Isaiah 34:5

34:5 He says, “Indeed, my sword has slaughtered heavenly powers.

Look, it now descends on Edom,

on the people I will annihilate in judgment.”


tn The words “he says” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The Lord speaks at this point.

tn Heb “indeed [or “for”] my sword is drenched in the heavens.” The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has תראה (“[my sword] appeared [in the heavens]”), but this is apparently an attempt to make sense out of a difficult metaphor. Cf. NIV “My sword has drunk its fill in the heavens.”

sn Edom is mentioned here as epitomizing the hostile nations that oppose God.