5:1 I 1 will sing to my love –
a song to my lover about his vineyard. 2
My love had a vineyard
on a fertile hill. 3
5:2 He built a hedge around it, 4 removed its stones,
and planted a vine.
He built a tower in the middle of it,
and constructed a winepress.
He waited for it to produce edible grapes,
but it produced sour ones instead. 5
5:3 So now, residents of Jerusalem, 6
people 7 of Judah,
you decide between me and my vineyard!
5:4 What more can I do for my vineyard
beyond what I have already done?
When I waited for it to produce edible grapes,
why did it produce sour ones instead?
5:5 Now I will inform you
what I am about to do to my vineyard:
I will remove its hedge and turn it into pasture, 8
I will break its wall and allow animals to graze there. 9
5:6 I will make it a wasteland;
no one will prune its vines or hoe its ground, 10
and thorns and briers will grow there.
I will order the clouds
not to drop any rain on it.
5:7 Indeed 11 Israel 12 is the vineyard of the Lord who commands armies,
the people 13 of Judah are the cultivated place in which he took delight.
He waited for justice, but look what he got – disobedience! 14
He waited for fairness, but look what he got – cries for help! 15
5:8 Those who accumulate houses are as good as dead, 16
those who also accumulate landed property 17
until there is no land left, 18
and you are the only landowners remaining within the land. 19
5:9 The Lord who commands armies told me this: 20
“Many houses will certainly become desolate,
large, impressive houses will have no one living in them. 21
5:10 Indeed, a large vineyard 22 will produce just a few gallons, 23
and enough seed to yield several bushels 24 will produce less than a bushel.” 25
5:11 Those who get up early to drink beer are as good as dead, 26
those who keep drinking long after dark
until they are intoxicated with wine. 27
5:12 They have stringed instruments, 28 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. 29
5:13 Therefore my 30 people will be deported 31
because of their lack of understanding.
Their 32 leaders will have nothing to eat, 33
their 34 masses will have nothing to drink. 35
5:14 So Death 36 will open up its throat,
and open wide its mouth; 37
Zion’s dignitaries and masses will descend into it,
including those who revel and celebrate within her. 38
5:15 Men will be humiliated,
they will be brought low;
the proud will be brought low. 39
5:16 The Lord who commands armies will be exalted 40 when he punishes, 41
the sovereign God’s authority will be recognized when he judges. 42
5:17 Lambs 43 will graze as if in their pastures,
amid the ruins the rich sojourners will graze. 44
5:18 Those who pull evil along using cords of emptiness are as good as dead, 45
who pull sin as with cart ropes. 46
5:19 They say, “Let him hurry, let him act quickly, 47
so we can see;
let the plan of the Holy One of Israel 48 take shape 49 and come to pass,
then we will know it!”
5:20 Those who call evil good and good evil are as good as dead, 50
who turn darkness into light and light into darkness,
who turn bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter. 51
5:21 Those who think they are wise are as good as dead, 52
those who think they possess understanding. 53
5:22 Those who are champions 54 at drinking wine are as good as dead, 55
who display great courage when mixing strong drinks.
5:23 They pronounce the guilty innocent for a payoff,
they ignore the just cause of the innocent. 56
5:24 Therefore, as flaming fire 57 devours straw,
and dry grass disintegrates in the flames,
so their root will rot,
and their flower will blow away like dust. 58
For they have rejected the law of the Lord who commands armies,
they have spurned the commands 59 of the Holy One of Israel. 60
5:25 So the Lord is furious 61 with his people;
he lifts 62 his hand and strikes them.
The mountains shake,
and corpses lie like manure 63 in the middle of the streets.
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again. 64
5:26 He lifts a signal flag for a distant nation, 65
he whistles for it to come from the far regions of the earth.
Look, they 66 come quickly and swiftly.
5:27 None tire or stumble,
they don’t stop to nap or sleep.
They don’t loosen their belts,
or unstrap their sandals to rest. 67
5:28 Their arrows are sharpened,
and all their bows are prepared. 68
The hooves of their horses are hard as flint, 69
and their chariot wheels are like a windstorm. 70
5:29 Their roar is like a lion’s;
they roar like young lions.
They growl and seize their prey;
they drag it away and no one can come to the rescue.
