89:18 For our shield 1 belongs to the Lord,
our king to the Holy One of Israel. 2
89:2 For I say, “Loyal love is permanently established; 3
in the skies you set up your faithfulness.” 4
For the music director; a psalm of David.
19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; 6
the sky displays his handiwork. 7
5:16 The Lord who commands armies will be exalted 8 when he punishes, 9
the sovereign God’s authority will be recognized when he judges. 10
5:19 They say, “Let him hurry, let him act quickly, 11
so we can see;
let the plan of the Holy One of Israel 12 take shape 13 and come to pass,
then we will know it!”
5:24 Therefore, as flaming fire 14 devours straw,
and dry grass disintegrates in the flames,
so their root will rot,
and their flower will blow away like dust. 15
For they have rejected the law of the Lord who commands armies,
they have spurned the commands 16 of the Holy One of Israel. 17
12:6 Cry out and shout for joy, O citizens of Zion,
for the Holy One of Israel 18 acts mightily 19 among you!”
30:11 Turn aside from the way,
stray off the path. 20
Remove from our presence the Holy One of Israel.” 21
30:12 For this reason this is what the Holy One of Israel says:
“You have rejected this message; 22
you trust instead in your ability to oppress and trick, 23
and rely on that kind of behavior. 24
43:3 For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, 25 your deliverer.
I have handed over Egypt as a ransom price,
Ethiopia and Seba 26 in place of you.
57:15 For this is what the high and exalted one says,
the one who rules 27 forever, whose name is holy:
“I dwell in an exalted and holy place,
but also with the discouraged and humiliated, 28
in order to cheer up the humiliated
and to encourage the discouraged. 29
60:9 Indeed, the coastlands 30 look eagerly for me,
the large ships 31 are in the lead,
bringing your sons from far away,
along with their silver and gold,
to honor the Lord your God, 32
the Holy One of Israel, 33 for he has bestowed honor on you.
1 tn The phrase “our shield” refers metaphorically to the Davidic king, who, as God’s vice-regent, was the human protector of the people. Note the parallelism with “our king" here and with “your anointed one” in Ps 84:9.
2 sn The basic sense of the word “holy” is “set apart from that which is commonplace, special, unique.” The Lord’s holiness is first and foremost his transcendent sovereignty as the ruler of the world. He is “set apart” from the world over which he rules. At the same time his holiness encompasses his moral authority, which derives from his royal position. As king he has the right to dictate to his subjects how they are to live; indeed his very own character sets the standard for proper behavior. This expression is a common title for the
3 tn Heb “built.”
4 sn You set up your faithfulness. This may allude to the Lord’s heavenly throne, which symbolizes his just rule and from which the Lord decrees his unconditional promises (see vv. 8, 14).
5 sn Psalm 19. The psalmist praises God for his self-revelation in the heavens and in the Mosaic law. The psalmist concludes with a prayer, asking the Lord to keep him from sinning and to approve of his thoughts and words.
6 sn God’s glory refers here to his royal majesty and power.
7 tn Heb “and the work of his hands the sky declares.” The participles emphasize the ongoing testimony of the heavens/sky.
8 tn Or “elevated”; TEV “the Lord Almighty shows his greatness.”
9 tn Heb “by judgment/justice.” When God justly punishes the evildoers denounced in the preceding verses, he will be recognized as a mighty warrior.
10 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.
11 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.
12 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
13 tn Heb “draw near” (so NASB); NRSV “hasten to fulfillment.”
14 tn Heb “a tongue of fire” (so NASB), referring to a tongue-shaped flame.
15 sn They are compared to a flowering plant that withers quickly in a hot, arid climate.
16 tn Heb “the word.”
17 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
18 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
19 tn Or “is great” (TEV). However, the context emphasizes his mighty acts of deliverance (cf. NCV), not some general or vague character quality.
20 sn The imagery refers to the way or path of truth, as revealed by God to the prophet.
21 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
22 tn The sentence actually begins with the word “because.” In the Hebrew text vv. 12-13 are one long sentence.
23 tn Heb “and you trust in oppression and cunning.”
24 tn Heb “and you lean on it”; NAB “and depend on it.”
25 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
26 sn Seba is not the same as Sheba in southern Arabia; cf. Gen 1:10; 1 Chr 1:9.
27 tn Heb “the one who dwells forever.” שֹׁכֵן עַד (shokhen ’ad) is sometimes translated “the one who lives forever,” and understood as a reference to God’s eternal existence. However, the immediately preceding and following descriptions (“high and exalted” and “holy”) emphasize his sovereign rule. In the next line, he declares, “I dwell in an exalted and holy [place],” which refers to the place from which he rules. Therefore it is more likely that שֹׁכֵן עַד (shokhen ’ad) means “I dwell [in my lofty palace] forever” and refers to God’s eternal kingship.
28 tn Heb “and also with the crushed and lowly of spirit.” This may refer to the repentant who have humbled themselves (see 66:2) or more generally to the exiles who have experienced discouragement and humiliation.
29 tn Heb “to restore the lowly of spirit and to restore the heart of the crushed.”
30 tn Or “islands” (NIV); CEV “distant islands”; TEV “distant lands.”
31 tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” See the note at 2:16.
32 tn Heb “to the name of the Lord your God.”
33 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.