Genesis 21:1-34

The Birth of Isaac

21:1 The Lord visited ¹  Sarah just as he had said he would and did ²  for Sarah what he had promised. ³  21:2 So Sarah became pregnant ⁴  and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the appointed time that God had told him. 21:3 Abraham named his son – whom Sarah bore to him – Isaac. ⁵  21:4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, ⁶  Abraham circumcised him just as God had commanded him to do. ⁷  21:5 (Now Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.) ⁸ 

21:6 Sarah said, “God has made me laugh. ⁹  Everyone who hears about this ¹⁰  will laugh ¹¹  with me.” 21:7 She went on to say, ¹²  “Who would ¹³  have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have given birth to a son for him in his old age!”

21:8 The child grew and was weaned. Abraham prepared ¹⁴  a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. ¹⁵  21:9 But Sarah noticed ¹⁶  the son of Hagar the Egyptian – the son whom Hagar had borne to Abraham – mocking. ¹⁷  21:10 So she said to Abraham, “Banish ¹⁸  that slave woman and her son, for the son of that slave woman will not be an heir along with my son Isaac!”

21:11 Sarah’s demand displeased Abraham greatly because Ishmael was his son. ¹⁹  21:12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not be upset ²⁰  about the boy or your slave wife. Do ²¹  all that Sarah is telling ²²  you because through Isaac your descendants will be counted. ²³  21:13 But I will also make the son of the slave wife into a great nation, for he is your descendant too.”

21:14 Early in the morning Abraham took ²⁴  some food ²⁵  and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He put them on her shoulders, gave her the child, ²⁶  and sent her away. So she went wandering ²⁷  aimlessly through the wilderness ²⁸  of Beer Sheba. 21:15 When the water in the skin was gone, she shoved ²⁹  the child under one of the shrubs. 21:16 Then she went and sat down by herself across from him at quite a distance, about a bowshot ³⁰  away; for she thought, ³¹  “I refuse to watch the child die.” ³²  So she sat across from him and wept uncontrollably. ³³ 

21:17 But God heard the boy’s voice. ³⁴  The angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and asked her, “What is the matter, ³⁵  Hagar? Don’t be afraid, for God has heard ³⁶  the boy’s voice right where he is crying. 21:18 Get up! Help the boy up and hold him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” 21:19 Then God enabled Hagar to see a well of water. ³⁷  She went over and filled the skin with water, and then gave the boy a drink.

21:20 God was with the boy as he grew. He lived in the wilderness and became an archer. 21:21 He lived in the wilderness of Paran. ³⁸  His mother found a wife for him from the land of Egypt. ³⁹ 

21:22 At that time Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, said to Abraham, “God is with you ⁴⁰  in all that you do. 21:23 Now swear to me right here in God’s name ⁴¹  that you will not deceive me, my children, or my descendants. ⁴²  Show me, and the land ⁴³  where you are staying, ⁴⁴  the same loyalty ⁴⁵  that I have shown you.” ⁴⁶ 

21:24 Abraham said, “I swear to do this.” ⁴⁷  21:25 But Abraham lodged a complaint ⁴⁸  against Abimelech concerning a well ⁴⁹  that Abimelech’s servants had seized. ⁵⁰  21:26 “I do not know who has done this thing,” Abimelech replied. “Moreover, ⁵¹  you did not tell me. I did not hear about it until today.”

21:27 Abraham took some sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech. The two of them made a treaty. ⁵²  21:28 Then Abraham set seven ewe lambs apart from the flock by themselves. 21:29 Abimelech asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these ⁵³  seven ewe lambs that you have set apart?” 21:30 He replied, “You must take these seven ewe lambs from my hand as legal proof ⁵⁴  that I dug this well.” ⁵⁵  21:31 That is why he named that place ⁵⁶  Beer Sheba, ⁵⁷  because the two of them swore ⁵⁸  an oath there.

21:32 So they made a treaty ⁵⁹  at Beer Sheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, returned ⁶⁰  to the land of the Philistines. ⁶¹  21:33 Abraham ⁶²  planted a tamarisk tree ⁶³  in Beer Sheba. There he worshiped the Lord, ⁶⁴  the eternal God. 21:34 So Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for quite some time. ⁶⁵ 

Genesis 1:6

1:6 God said, “Let there be an expanse ⁶⁶  in the midst of the waters and let it separate water ⁶⁷  from water.

Genesis 17:26

17:26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the very same day.

Psalms 72:6-19

72:6 He ⁶⁸  will descend like rain on the mown grass, ⁶⁹ 

like showers that drench ⁷⁰  the earth. ⁷¹ 

72:7 During his days the godly will flourish; ⁷² 

peace will prevail as long as the moon remains in the sky. ⁷³ 

72:8 May he rule ⁷⁴  from sea to sea, ⁷⁵ 

and from the Euphrates River ⁷⁶  to the ends of the earth!

72:9 Before him the coastlands ⁷⁷  will bow down,

and his enemies will lick the dust. ⁷⁸ 

72:10 The kings of Tarshish ⁷⁹  and the coastlands will offer gifts;

the kings of Sheba ⁸⁰  and Seba ⁸¹  will bring tribute.

72:11 All kings will bow down to him;

all nations will serve him.

72:12 For he will rescue the needy ⁸²  when they cry out for help,

and the oppressed ⁸³  who have no defender.

72:13 He will take pity ⁸⁴  on the poor and needy;

the lives of the needy he will save.

72:14 From harm and violence he will defend them; ⁸⁵ 

he will value their lives. ⁸⁶ 

72:15 May he live! ⁸⁷  May they offer him gold from Sheba! ⁸⁸ 

May they continually pray for him!

