44:11 Look, all his associates 1 will be put to shame;
the craftsmen are mere humans. 2
Let them all assemble and take their stand!
They will panic and be put to shame.
45:8 O sky, rain down from above!
Let the clouds send down showers 3 of deliverance!
Let the earth absorb it 4 so salvation may grow, 5
and deliverance may sprout up 6 along with it.
I, the Lord, create it. 7
1 tn The pronoun “his” probably refers to the one who forms/casts an idol (v. 10), in which case it refers to the craftsman’s associates in the idol-manufacturing guild.
2 sn The point seems to be this: If the idols are the mere products of human hands, then those who trust in them will be disappointed, for man-made gods are incapable of helping their “creators.”
3 tn Heb “let the clouds drip with”; KJV “let the skies pour down.”
4 tn Heb “open up” (so NASB); NIV, NLT “open wide.”
5 tc The plural verb should be emended to a singular form. The vav (ו) ending is probably virtually dittographic (note the yod at the beginning of the following word).
6 tc The Hiphil verb form (תַצְמִיחַ, tatsmiakh) should probably be emended to a Qal (תִצְמַח, titsmakh). The יח sequence at the end of the form is probably due to dittography (note the following יַחַד, yakhad).
7 tn The masculine singular pronominal suffix probably refers back to יָשַׁע (yasha’, “salvation”).