53:11 Having suffered, he will reflect on his work,
he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. 3
“My servant 4 will acquit many, 5
for he carried their sins. 6
55:7 The wicked need to abandon their lifestyle 7
and sinful people their plans. 8
They should return 9 to the Lord, and he will show mercy to them, 10
and to their God, for he will freely forgive them. 11
55:1 “Hey, 12 all who are thirsty, come to the water!
You who have no money, come!
Buy and eat!
Come! Buy wine and milk
without money and without cost! 13
2:2 In the future 14
the mountain of the Lord’s temple will endure 15
as the most important of mountains,
and will be the most prominent of hills. 16
All the nations will stream to it,
7:9 After these things I looked, and here was 17 an enormous crowd that no one could count, made up of persons from every nation, tribe, 18 people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb dressed in long white robes, and with palm branches in their hands. 7:10 They were shouting out in a loud voice,
“Salvation belongs to our God, 19
to the one seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
1 tn Grk “slipped in.”
2 tn Or “trespass.”
3 tn Heb “he will be satisfied by his knowledge,” i.e., “when he knows.” The preposition is understood as temporal and the suffix as a subjective genitive. Some take בְּדַעְתּוֹ (bÿda’to, “by his knowledge”) with what follows and translate “by knowledge of him,” understanding the preposition as instrumental and the suffix as objective.
4 sn The song ends as it began (cf. 52:13-15), with the Lord announcing the servant’s vindication and exaltation.
5 tn Heb “he will acquit, a righteous one, my servant, many.” צַדִּיק (tsadiq) may refer to the servant, but more likely it is dittographic (note the preceding verb יַצְדִּיק, yatsdiq). The precise meaning of the verb (the Hiphil of צָדַק, tsadaq) is debated. Elsewhere the Hiphil is used at least six times in the sense of “make righteous” in a legal sense, i.e., “pronounce innocent, acquit” (see Exod 23:7; Deut 25:1; 1 Kgs 8:32 = 2 Chr 6:23; Prov 17:15; Isa 5:23). It can also mean “render justice” (as a royal function, see 2 Sam 15:4; Ps 82:3), “concede” (Job 27:5), “vindicate” (Isa 50:8), and “lead to righteousness” (by teaching and example, Dan 12:3). The preceding context and the next line suggest a legal sense here. Because of his willingness to carry the people’s sins, the servant is able to “acquit” them.
6 tn The circumstantial clause (note the vav [ו] + object + subject + verb pattern) is understood as causal here. The prefixed verb form is either a preterite or an imperfect used in a customary manner.
7 tn Heb “Let the wicked one abandon his way.” The singular is collective.
8 tn Heb “and the man of evil his thoughts.” The singular is collective.
9 tn Heb “let him return.” The singular is collective, meaning “let them.”
10 tn The imperfect with vav (ו) conjunctive after the jussive indicates purpose/result.
11 sn The appeal and promise of vv. 6-7 echoes the language of Deut 4:25-31; 30:1-10; and 1 Kgs 8:46-53, all of which anticipate the exile and speak of the prerequisites for restoration.
12 tn The Hebrew term הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) was used in funeral laments and is often prefixed to judgment oracles for rhetorical effect. But here it appears to be a simple interjection, designed to grab the audience’s attention. Perhaps there is a note of sorrow or pity. See BDB 223 s.v.
13 sn The statement is an oxymoron. Its ironic quality adds to its rhetorical impact. The statement reminds one of the norm (one must normally buy commodities) as it expresses the astounding offer. One might paraphrase the statement: “Come and take freely what you normally have to pay for.”
14 tn Heb “in the end of the days.” This phrase may refer generally to the future, or more technically to the final period of history. See BDB 31 s.v. ַאחֲרִית. The verse begins with a verb that functions as a “discourse particle” and is not translated. In numerous places throughout the OT, the “to be” verb with a prefixed conjunction (וְהָיָה [vÿhayah] and וַיְהִי [vayÿhi]) occurs in this fashion to introduce a circumstantial clause and does not require translation.
15 tn Or “be established” (KJV, NIV, NRSV).
16 tn Heb “as the chief of the mountains, and will be lifted up above the hills.” The image of Mount Zion being elevated above other mountains and hills pictures the prominence it will attain in the future.
17 tn The phrase “and here was” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).
18 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated before each of the following categories, since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.
19 tn The dative here has been translated as a dative of possession.
20 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the previous question.
21 tn Though the expression “the answer” is not in the Greek text, it is clearly implied. Direct objects in Greek were frequently omitted when clear from the context.
22 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
23 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
24 tn Or “worship.” The word here is λατρεύω (latreuw).
25 tn Grk “will spread his tent over them,” normally an idiom for taking up residence with someone, but when combined with the preposition ἐπί (epi, “over”) the idea is one of extending protection or shelter (BDAG 929 s.v. σκηνόω).
26 tn An allusion to Isa 49:10. The phrase “burning heat” is one word in Greek (καῦμα, kauma) that refers to a burning, intensely-felt heat. See BDAG 536 s.v.
27 sn An allusion to Isa 25:8.