May they pronounce blessings on him all day long! ⁸⁹ 

72:16 May there be ⁹⁰  an abundance ⁹¹  of grain in the earth;

on the tops ⁹²  of the mountains may it ⁹³  sway! ⁹⁴ 

May its ⁹⁵  fruit trees ⁹⁶  flourish ⁹⁷  like the forests of Lebanon! ⁹⁸ 

May its crops ⁹⁹  be as abundant ¹⁰⁰  as the grass of the earth! ¹⁰¹ 

72:17 May his fame endure! ¹⁰² 

May his dynasty last as long as the sun remains in the sky! ¹⁰³ 

May they use his name when they formulate their blessings! ¹⁰⁴ 

May all nations consider him to be favored by God! ¹⁰⁵ 

72:18 The Lord God, the God of Israel, deserves praise! ¹⁰⁶ 

He alone accomplishes amazing things! ¹⁰⁷ 

72:19 His glorious name deserves praise ¹⁰⁸  forevermore!

May his majestic splendor ¹⁰⁹  fill the whole earth!

We agree! We agree! ¹¹⁰ 

Psalms 98:1-9

Psalm 98 ¹¹¹ 

A psalm.

98:1 Sing to the Lord a new song, ¹¹² 

for he performs ¹¹³  amazing deeds!

His right hand and his mighty arm

accomplish deliverance. ¹¹⁴ 

98:2 The Lord demonstrates his power to deliver; ¹¹⁵ 

in the sight of the nations he reveals his justice.

98:3 He remains loyal and faithful to the family of Israel. ¹¹⁶ 

All the ends of the earth see our God deliver us. ¹¹⁷ 

98:4 Shout out praises to the Lord, all the earth!

Break out in a joyful shout and sing!

98:5 Sing to the Lord accompanied by a harp,

accompanied by a harp and the sound of music!

98:6 With trumpets and the blaring of the ram’s horn,

shout out praises before the king, the Lord!

98:7 Let the sea and everything in it shout,

along with the world and those who live in it!

98:8 Let the rivers clap their hands!

Let the mountains sing in unison

98:9 before the Lord!

For he comes to judge the earth!

He judges the world fairly, ¹¹⁸ 

and the nations in a just manner.

Isaiah 2:1-3

The Future Glory of Jerusalem

2:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem ¹¹⁹  that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz. ¹²⁰ 

2:2 In the future ¹²¹ 

the mountain of the Lord’s temple will endure ¹²² 

as the most important of mountains,

and will be the most prominent of hills. ¹²³ 

All the nations will stream to it,

2:3 many peoples will come and say,

“Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mountain,

to the temple of the God of Jacob,

so ¹²⁴  he can teach us his requirements, ¹²⁵ 

and ¹²⁶  we can follow his standards.” ¹²⁷ 

For Zion will be the center for moral instruction; ¹²⁸ 

the Lord will issue edicts from Jerusalem. ¹²⁹ 

Isaiah 49:10-22

49:10 They will not be hungry or thirsty;

the sun’s oppressive heat will not beat down on them, ¹³⁰ 

for one who has compassion on them will guide them;

he will lead them to springs of water.

49:11 I will make all my mountains into a road;

I will construct my roadways.”

49:12 Look, they come from far away!

Look, some come from the north and west,

and others from the land of Sinim! ¹³¹ 

49:13 Shout for joy, O sky! ¹³² 

Rejoice, O earth!

Let the mountains give a joyful shout!

For the Lord consoles his people

and shows compassion to the ¹³³  oppressed.

The Lord Remembers Zion

49:14 “Zion said, ‘The Lord has abandoned me,

the sovereign master ¹³⁴  has forgotten me.’

49:15 Can a woman forget her baby who nurses at her breast? ¹³⁵ 

Can she withhold compassion from the child she has borne? ¹³⁶ 

Even if mothers ¹³⁷  were to forget,

I could never forget you! ¹³⁸ 

49:16 Look, I have inscribed your name ¹³⁹  on my palms;

your walls are constantly before me.

49:17 Your children hurry back,

while those who destroyed and devastated you depart.

49:18 Look all around you! ¹⁴⁰ 

All of them gather to you.

As surely as I live,” says the Lord,

“you will certainly wear all of them like jewelry;

you will put them on as if you were a bride.

49:19 Yes, your land lies in ruins;

it is desolate and devastated. ¹⁴¹ 

But now you will be too small to hold your residents,

and those who devoured you will be far away.

49:20 Yet the children born during your time of bereavement

will say within your hearing,

‘This place is too cramped for us, ¹⁴² 

make room for us so we can live here.’ ¹⁴³ 

49:21 Then you will think to yourself, ¹⁴⁴ 

‘Who bore these children for me?

I was bereaved and barren,

dismissed and divorced. ¹⁴⁵ 

Who raised these children?

Look, I was left all alone;

where did these children come from?’”

49:22 This is what the sovereign Lord says:

“Look I will raise my hand to the nations;

I will raise my signal flag to the peoples.

They will bring your sons in their arms

and carry your daughters on their shoulders.

Isaiah 51:11

51:11 Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return;

they will enter Zion with a happy shout.

Unending joy will crown them, ¹⁴⁶ 

happiness and joy will overwhelm ¹⁴⁷  them;

grief and suffering will disappear. ¹⁴⁸ 

Isaiah 52:1-10

52:1 Wake up! Wake up!

Clothe yourself with strength, O Zion!

Put on your beautiful clothes,

O Jerusalem, ¹⁴⁹  holy city!

For uncircumcised and unclean pagans

will no longer invade you.

52:2 Shake off the dirt! ¹⁵⁰ 

Get up, captive ¹⁵¹  Jerusalem!

Take off the iron chains around your neck,

O captive daughter Zion!

52:3 For this is what the Lord says:

“You were sold for nothing,

and you will not be redeemed for money.”

52:4 For this is what the sovereign Lord says:

“In the beginning my people went to live temporarily in Egypt;

Assyria oppressed them for no good reason.

52:5 And now, what do we have here?” ¹⁵²  says the Lord.

