the work of his hands they do not see.” God’s “work” can sometimes be his creative deeds, but in this context it is the judgment that he is planning to bring upon his people (cf. vv. 19, 26; 10:12; 28:21).
7 tn Heb “and they do not say in their heart”; TEV “It never enters their heads.”
8 tn Heb “they [the sinful deeds] are before my face” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NCV “they are right in front of me.”