5:30 At that time 71 they will growl over their prey, 72
it will sound like sea waves crashing against rocks. 73
One will look out over the land and see the darkness of disaster,
clouds will turn the light into darkness. 74
6:1 In the year of King Uzziah’s death, 75 I saw the sovereign master 76 seated on a high, elevated throne. The hem of his robe filled the temple. 6:2 Seraphs 77 stood over him; each one had six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, 78 and they used the remaining two to fly. 6:3 They called out to one another, “Holy, holy, holy 79 is the Lord who commands armies! 80 His majestic splendor fills the entire earth!” 6:4 The sound of their voices shook the door frames, 81 and the temple was filled with smoke.
6:5 I said, “Too bad for me! I am destroyed, 82 for my lips are contaminated by sin, 83 and I live among people whose lips are contaminated by sin. 84 My eyes have seen the king, the Lord who commands armies.” 85 6:6 But then one of the seraphs flew toward me. In his hand was a hot coal he had taken from the altar with tongs. 6:7 He touched my mouth with it and said, “Look, this coal has touched your lips. Your evil is removed; your sin is forgiven.” 86 6:8 I heard the voice of the sovereign master say, “Whom will I send? Who will go on our behalf?” 87 I answered, “Here I am, send me!” 6:9 He said, “Go and tell these people:
‘Listen continually, but don’t understand!
Look continually, but don’t perceive!’
6:10 Make the hearts of these people calloused;
make their ears deaf and their eyes blind!
Otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
their hearts might understand and they might repent and be healed.” 88
6:11 I replied, “How long, sovereign master?” He said,
“Until cities are in ruins and unpopulated,
and houses are uninhabited,
and the land is ruined and devastated,
6:12 and the Lord has sent the people off to a distant place,
and the very heart of the land is completely abandoned. 89
6:13 Even if only a tenth of the people remain in the land, it will again be destroyed, 90 like one of the large sacred trees 91 or an Asherah pole, when a sacred pillar on a high place is thrown down. 92 That sacred pillar symbolizes the special chosen family.” 93
1 tn It is uncertain who is speaking here. Possibly the prophet, taking the role of best man, composes a love song for his friend on the occasion of his wedding. If so, יָדִיד (yadid) should be translated “my friend.” The present translation assumes that Israel is singing to the Lord. The word דוֹד (dod, “lover”) used in the second line is frequently used by the woman in the Song of Solomon to describe her lover.
2 sn Israel, viewing herself as the Lord’s lover, refers to herself as his vineyard. The metaphor has sexual connotations, for it pictures her capacity to satisfy his appetite and to produce children. See Song 8:12.
3 tn Heb “on a horn, a son of oil.” Apparently קֶרֶן (qeren, “horn”) here refers to the horn-shaped peak of a hill (BDB 902 s.v.) or to a mountain spur, i.e., a ridge that extends laterally from a mountain (HALOT 1145 s.v. קֶרֶן; H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:180). The expression “son of oil” pictures this hill as one capable of producing olive trees. Isaiah’s choice of קֶרֶן, a rare word for hill, may have been driven by paronomastic concerns, i.e., because קֶרֶן sounds like כֶּרֶם (kerem, “vineyard”).
4 tn Or, “dug it up” (so NIV); KJV “fenced it.’ See HALOT 810 s.v. עזק.
5 tn Heb “wild grapes,” i.e., sour ones (also in v. 4).
6 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
7 tn Heb “men,” but in a generic sense.
8 tn Heb “and it will become [a place for] grazing.” בָּעַר (ba’ar, “grazing”) is a homonym of the more often used verb “to burn.”
9 tn Heb “and it will become a trampled place” (NASB “trampled ground”).
10 tn Heb “it will not be pruned or hoed” (so NASB); ASV and NRSV both similar.
11 tn Or “For” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).
12 tn Heb “the house of Israel” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).
13 tn Heb “men,” but in a generic sense.
14 tn Heb “but, look, disobedience.” The precise meaning of מִשְׂפָּח (mishpakh), which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain. Some have suggested a meaning “bloodshed.” The term is obviously chosen for its wordplay value; it sounds very much like מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat, “justice”). The sound play draws attention to the point being made; the people have not met the Lord’s expectations.