“Indeed my people have been carried away for nothing,

those who rule over them taunt,” ¹⁵³  says the Lord,

“and my name is constantly slandered ¹⁵⁴  all day long.

52:6 For this reason my people will know my name,

for this reason they will know ¹⁵⁵  at that time ¹⁵⁶  that I am the one who says,

‘Here I am.’”

52:7 How delightful it is to see approaching over the mountains ¹⁵⁷ 

the feet of a messenger who announces peace,

a messenger who brings good news, who announces deliverance,

who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” ¹⁵⁸ 

52:8 Listen, ¹⁵⁹  your watchmen shout;

in unison they shout for joy,

for they see with their very own eyes ¹⁶⁰ 

the Lord’s return to Zion.

52:9 In unison give a joyful shout,

O ruins of Jerusalem!

For the Lord consoles his people;

he protects ¹⁶¹  Jerusalem.

52:10 The Lord reveals ¹⁶²  his royal power ¹⁶³ 

in the sight of all the nations;

the entire ¹⁶⁴  earth sees

our God deliver. ¹⁶⁵ 

Isaiah 54:1-14

Zion Will Be Secure

54:1 “Shout for joy, O barren one who has not given birth!

Give a joyful shout and cry out, you who have not been in labor!

For the children of the desolate one are more numerous

than the children of the married woman,” says the Lord.

54:2 Make your tent larger,

stretch your tent curtains farther out! ¹⁶⁶ 

Spare no effort,

lengthen your ropes,

and pound your stakes deep. ¹⁶⁷ 

54:3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left;

your children will conquer ¹⁶⁸  nations

and will resettle desolate cities.

54:4 Don’t be afraid, for you will not be put to shame!

Don’t be intimidated, ¹⁶⁹  for you will not be humiliated!

You will forget about the shame you experienced in your youth;

you will no longer remember the disgrace of your abandonment. ¹⁷⁰ 

54:5 For your husband is the one who made you –

the Lord who commands armies is his name.

He is your protector, ¹⁷¹  the Holy One of Israel. ¹⁷² 

He is called “God of the entire earth.”

54:6 “Indeed, the Lord will call you back

like a wife who has been abandoned and suffers from depression, ¹⁷³ 

like a young wife when she has been rejected,” says your God.

54:7 “For a short time I abandoned ¹⁷⁴  you,

but with great compassion I will gather you.

54:8 In a burst ¹⁷⁵  of anger I rejected you ¹⁷⁶  momentarily,

but with lasting devotion I will have compassion on you,”

says your protector, ¹⁷⁷  the Lord.

54:9 “As far as I am concerned, this is like in Noah’s time, ¹⁷⁸ 

when I vowed that the waters of Noah’s flood ¹⁷⁹  would never again cover the earth.

In the same way I have vowed that I will not be angry at you or shout at you.

54:10 Even if the mountains are removed

and the hills displaced,

my devotion will not be removed from you,

nor will my covenant of friendship ¹⁸⁰  be displaced,”

says the Lord, the one who has compassion on you.

54:11 “O afflicted one, driven away, ¹⁸¹  and unconsoled!

Look, I am about to set your stones in antimony

and I lay your foundation with lapis-lazuli.

54:12 I will make your pinnacles out of gems, ¹⁸² 

your gates out of beryl, ¹⁸³ 

and your outer wall ¹⁸⁴  out of beautiful ¹⁸⁵  stones.

54:13 All your children will be followers of the Lord,

and your children will enjoy great prosperity. ¹⁸⁶ 

54:14 You will be reestablished when I vindicate you. ¹⁸⁷ 

You will not experience oppression; ¹⁸⁸ 

indeed, you will not be afraid.

You will not be terrified, ¹⁸⁹ 

for nothing frightening ¹⁹⁰  will come near you.

Isaiah 60:1-22

Zion’s Future Splendor

60:1 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!

The splendor ¹⁹¹  of the Lord shines on you!

60:2 For, look, darkness covers the earth

and deep darkness covers ¹⁹²  the nations,

but the Lord shines on you;

his splendor ¹⁹³  appears over you.

60:3 Nations come to your light,

kings to your bright light.

60:4 Look all around you! ¹⁹⁴ 

They all gather and come to you –

your sons come from far away

and your daughters are escorted by guardians.

60:5 Then you will look and smile, ¹⁹⁵ 

you will be excited and your heart will swell with pride. ¹⁹⁶ 

For the riches of distant lands ¹⁹⁷  will belong to you

and the wealth of nations will come to you.

60:6 Camel caravans will cover your roads, ¹⁹⁸ 

young camels from Midian and Ephah.

All the merchants of Sheba ¹⁹⁹  will come,

bringing gold and incense

and singing praises to the Lord. ²⁰⁰ 

60:7 All the sheep of Kedar will be gathered to you;

the rams of Nebaioth will be available to you as sacrifices. ²⁰¹ 

They will go up on my altar acceptably, ²⁰² 

and I will bestow honor on my majestic temple.

60:8 Who are these who float along ²⁰³  like a cloud,

who fly like doves to their shelters? ²⁰⁴ 

60:9 Indeed, the coastlands ²⁰⁵  look eagerly for me,

the large ships ²⁰⁶  are in the lead,

bringing your sons from far away,

along with their silver and gold,

to honor the Lord your God, ²⁰⁷ 

the Holy One of Israel, ²⁰⁸  for he has bestowed honor on you.

60:10 Foreigners will rebuild your walls;

their kings will serve you.

Even though I struck you down in my anger,

I will restore my favor and have compassion on you. ²⁰⁹ 

60:11 Your gates will remain open at all times;

they will not be shut during the day or at night,

so that the wealth of nations may be delivered,

with their kings leading the way. ²¹⁰ 

60:12 Indeed, ²¹¹  nations or kingdoms that do not serve you will perish;

such nations will be totally destroyed. ²¹² 

60:13 The splendor of Lebanon will come to you,

its evergreens, firs, and cypresses together,

to beautify my palace; ²¹³ 

I will bestow honor on my throne room. ²¹⁴ 

60:14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing to you;

all who treated you with disrespect will bow down at your feet.

