35:1 Let the desert and dry region be happy; 1
let the wilderness 2 rejoice and bloom like a lily!
41:18 I will make streams flow down the slopes
and produce springs in the middle of the valleys.
I will turn the desert into a pool of water
and the arid land into springs.
53:2 He sprouted up like a twig before God, 3
like a root out of parched soil; 4
he had no stately form or majesty that might catch our attention, 5
no special appearance that we should want to follow him. 6
1 tn The final mem (ם) on the verb יְשֻׂשׂוּם (yÿsusum) is dittographic (note the initial mem on the following noun מִדְבָּר [midbar]). The ambiguous verbal form is translated as a jussive because it is parallel to the jussive form תָגֵל (tagel). The jussive is used rhetorically here, not as a literal command or prayer.
2 tn Or “Arabah” (NASB); NAB, NIV, TEV “desert.”
3 tn Heb “before him.” Some suggest an emendation to “before us.” If the third singular suffix of the Hebrew text is retained, it probably refers to the Lord (see v. 1b). For a defense of this reading, see R. Whybray, Isaiah 40-66 (NCBC), 173-74.
4 sn The metaphor in this verse suggests insignificance.
5 tn Heb “that we might see him.” The vav conjunctive prefixed to the imperfect introduces a result clause here. See GKC 504-5 §166.a.
6 tn Heb “that we should desire him.” The vav conjunctive prefixed to the imperfect introduces a result clause here. See GKC 504-5 §166.a.