56:11 The dogs have big appetites;
they are never full. 1
They are shepherds who have no understanding;
they all go their own way,
each one looking for monetary gain. 2
44:18 They do not comprehend or understand,
for their eyes are blind and cannot see;
their minds do not discern. 3
45:6 I do this 4 so people 5 will recognize from east to west
that there is no God but me;
I am the Lord, I have no peer.
42:16 I will lead the blind along an unfamiliar way; 6
I will guide them down paths they have never traveled. 7
I will turn the darkness in front of them into light,
and level out the rough ground. 8
This is what I will do for them.
I will not abandon them.
44:9 All who form idols are nothing;
the things in which they delight are worthless.
Their witnesses cannot see;
they recognize nothing, so they are put to shame.
45:20 Gather together and come!
Approach together, you refugees from the nations!
Those who carry wooden idols know nothing,
those who pray to a god that cannot deliver.
56:10 All their watchmen 9 are blind,
they are unaware. 10
All of them are like mute dogs,
unable to bark.
They pant, 11 lie down,
and love to snooze.
59:8 They are unfamiliar with peace;
their deeds are unjust. 12
They use deceitful methods,
and whoever deals with them is unfamiliar with peace. 13
1 sn The phrase never full alludes to the greed of the leaders.
2 tn Heb “for his gain from his end.”
3 tn Heb “for their eyes are smeared over so they cannot see, so their heart cannot be wise.”
5 tn The words “I do this” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
6 tn Heb “they” (so KJV, ASV); TEV, CEV “everyone”; NLT “all the world.”
7 tn Heb “a way they do not know” (so NASB); NRSV “a road they do not know.”
8 tn Heb “in paths they do not know I will make them walk.”
9 tn Heb “and the rough ground into a level place.”
9 sn The “watchmen” are probably spiritual leaders, most likely prophets and priests, responsible for giving the people moral direction.
10 tn Heb “they do not know”; KJV “they are all ignorant”; NIV “they all lack knowledge.”
11 tn The Hebrew text has הֹזִים (hozim), which appears to be derived from an otherwise unattested verbal root הָזָה (hazah). On the basis of alleged cognates, BDB 223 s.v. הָזָה offers the definition “dream, rave” while HALOT 243 s.v. הזה lists “pant.” In this case the dog metaphor of the preceding lines continues. The reference to dogs at the beginning of v. 11 favors the extension of the metaphor. The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has חזים (“seers”) here. In this case the “watchmen” are directly identified as prophets and depicted as lazy.
11 tn Heb “a way of peace they do not know, and there is no justice in their pathways.”
12 tn Heb “their paths they make crooked, everyone who walks in it does not know peace.”