15 tn Heb “but, look, a cry for help.” The verb (“he waited”) does double duty in the parallelism. צְעָקָה (tsa’qah) refers to the cries for help made by the oppressed. It sounds very much like צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah, “fairness”). The sound play draws attention to the point being made; the people have not met the Lord’s expectations.
16 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who make a house touch a house.” The exclamation הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) was used in funeral laments (see 1 Kgs 13:30; Jer 22:18; 34:5) and carries the connotation of death.
17 tn Heb “[who] bring a field near a field.”
18 tn Heb “until the end of the place”; NASB “until there is no more room.”
19 tn Heb “and you are made to dwell alone in the midst of the land.”
20 tn Heb “in my ears, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].”
21 tn Heb “great and good [houses], without a resident.”
22 tn Heb “a ten-yoke vineyard.” The Hebrew term צֶמֶד (tsemed, “yoke”) is here a unit of square measure. Apparently a ten-yoke vineyard covered the same amount of land it would take ten teams of oxen to plow in a certain period of time. The exact size is unknown.
23 tn Heb “one bath.” A bath was a liquid measure. Estimates of its modern equivalent range from approximately six to twelve gallons.
24 tn Heb “a homer.” A homer was a dry measure, the exact size of which is debated. Cf. NCV “ten bushels”; CEV “five bushels.”
25 tn Heb “an ephah.” An ephah was a dry measure; there were ten ephahs in a homer. So this verse envisions major crop failure, where only one-tenth of the anticipated harvest is realized.
26 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who arise early in the morning, [who] chase beer.”
27 tn Heb “[who] delay until dark, [until] wine enflames them.”
28 tn Two types of stringed instruments are specifically mentioned in the Hebrew text, the כִּנּוֹר (kinnor, “zither”) and נֶבֶל (nevel, “harp”).
29 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).
30 sn It is not certain if the prophet or the Lord is speaking at this point.
31 tn The suffixed (perfect) form of the verb is used; in this way the coming event is described for rhetorical effect as occurring or as already completed.
32 tn The third masculine singular suffix refers back to “my people.”
33 tn Heb “Their glory will be men of hunger.” כָּבוֹד (kavod, “glory”) is in opposition to הָמוֹן (hamon, “masses”) and refers here to the rich and prominent members of the nation. Some prefer to repoint מְתֵי (mÿtey, “men of”) as מִתֵי (mitey, “dead ones of”).
34 tn The third masculine singular suffix refers back to “my people.”
35 tn Heb “and their masses will be parched [by] thirst.”
36 tn Heb “Sheol” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV); the underworld, the land of the dead, according to the OT world view. Cf. NAB “the nether world”; TEV, CEV “the world of the dead”; NLT “the grave.”
37 tn Heb “so Sheol will make wide its throat, and open its mouth without limit.”
38 tn Heb “and her splendor and her masses will go down, and her tumult and the one who exults in her.” The antecedent of the four feminine singular pronominal suffixes used in v. 14b is unclear. The likely referent is personified Zion/Jerusalem (see 3:25-26; 4:4-5).
39 tn Heb “men are brought down, men are brought low, the eyes of pride are brought low.”
40 tn Or “elevated”; TEV “the Lord Almighty shows his greatness.”
41 tn Heb “by judgment/justice.” When God justly punishes the evildoers denounced in the preceding verses, he will be recognized as a mighty warrior.
42 tn Heb “The holy God will be set apart by fairness.” In this context God’s holiness is his sovereign royal authority, which implies a commitment to justice (see the note on the phrase “the sovereign king of Israel” in 1:4). When God judges evildoers as they deserve, his sovereignty will be acknowledged.
43 tn Or “young rams”; NIV, NCV “sheep”; NLT “flocks.”
