Isaiah 57:1-2

57:1 The godly ¹  perish,

but no one cares. ² 

Honest people disappear, ³ 

when no one ⁴  minds ⁵ 

that the godly ⁶  disappear ⁷  because of ⁸  evil. ⁹ 

57:2 Those who live uprightly enter a place of peace;

they rest on their beds. ¹⁰ 

Hebrews 4:9

4:9 Consequently a Sabbath rest remains for the people of God.

Hebrews 4:11

4:11 Thus we must make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by following the same pattern of disobedience.

Revelation 14:13

14:13 Then ¹¹  I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write this:

‘Blessed are the dead,

those who die in the Lord from this moment on!’”

“Yes,” says the Spirit, “so they can rest from their hard work, ¹²  because their deeds will follow them.” ¹³ 

¹ tn Or “righteous” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “the just man”; TEV “Good people.”

² tn Or perhaps, “understands.” Heb “and there is no man who sets [it] upon [his] heart.”

³ tn Heb “Men of loyalty are taken away.” The Niphal of אָסַף (’asaf) here means “to die.”

⁴ tn The Hebrew term בְּאֵין (bÿ’en) often has the nuance “when there is no.” See Prov 8:24; 11;14; 14:4; 15:22; 26:20; 29:18.

⁵ tn Or “realizes”; Heb “understands” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).

⁶ tn Or “righteous” (KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “the just man.”

⁷ tn Heb “are taken away.” The Niphal of אָסַף (’asaf) here means “to die.”

⁸ tn The term מִפְּנֵי (mippÿne, “from the face of”) often has a causal nuance. It also appears with the Niphal of אָסַף (’asaph, “gather”) in 2 Chr 12:5: אֲשֶׁר־נֶאֶסְפוּ אֶל־יְרוּשָׁלַם מִפְּנֵי שִׁישָׁק (’asher-ne’esphu ’el-yÿrushalam mippÿney shishaq, “who had gathered at Jerusalem because of [i.e., due to fear of] Shishak”).

⁹ tn The translation assumes that this verse, in proverbial fashion, laments society’s apathy over the persecution of the godly. The second half of the verse observes that such apathy results in more widespread oppression. Since the next verse pictures the godly being taken to a place of rest, some interpret the second half of v. 1 in a more positive vein. According to proponents of this view, God removes the godly so that they might be spared suffering and calamity, a fact which the general populace fails to realize.

¹⁰ tn Heb “he enters peace, they rest on their beds, the one who walks straight ahead of himself.” The tomb is here viewed in a fairly positive way as a place where the dead are at peace and sleep undisturbed.

¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

¹² tn Or “from their trouble” (L&N 22.7).

¹³ tn Grk “their deeds will follow with them.”