They will call you, ‘The City of the Lord,

Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’ ²¹⁵ 

60:15 You were once abandoned

and despised, with no one passing through,

but I will make you ²¹⁶  a permanent source of pride

and joy to coming generations.

60:16 You will drink the milk of nations;

you will nurse at the breasts of kings. ²¹⁷ 

Then you will recognize that I, the Lord, am your deliverer,

your protector, ²¹⁸  the powerful ruler of Jacob. ²¹⁹ 

60:17 Instead of bronze, I will bring you gold,

instead of iron, I will bring you silver,

instead of wood, I will bring you ²²⁰  bronze,

instead of stones, I will bring you ²²¹  iron.

I will make prosperity ²²²  your overseer,

and vindication your sovereign ruler. ²²³ 

60:18 Sounds of violence ²²⁴  will no longer be heard in your land,

or the sounds of ²²⁵  destruction and devastation within your borders.

You will name your walls, ‘Deliverance,’

and your gates, ‘Praise.’

60:19 The sun will no longer supply light for you by day,

nor will the moon’s brightness shine on you;

the Lord will be your permanent source of light –

the splendor of your God will shine upon you. ²²⁶ 

60:20 Your sun will no longer set;

your moon will not disappear; ²²⁷ 

the Lord will be your permanent source of light;

your time ²²⁸  of sorrow will be over.

60:21 All of your people will be godly; ²²⁹ 

they will possess the land permanently.

I will plant them like a shoot;

they will be the product of my labor,

through whom I reveal my splendor. ²³⁰ 

60:22 The least of you will multiply into ²³¹  a thousand;

the smallest of you will become a large nation.

When the right time comes, I the Lord will quickly do this!” ²³² 

Isaiah 61:3

61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,

by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,

oil symbolizing joy, ²³³  instead of mourning,

a garment symbolizing praise, ²³⁴  instead of discouragement. ²³⁵ 

They will be called oaks of righteousness, ²³⁶ 

trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. ²³⁷ 

Isaiah 61:9--62:5

61:9 Their descendants will be known among the nations,

their offspring among the peoples.

All who see them will recognize that

the Lord has blessed them.” ²³⁸ 

61:10 I ²³⁹  will greatly rejoice ²⁴⁰  in the Lord;

I will be overjoyed because of my God. ²⁴¹ 

For he clothes me in garments of deliverance;

he puts on me a robe symbolizing vindication. ²⁴² 

I look like a bridegroom when he wears a turban as a priest would;

I look like a bride when she puts on her jewelry. ²⁴³ 

61:11 For just as the ground produces its crops

and a garden yields its produce,

so the sovereign Lord will cause deliverance ²⁴⁴  to grow,

and give his people reason to praise him in the sight of all the nations. ²⁴⁵ 

The Lord Takes Delight in Zion

62:1 “For the sake of Zion I will not be silent;

for the sake of Jerusalem ²⁴⁶  I will not be quiet,

until her vindication shines brightly ²⁴⁷ 

and her deliverance burns like a torch.”

62:2 Nations will see your vindication,

and all kings your splendor.

You will be called by a new name

that the Lord himself will give you. ²⁴⁸ 

62:3 You will be a majestic crown in the hand of the Lord,

a royal turban in the hand of your God.

62:4 You will no longer be called, “Abandoned,”

and your land will no longer be called “Desolate.”

Indeed, ²⁴⁹  you will be called “My Delight is in Her,” ²⁵⁰ 

and your land “Married.” ²⁵¹ 

For the Lord will take delight in you,

and your land will be married to him. ²⁵² 

62:5 As a young man marries a young woman,

so your sons ²⁵³  will marry you.

As a bridegroom rejoices over a bride,

so your God will rejoice over you.

Isaiah 65:17-25

65:17 For look, I am ready to create

new heavens and a new earth! ²⁵⁴ 

The former ones ²⁵⁵  will not be remembered;

no one will think about them anymore. ²⁵⁶ 

65:18 But be happy and rejoice forevermore

over what I am about to create!

For look, I am ready to create Jerusalem ²⁵⁷  to be a source of joy, ²⁵⁸ 

and her people to be a source of happiness. ²⁵⁹ 

65:19 Jerusalem will bring me joy,

and my people will bring me happiness. ²⁶⁰ 

The sound of weeping or cries of sorrow

will never be heard in her again.

65:20 Never again will one of her infants live just a few days ²⁶¹ 

or an old man die before his time. ²⁶² 

Indeed, no one will die before the age of a hundred, ²⁶³ 

anyone who fails to reach ²⁶⁴  the age of a hundred will be considered cursed.

65:21 They will build houses and live in them;

they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

65:22 No longer will they build a house only to have another live in it, ²⁶⁵ 

or plant a vineyard only to have another eat its fruit, ²⁶⁶ 

for my people will live as long as trees, ²⁶⁷ 

and my chosen ones will enjoy to the fullest what they have produced. ²⁶⁸ 

65:23 They will not work in vain,

or give birth to children that will experience disaster. ²⁶⁹ 

For the Lord will bless their children

and their descendants. ²⁷⁰ 

65:24 Before they even call out, ²⁷¹  I will respond;

while they are still speaking, I will hear.

65:25 A wolf and a lamb will graze together; ²⁷² 

a lion, like an ox, will eat straw, ²⁷³ 

and a snake’s food will be dirt. ²⁷⁴ 

They will no longer injure or destroy

on my entire royal mountain,” ²⁷⁵  says the Lord.

