81:12 I gave them over to their stubborn desires; 1
they did what seemed right to them. 2
40:24 Indeed, they are barely planted;
yes, they are barely sown;
yes, they barely take root in the earth,
and then he blows on them, causing them to dry up,
and the wind carries them away like straw.
9:11 Ephraim will be like a bird;
what they value 3 will fly away.
They will not bear children –
they will not enjoy pregnancy –
they will not even conceive! 4
9:12 Even if they raise their children,
I will take away every last one of them. 5
Woe to them!
For I will turn away from them.
9:16 Ephraim will be struck down 6 –
their root will be dried up;
they will not yield any fruit.
Even if they do bear children,
I will kill their precious offspring.
9:17 My God will reject them,
for they have not obeyed him;
so they will be fugitives among the nations.
1 tn Heb “and I sent him away in the stubbornness of their heart.”
2 tn Heb “they walked in their counsel.” The prefixed verbal form is either preterite (“walked”) or a customary imperfect (“were walking”).
3 tn Heb “their glory” (so NASB); TEV “Israel’s greateness.”
4 tn Heb “no childbearing, no pregnancy, no conception.” The preposition מִן (min) prefixed to the three parallel nouns functions in a privative sense, indicating deprivation (BDB 583 s.v. מִן 7).
5 tn Heb “I will bereave them from a man”; NRSV “I will bereave them until no one is left.”
6 tn Or perhaps, following the plant metaphor, “will be blighted” (NIV similar).