44 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and ruins, fatlings, resident aliens, will eat.” This part of the verse has occasioned various suggestions of emendation. The parallelism is tighter if the second line refers to animals grazing. The translation, “amid the ruins the fatlings and young sheep graze,” assumes an emendation of “resident aliens” (גָּרִים, garim) to “young goats/sheep” (גְּדַיִם, gÿdayim) – confusion of dalet and resh is quite common – and understands “fatlings” and “young sheep” taken as a compound subject or as in apposition as the subject of the verb. However, no emendations are necessary if the above translation is correct. The meaning of מֵחִים (mekhim) has a significant impact on one’s textual decision and translation. The noun can refer to a sacrificial (“fat”) animal as it does in its only other occurrence (Ps 66:15). However, it could signify the rich of the earth (“the fat ones of the earth”; Ps 22:29 [MT 30]) using a different word for “fatness” (דָּשֶׁן, dashen). If so, it serves a figurative reference to the rich. Consequently, the above translation coheres with the first half of the verse. Just as the sheep are out of place grazing in these places (“as in their pasture”), the sojourners would not have expected to have the chance to eat in these locations. Both animals and itinerant foreigners would eat in places not normal for them.
45 sn See the note at v. 8.
46 tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “Woe to those who pull evil with the ropes of emptiness, and, as [with] ropes of a cart, sin.” Though several textual details are unclear, the basic idea is apparent. The sinners are so attached to their sinful ways (compared here to a heavy load) that they strain to drag them along behind them. If שָׁוְא (shavÿ’, “emptiness”) is retained, it makes a further comment on their lifestyle, denouncing it as one that is devoid of what is right and destined to lead to nothing but destruction. Because “emptiness” does not form a very tight parallel with “cart” in the next line, some emend שָׁוְא to שֶׂה (she, “sheep”) and עֲגָלָה (’agalah, “cart”) to עֵגֶל (’egel, “calf”): “Those who pull evil along with a sheep halter are as good as dead who pull sin with a calf rope” (following the lead of the LXX and improving the internal parallelism of the verse). In this case, the verse pictures the sinners pulling sin along behind them as one pulls an animal with a halter. For a discussion of this view, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:163, n. 1. Nevertheless, this emendation is unnecessary. The above translation emphasizes the folly of the Israelites who hold on to their sin (and its punishment) even while they hope for divine intervention.
47 tn Heb “let his work hurry, let it hasten.” The pronoun “his” refers to God, as the parallel line makes clear. The reference to his “work” alludes back to v. 12, which refers to his ‘work” of judgment. With these words the people challenged the prophet’s warning of approaching judgment. They were in essence saying that they saw no evidence that God was about to work in such a way.
48 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
49 tn Heb “draw near” (so NASB); NRSV “hasten to fulfillment.”
50 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who call.” See the note at v. 8.
51 sn In this verse the prophet denounces the perversion of moral standards. Darkness and bitterness are metaphors for evil; light and sweetness symbolize uprightness.
52 tn Heb “Woe [to] the wise in their own eyes.” See the note at v. 8.
53 tn Heb “[who] before their faces are understanding.”
54 tn The language used here is quite sarcastic and paves the way for the shocking description of the enemy army in vv. 25-30. The rich leaders of Judah are nothing but “party animals” who are totally incapable of withstanding real warriors.
55 tn Heb “Woe [to]….” See the note at v. 8.
56 tn Heb “and the just cause of the innocent ones they turn aside from him.”
57 tn Heb “a tongue of fire” (so NASB), referring to a tongue-shaped flame.
58 sn They are compared to a flowering plant that withers quickly in a hot, arid climate.
59 tn Heb “the word.”
60 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
61 tn Heb “the anger of the Lord rages.”
62 tn Or “extends”; KJV, ASV “he hath stretched forth.”
63 tn Or “garbage” (NCV, CEV, NLT); NAB, NASB, NIV “refuse.”
64 tn Heb “in all this his anger is not turned, and still his hand is outstretched.”
65 tc The Hebrew text has literally, “for nations from a distance.” The following verses use singular forms to describe this nation, so the final mem (ם) on לְגּוֹיִם (lÿgoyim) may be enclitic or dittographic. In the latter case one could read לְגוֹי מֵרָחוֹק (lÿgoy merakhoq, “for a nation from a distance”; see Deut 28:49; Joel 3:8). Another possibility is to emend the text from לַגּוֹיִם מֵרָחוֹק (laggoyim merakhoq) to לְגוֹי מִמֶּרְחָק (lÿgoy mimmerkhaq, “for a nation from a distant place”) a phrase which occurs in Jer 5:15. In this case an error of misdivision has occurred in MT, the mem of the prefixed preposition being accidentally taken as a plural ending on the preceding word.