Isaiah 66:10-14

66:10 Be happy for Jerusalem

and rejoice with her, all you who love her!

Share in her great joy,

all you who have mourned over her!

66:11 For ²⁷⁶  you will nurse from her satisfying breasts and be nourished; ²⁷⁷ 

you will feed with joy from her milk-filled breasts. ²⁷⁸ 

66:12 For this is what the Lord says:

“Look, I am ready to extend to her prosperity that will flow like a river,

the riches of nations will flow into her like a stream that floods its banks. ²⁷⁹ 

You will nurse from her breast ²⁸⁰  and be carried at her side;

you will play on her knees.

66:13 As a mother consoles a child, ²⁸¹ 

so I will console you,

and you will be consoled over Jerusalem.”

66:14 When you see this, you will be happy, ²⁸² 

and you will be revived. ²⁸³ 

The Lord will reveal his power to his servants

and his anger to his enemies. ²⁸⁴ 

Isaiah 66:18-22

66:18 “I hate their deeds and thoughts! So I am coming ²⁸⁵  to gather all the nations and ethnic groups; ²⁸⁶  they will come and witness my splendor. 66:19 I will perform a mighty act among them ²⁸⁷  and then send some of those who remain to the nations – to Tarshish, Pul, ²⁸⁸  Lud ²⁸⁹  (known for its archers ²⁹⁰ ), Tubal, Javan, ²⁹¹  and to the distant coastlands ²⁹²  that have not heard about me or seen my splendor. They will tell the nations of my splendor. 66:20 They will bring back all your countrymen ²⁹³  from all the nations as an offering to the Lord. They will bring them ²⁹⁴  on horses, in chariots, in wagons, on mules, and on camels ²⁹⁵  to my holy hill Jerusalem,” says the Lord, “just as the Israelites bring offerings to the Lord’s temple in ritually pure containers. 66:21 And I will choose some of them as priests and Levites,” says the Lord. 66:22 “For just as the new heavens and the new earth I am about to make will remain standing before me,” says the Lord, “so your descendants and your name will remain.

Jeremiah 31:22-26

31:22 How long will you vacillate, ²⁹⁶ 

you who were once like an unfaithful daughter? ²⁹⁷ 

For I, the Lord, promise ²⁹⁸  to bring about something new ²⁹⁹  on the earth,

something as unique as a woman protecting a man!’” ³⁰⁰ 

Judah Will Be Restored

31:23 The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ³⁰¹  says,

“I will restore the people of Judah to their land and to their towns.

When I do, they will again say ³⁰²  of Jerusalem, ³⁰³ 

‘May the Lord bless you, you holy mountain,

the place where righteousness dwells.’ ³⁰⁴ 

31:24 The land of Judah will be inhabited by people who live in its towns

as well as by farmers and shepherds with their flocks. ³⁰⁵ 

31:25 I will fully satisfy the needs of those who are weary

and fully refresh the souls of those who are faint. ³⁰⁶ 

31:26 Then they will say, ‘Under these conditions I can enjoy sweet sleep

when I wake up and look around.’” ³⁰⁷ 

Jeremiah 32:37-41

32:37 ‘I will certainly regather my people from all the countries where I will have exiled ³⁰⁸  them in my anger, fury, and great wrath. I will bring them back to this place and allow them to live here in safety. 32:38 They will be my people, and I will be their God. ³⁰⁹  32:39 I will give them a single-minded purpose to live in a way that always shows respect for me. They will want to do that for ³¹⁰  their own good and the good of the children who descend from them. 32:40 I will make a lasting covenant ³¹¹  with them that I will never stop doing good to them. ³¹²  I will fill their hearts and minds with respect for me so that ³¹³  they will never again turn ³¹⁴  away from me. 32:41 I will take delight in doing good to them. I will faithfully and wholeheartedly plant them ³¹⁵  firmly in the land.’

Jeremiah 33:15-26

33:15 In those days and at that time I will raise up for them a righteous descendant ³¹⁶  of David.

“‘He will do what is just and right in the land. 33:16 Under his rule Judah will enjoy safety ³¹⁷  and Jerusalem ³¹⁸  will live in security. At that time Jerusalem will be called “The Lord has provided us with justice.” ³¹⁹  33:17 For I, the Lord, promise: “David will never lack a successor to occupy ³²⁰  the throne over the nation of Israel. ³²¹  33:18 Nor will the Levitical priests ever lack someone to stand before me and continually offer up burnt offerings, sacrifice cereal offerings, and offer the other sacrifices.”’” ³²² 

33:19 The Lord spoke further to Jeremiah. ³²³  33:20 “I, Lord, make the following promise: ³²⁴  ‘I have made a covenant with the day ³²⁵  and with the night that they will always come at their proper times. Only if you people ³²⁶  could break that covenant 33:21 could my covenant with my servant David and my covenant with the Levites ever be broken. So David will by all means always have a descendant to occupy his throne as king and the Levites will by all means always have priests who will minister before me. ³²⁷  33:22 I will make the children who follow one another in the line of my servant David very numerous. I will also make the Levites who minister before me very numerous. I will make them all as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sands which are on the seashore.’” ³²⁸ 

33:23 The Lord spoke still further to Jeremiah. ³²⁹  33:24 “You have surely noticed what these people are saying, haven’t you? They are saying, ³³⁰  ‘The Lord has rejected the two families of Israel and Judah ³³¹  that he chose.’ So they have little regard that my people will ever again be a nation. ³³²  33:25 But I, the Lord, make the following promise: ³³³  I have made a covenant governing the coming of day and night. I have established the fixed laws governing heaven and earth. 33:26 Just as surely as I have done this, so surely will I never reject the descendants of Jacob. Nor will I ever refuse to choose one of my servant David’s descendants to rule over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Indeed, ³³⁴  I will restore them ³³⁵  and show mercy to them.”

Ezekiel 34:23-31

34:23 I will set one shepherd over them, and he will feed them – namely, my servant David. ³³⁶  He will feed them and will be their shepherd. 34:24 I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David will be prince ³³⁷  among them; I, the Lord, have spoken!

34:25 “‘I will make a covenant of peace with them and will rid the land of wild beasts, so that they can live securely ³³⁸  in the wilderness and even sleep in the woods. ³³⁹  34:26 I will turn them and the regions around my hill into a blessing. I will make showers come down in their season; they will be showers that bring blessing. ³⁴⁰  34:27 The trees of the field will yield their fruit and the earth will yield its crops. They will live securely on their land; they will know that I am the Lord, when I break the bars of their yoke and rescue them from the hand of those who enslaved them. 34:28 They will no longer be prey for the nations and the wild beasts will not devour them. They will live securely and no one will make them afraid. 34:29 I will prepare for them a healthy ³⁴¹  planting. They will no longer be victims ³⁴²  of famine in the land and will no longer bear the insults of the nations. 34:30 Then they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, ³⁴³  and that they are my people, the house of Israel, declares the sovereign Lord. ³⁴⁴  34:31 And you, my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are my people, ³⁴⁵  and I am your God, declares the sovereign Lord.’”

Ezekiel 37:21-28

37:21 Then tell them, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am about to take the Israelites from among the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from round about and bring them to their land. 37:22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will rule over them all. They will never again be two nations and never again be divided into two kingdoms. ³⁴⁶  37:23 They will not defile themselves with their idols, their detestable things, and all their rebellious deeds. I will save them from all their unfaithfulness ³⁴⁷  by which they sinned. I will purify them; they will become my people and I will become their God.

37:24 “‘My servant David will be king over them; there will be one shepherd for all of them. They will follow ³⁴⁸  my regulations and carefully observe my statutes. ³⁴⁹  37:25 They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, in which your fathers lived; they will live in it – they and their children and their grandchildren forever. David my servant will be prince over them forever. 37:26 I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be a perpetual covenant with them. ³⁵⁰  I will establish them, ³⁵¹  increase their numbers, and place my sanctuary among them forever. 37:27 My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people. 37:28 Then, when my sanctuary is among them forever, the nations will know that I, the Lord, sanctify Israel.’” ³⁵² 

Ezekiel 39:25-29

39:25 “Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Now I will restore ³⁵³  the fortunes of Jacob, and I will have mercy on the entire house of Israel. I will be zealous for my holy name. 39:26 They will bear their shame for all their unfaithful acts against me, when they live securely on their land with no one to make them afraid. 39:27 When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will magnify myself among them in the sight of many nations. 39:28 Then they will know that I am the Lord their God, because I sent them into exile among the nations, and then gathered them into their own land. I will not leave any of them in exile ³⁵⁴  any longer. 39:29 I will no longer hide my face from them, when I pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel, ³⁵⁵  declares the sovereign Lord.”

Hosea 2:19-23

2:19 I will commit myself to you ³⁵⁶  forever;

I will commit myself to you in ³⁵⁷  righteousness and justice,

in steadfast love and tender compassion.

2:20 I will commit myself to you in faithfulness;

then ³⁵⁸  you will acknowledge ³⁵⁹  the Lord.” ³⁶⁰ 

Agricultural Fertility Restored to the Repentant Nation

2:21 “At that time, ³⁶¹  I will willingly respond,” ³⁶²  declares the Lord.

“I will respond to the sky,

and the sky ³⁶³  will respond to the ground;

2:22 then the ground will respond to the grain, the new wine, and the olive oil;

and they will respond to ‘God Plants’ (Jezreel)! ³⁶⁴ 

2:23 Then I will plant her as my own ³⁶⁵  in the land.

I will have pity on ‘No Pity’ (Lo-Ruhamah).

I will say to ‘Not My People’ (Lo-Ammi), ‘You are my people!’

And he ³⁶⁶  will say, ‘You are ³⁶⁷  my God!’”

Joel 3:16-21

3:16 The Lord roars from Zion;

from Jerusalem ³⁶⁸  his voice bellows out. ³⁶⁹ 

The heavens ³⁷⁰  and the earth shake.

But the Lord is a refuge for his people;

he is a stronghold for the citizens ³⁷¹  of Israel.

The Lord’s Presence in Zion

3:17 You will be convinced ³⁷²  that I the Lord am your God,

dwelling on Zion, my holy mountain.

Jerusalem ³⁷³  will be holy –

conquering armies ³⁷⁴  will no longer pass through it.

3:18 On that day ³⁷⁵  the mountains will drip with sweet wine, ³⁷⁶ 

and the hills will flow with milk. ³⁷⁷ 

All the dry stream beds ³⁷⁸  of Judah will flow with water.

A spring will flow out from the temple ³⁷⁹  of the Lord,

watering the Valley of Acacia Trees. ³⁸⁰ 

3:19 Egypt will be desolate

and Edom will be a desolate wilderness,

because of the violence they did to the people of Judah, ³⁸¹ 

in whose land they shed innocent blood.

3:20 But Judah will reside securely forever,

and Jerusalem will be secure ³⁸²  from one generation to the next.

3:21 I will avenge ³⁸³  their blood which I had not previously acquitted.

It is the Lord who dwells in Zion!

Amos 9:13-15

9:13 “Be sure of this, ³⁸⁴  the time is ³⁸⁵  coming,” says the Lord,

“when the plowman will catch up to the reaper ³⁸⁶ 

and the one who stomps the grapes ³⁸⁷  will overtake ³⁸⁸  the planter. ³⁸⁹ 

Juice will run down the slopes, ³⁹⁰ 

it will flow down all the hillsides. ³⁹¹ 

9:14 I will bring back my people, Israel; ³⁹² 

they will rebuild the cities lying in rubble ³⁹³  and settle down. ³⁹⁴ 

They will plant vineyards and drink the wine they produce; ³⁹⁵ 

they will grow orchards ³⁹⁶  and eat the fruit they produce. ³⁹⁷ 

9:15 I will plant them on their land

and they will never again be uprooted from the ³⁹⁸  land I have given them,”

says the Lord your God.