66 tn Heb “he.” Singular forms are used throughout vv. 26-30 to describe this nation, but for stylistic reasons the translation uses the plural for these collective singulars.
67 tn Heb “and the belt on his waist is not opened, and the thong of his sandals is not torn in two.”
68 tn Heb “bent” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “are strung.”
69 tn Heb “regarded like flint.”
70 sn They are like a windstorm in their swift movement and in the way they kick up dust.
71 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
72 tn Heb “over it”; the referent (the prey) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
73 tn Heb “like the growling of the sea.”
74 tn Heb “and one will gaze toward the land, and look, darkness of distress, and light will grow dark by its [the land’s?] clouds.”
75 sn That is, approximately 740
76 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 8, 11 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
77 tn Hebrew שָׂרָף (saraf, “seraph”) literally means “burning one,” perhaps suggesting that these creatures had a fiery appearance (cf. TEV, CEV “flaming creatures”; NCV “heavenly creatures of fire”). Elsewhere in the OT the word “seraph” refers to poisonous snakes (Num 21:6; Deut 8:15; Isa 14:29; 30:6). Perhaps they were called “burning ones” because of their appearance or the effect of their venomous bites, which would cause a victim to burn up with fever. It is possible that the seraphs seen by Isaiah were at least partially serpentine in appearance. Though it might seem strange for a snake-like creature to have wings, two of the texts where “seraphs” are snakes describe them as “flying” (Isa 14:29; 30:6), perhaps referring to their darting movements. See the note at 14:29.
78 sn Some understand “feet” here as a euphemistic reference to the genitals.
79 tn Some have seen a reference to the Trinity in the seraphs’ threefold declaration, “holy, holy, holy.” This proposal has no linguistic or contextual basis and should be dismissed as allegorical. Hebrew sometimes uses repetition for emphasis. (See IBHS 233-34 §12.5a; and GKC 431-32 §133.k.) By repeating the word “holy,” the seraphs emphasize the degree of the Lord’s holiness. For another example of threefold repetition for emphasis, see Ezek 21:27 (Heb. v. 32). (Perhaps Jer 22:29 provides another example.)
80 tn Perhaps in this context, the title has a less militaristic connotation and pictures the Lord as the ruler of the heavenly assembly. See the note at 1:9.
81 tn On the phrase אַמּוֹת הַסִּפִּים (’ammot hassippim, “pivots of the frames”) see HALOT 763 s.v. סַף.
82 tn Isaiah uses the suffixed (perfect) form of the verb for rhetorical purposes. In this way his destruction is described as occurring or as already completed. Rather than understanding the verb as derived from דָּמַה (damah, “be destroyed”), some take it from a proposed homonymic root דמה, which would mean “be silent.” In this case, one might translate, “I must be silent.”
83 tn Heb “a man unclean of lips am I.” Isaiah is not qualified to praise the king. His lips (the instruments of praise) are “unclean” because he has been contaminated by sin.
84 tn Heb “and among a nation unclean of lips I live.”
85 tn Perhaps in this context, the title has a less militaristic connotation and pictures the Lord as the ruler of the heavenly assembly. See the note at 1:9.
86 tn Or “ritually cleansed,” or “atoned for” (NIV).
87 tn Heb “for us.” The plural pronoun refers to the Lord, the seraphs, and the rest of the heavenly assembly.