Micah 7:14-15

7:14 Shepherd your people with your shepherd’s rod, ³⁹⁹ 

the flock that belongs to you, ⁴⁰⁰ 

the one that lives alone in a thicket,

in the midst of a pastureland. ⁴⁰¹ 

Allow them to graze in Bashan and Gilead, ⁴⁰² 

as they did in the old days. ⁴⁰³ 

7:15 “As in the days when you departed from the land of Egypt,

I will show you ⁴⁰⁴  miraculous deeds.” ⁴⁰⁵ 

Zephaniah 3:14-20

3:14 Shout for joy, Daughter Zion! ⁴⁰⁶ 

Shout out, Israel!

Be happy and boast with all your heart, Daughter Jerusalem!

3:15 The Lord has removed the judgment against you; ⁴⁰⁷ 

he has turned back your enemy.

Israel’s king, the Lord, is in your midst!

You no longer need to fear disaster.

3:16 On that day they will say ⁴⁰⁸  to Jerusalem,

“Don’t be afraid, Zion!

Your hands must not be paralyzed from panic! ⁴⁰⁹ 

3:17 The Lord your God is in your midst;

he is a warrior who can deliver.

He takes great delight in you; ⁴¹⁰ 

he renews you by his love; ⁴¹¹ 

he shouts for joy over you.” ⁴¹² 

3:18 “As for those who grieve because they cannot attend the festivals –

I took them away from you;

they became tribute and were a source of shame to you. ⁴¹³ 

3:19 Look, at that time I will deal with those who mistreated you.

I will rescue the lame sheep ⁴¹⁴ 

and gather together the scattered sheep.

I will take away their humiliation

and make the whole earth admire and respect them. ⁴¹⁵ 

3:20 At that time I will lead you –

at the time I gather you together. ⁴¹⁶ 

Be sure of this! ⁴¹⁷  I will make all the nations of the earth respect and admire you ⁴¹⁸ 

when you see me restore you,” ⁴¹⁹  says the Lord.

Zechariah 8:20-23

8:20 The Lord who rules over all says, ‘It will someday come to pass that people – residents of many cities – will come. 8:21 The inhabitants of one will go to another and say, “Let’s go up at once to ask the favor of the Lord, to seek the Lord who rules over all. Indeed, I’ll go with you.”’ 8:22 Many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the Lord who rules over all and to ask his favor. 8:23 The Lord who rules over all says, ‘In those days ten people from all languages and nations will grasp hold of – indeed, grab – the robe of one Jew and say, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’” ⁴²⁰ 

Romans 11:25

11:25 For I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, ⁴²¹  so that you may not be conceited: A partial hardening has happened to Israel ⁴²²  until the full number ⁴²³  of the Gentiles has come in.

Romans 11:2

11:2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew! Do you not know what the scripture says about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel?

Romans 1:7

1:7 To all those loved by God in Rome, ⁴²⁴  called to be saints: ⁴²⁵  Grace and peace to you ⁴²⁶  from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

Romans 1:10

1:10 and I always ask ⁴²⁷  in my prayers, if perhaps now at last I may succeed in visiting you according to the will of God. ⁴²⁸ 

Romans 1:2

1:2 This gospel ⁴²⁹  he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures,

Romans 3:8

3:8 And why not say, “Let us do evil so that good may come of it”? – as some who slander us allege that we say. ⁴³⁰  (Their ⁴³¹  condemnation is deserved!)

[21:1]  ¹ sn The Hebrew verb translated “visit” (פָּקַד, paqad ) often describes divine intervention for blessing or cursing; it indicates God’s special attention to an individual or a matter, always with respect to his people’s destiny. He may visit (that is, destroy) the Amalekites; he may visit (that is, deliver) his people in Egypt. Here he visits Sarah, to allow her to have the promised child. One’s destiny is changed when the Lord “visits.” For a more detailed study of the term, see G. André, Determining the Destiny (ConBOT).

[21:1]  ² tn Heb “and the Lord did.” The divine name has not been repeated here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[21:1]  ³ tn Heb “spoken.”

[21:2]  ⁴ tn Or “she conceived.”

[21:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “the one born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.” The two modifying clauses, the first introduced with an article and the second with the relative pronoun, are placed in the middle of the sentence, before the name Isaac is stated. They are meant to underscore that this was indeed an actual birth to Abraham and Sarah in fulfillment of the promise.

[21:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “Isaac his son, the son of eight days.” The name “Isaac” is repeated in the translation for clarity.

[21:4]  ⁷ sn Just as God had commanded him to do. With the birth of the promised child, Abraham obeyed the Lord by both naming (Gen 17:19) and circumcising Isaac (17:12).

[21:5]  ⁸ tn The parenthetical disjunctive clause underscores how miraculous this birth was. Abraham was 100 years old. The fact that the genealogies give the ages of the fathers when their first son is born shows that this was considered a major milestone in one’s life (G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 2:80).

[21:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “Laughter God has made for me.”

[21:6]  ¹⁰ tn The words “about this” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[21:6]  ¹¹ sn Sarah’s words play on the name “Isaac” in a final triumphant manner. God prepared “laughter” (צְחֹק, ysÿkhoq ) for her, and everyone who hears about this “will laugh” (יִצְחַק, yitskhaq ) with her. The laughter now signals great joy and fulfillment, not unbelief (cf. Gen 18:12-15).

[21:7]  ¹² tn Heb “said.”

[21:7]  ¹³ tn The perfect form of the verb is used here to describe a hypothetical situation.

[21:8]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “made.”