88 sn Do we take this commission at face value? Does the Lord really want to prevent his people from understanding, repenting, and being healed? Verse 9, which ostensibly records the content of Isaiah’s message, is clearly ironic. As far as we know, Isaiah did not literally proclaim these exact words. The Hebrew imperatival forms are employed rhetorically and anticipate the response Isaiah will receive. When all is said and done, Isaiah might as well preface and conclude every message with these ironic words, which, though imperatival in form, might be paraphrased as follows: “You continually hear, but don’t understand; you continually see, but don’t perceive.” Isaiah might as well command them to be spiritually insensitive, because, as the preceding and following chapters make clear, the people are bent on that anyway. (This ironic command is comparable to saying to a particularly recalcitrant individual, “Go ahead, be stubborn!”) Verse 10b is also clearly sarcastic. On the surface it seems to indicate Isaiah’s hardening ministry will prevent genuine repentance. But, as the surrounding chapters clearly reveal, the people were hardly ready or willing to repent. Therefore, Isaiah’s preaching was not needed to prevent repentance! Verse 10b reflects the people’s attitude and might be paraphrased accordingly: “Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their mind, repent, and be restored, and they certainly wouldn’t want that, would they?” Of course, this sarcastic statement may also reveal that the Lord himself is now bent on judgment, not reconciliation. Just as Pharaoh’s rejection of Yahweh’s ultimatum ignited judgment and foreclosed, at least temporarily, any opportunity for repentance, so the Lord may have come to the point where he has decreed to bring judgment before opening the door for repentance once more. The sarcastic statement in verse 10b would be an emphatic way of making this clear. (Perhaps we could expand our paraphrase: “Otherwise they might…repent, and be restored, and they certainly wouldn’t want that, would they? Besides, it’s too late for that!”) Within this sarcastic framework, verse 10a must also be seen as ironic. As in verse 9 the imperatival forms should be taken as rhetorical and as anticipating the people’s response. One might paraphrase: “Your preaching will desensitize the minds of these people, make their hearing dull, and blind their eyes.” From the outset the Lord might as well command Isaiah to harden the people, because his preaching will end up having that effect. Despite the use of irony, we should still view this as a genuine, albeit indirect, act of divine hardening. After all, God did not have to send Isaiah. By sending him, he drives the sinful people further from him, for Isaiah’s preaching, which focuses on the Lord’s covenantal demands and impending judgment upon covenantal rebellion, forces the people to confront their sin and then continues to desensitize them as they respond negatively to the message. As in the case of Pharaoh, Yahweh’s hardening is not arbitrarily imposed on a righteous or even morally neutral object. Rather his hardening is an element of his righteous judgment on recalcitrant sinners. Ironically, Israel’s rejection of prophetic preaching in turn expedites disciplinary punishment, and brings the battered people to a point where they might be ready for reconciliation. The prophesied judgment (cf. 6:11-13) was fulfilled by 701
89 tn Heb “and great is the abandonment in the midst of the land.”
90 tn Or “be burned” (NRSV); NIV “laid waste.”
91 tn Heb “like a massive tree or like a big tree” (perhaps, “like a terebinth or like an oak”).
92 tn The Hebrew text has “which in the felling, a sacred pillar in them.” Some take מַצֶּבֶת (matsevet) as “stump,” and translate, “which, when chopped down, have a stump remaining in them.” But elsewhere מַצֶּבֶת refers to a memorial pillar (2 Sam 18:18) and the word resembles מַצֶּבָה (matsevah, “sacred pillar”). בָּם (bam, “in them”) may be a corruption of בָּמָה (bamah, “high place”; the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has במה). אֳשֶׁר (’asher, “which”) becomes a problem in this case, but one might emend the form to וּכְּאֲשֵׁרָה (ukÿ’asherah, “or like an Asherah pole”) and translate, “like one of the large sacred trees or an Asherah pole.” Though the text is difficult, the references to sacred trees and a sacred pillar suggest that the destruction of a high place is in view, an apt metaphor for the judgment of idolatrous Judah.
93 tn Heb “a holy offspring [is] its sacred pillar.” If מַצֶּבֶת (matsevet) is taken as “stump,” one can see in this statement a brief glimpse of hope. The tree (the nation) is chopped down, but the stump (a righteous remnant) remains from which God can restore the nation. However, if מַצֶּבֶת is taken as “sacred pillar” (מַצֶּבָה, matsevah; see the previous note), it is much more difficult to take the final statement in a positive sense. In this case “holy offspring” alludes to God’s ideal for his covenant people, the offspring of the patriarchs. Ironically that “holy” nation is more like a “sacred pillar” and it will be thrown down like a sacred pillar from a high place and its land destroyed like the sacred trees located at such shrines. Understood in this way, the ironic statement is entirely negative in tone, just like the rest of the preceding announcement of judgment. It also reminds the people of their failure; they did not oppose pagan religion, instead they embraced it. Now they will be destroyed in the same way they should have destroyed paganism.