[21:8]  ¹⁵ sn Children were weaned closer to the age of two or three in the ancient world, because infant mortality was high. If an infant grew to this stage, it was fairly certain he or she would live. Such an event called for a celebration, especially for parents who had waited so long for a child.

[21:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “saw.”

[21:9]  ¹⁷ tn The Piel participle used here is from the same root as the name “Isaac.” In the Piel stem the verb means “to jest; to make sport of; to play with,” not simply “to laugh,” which is the meaning of the verb in the Qal stem. What exactly Ishmael was doing is not clear. Interpreters have generally concluded that the boy was either (1) mocking Isaac (cf. NASB, NIV, NLT) or (2) merely playing with Isaac as if on equal footing (cf. NAB, NRSV). In either case Sarah saw it as a threat. The same participial form was used in Gen 19:14 to describe how some in Lot’s family viewed his attempt to warn them of impending doom. It also appears later in Gen 39:14, 17, where Potiphar accuses Joseph of mocking them.

[21:10]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “drive out.” The language may seem severe, but Sarah’s maternal instincts sensed a real danger in that Ishmael was not treating Isaac with the proper respect.

[21:11]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and the word was very wrong in the eyes of Abraham on account of his son.” The verb רָעַע (ra’a’) often refers to what is morally or ethically “evil.” It usage here suggests that Abraham thought Sarah’s demand was ethically (and perhaps legally) wrong.

[21:12]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Let it not be evil in your eyes.”

[21:12]  ²¹ tn Heb “listen to her voice.” The idiomatic expression means “obey; comply.” Here her advice, though harsh, is necessary and conforms to the will of God. Later (see Gen 25), when Abraham has other sons, he sends them all away as well.

[21:12]  ²² tn The imperfect verbal form here draws attention to an action that is underway.

[21:12]  ²³ tn Or perhaps “will be named”; Heb “for in Isaac offspring will be called to you.” The exact meaning of the statement is not clear, but it does indicate that God’s covenantal promises to Abraham will be realized through Isaac, not Ishmael.

[21:14]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and Abraham rose up early in the morning and he took.”

[21:14]  ²⁵ tn Heb “bread,” although the term can be used for food in general.

[21:14]  ²⁶ tn Heb “He put upon her shoulder, and the boy [or perhaps, “and with the boy”], and he sent her away.” It is unclear how “and the boy” relates syntactically to what precedes. Perhaps the words should be rearranged and the text read, “and he put [them] on her shoulder and he gave to Hagar the boy.”

[21:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “she went and wandered.”

[21:14]  ²⁸ tn Or “desert,” although for English readers this usually connotes a sandy desert like the Sahara rather than the arid wasteland of this region with its sparse vegetation.

[21:15]  ²⁹ tn Heb “threw,” but the child, who was now thirteen years old, would not have been carried, let alone thrown under a bush. The exaggerated language suggests Ishmael is limp from dehydration and is being abandoned to die. See G. J. Wenham, Genesis (WBC), 2:85.

[21:16]  ³⁰ sn A bowshot would be a distance of about a hundred yards (ninety meters).

[21:16]  ³¹ tn Heb “said.”

[21:16]  ³² tn Heb “I will not look on the death of the child.” The cohortative verbal form (note the negative particle אַל,’al) here expresses her resolve to avoid the stated action.

[21:16]  ³³ tn Heb “and she lifted up her voice and wept” (that is, she wept uncontrollably). The LXX reads “he” (referring to Ishmael) rather than “she” (referring to Hagar), but this is probably an attempt to harmonize this verse with the following one, which refers to the boy’s cries.

[21:17]  ³⁴ sn God heard the boy’s voice. The text has not to this point indicated that Ishmael was crying out, either in pain or in prayer. But the text here makes it clear that God heard him. Ishmael is clearly central to the story. Both the mother and the Lord are focused on the child’s imminent death.

[21:17]  ³⁵ tn Heb “What to you?”

[21:17]  ³⁶ sn Here the verb heard picks up the main motif of the name Ishmael (“God hears”), introduced back in chap. 16.

[21:19]  ³⁷ tn Heb “And God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water.” The referent (Hagar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:21]  ³⁸ sn The wilderness of Paran is an area in the east central region of the Sinai peninsula, northeast from the traditional site of Mt. Sinai and with the Arabah and the Gulf of Aqaba as its eastern border.

[21:21]  ³⁹ tn Heb “And his mother took for him a wife from the land of Egypt.”

[21:22]  ⁴⁰ sn God is with you. Abimelech and Phicol recognized that Abraham enjoyed special divine provision and protection.

[21:23]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “And now swear to me by God here.”

[21:23]  ⁴² tn Heb “my offspring and my descendants.”

[21:23]  ⁴³ tn The word “land” refers by metonymy to the people in the land.

[21:23]  ⁴⁴ tn The Hebrew verb means “to stay, to live, to sojourn” as a temporary resident without ownership rights.

[21:23]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “kindness.”

[21:23]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “According to the loyalty which I have done with you, do with me and with the land in which you are staying.”

[21:24]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “I swear.” No object is specified in the Hebrew text, but the content of the oath requested by Abimelech is the implied object.

[21:25]  ⁴⁸ tn The Hebrew verb used here means “to argue; to dispute”; it can focus on the beginning of the dispute (as here), the dispute itself, or the resolution of a dispute (Isa 1:18). Apparently the complaint was lodged before the actual oath was taken.

[21:25]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “concerning the matter of the well of water.”

[21:25]  ⁵⁰ tn The Hebrew verb used here means “to steal; to rob; to take violently.” The statement reflects Abraham’s perspective.

[21:26]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “and also.”

[21:27]  ⁵² tn Heb “cut a covenant.”

[21:29]  ⁵³ tn Heb “What are these?”

[21:30]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “that it be for me for a witness.”

[21:30]  ⁵⁵ sn This well. Since the king wanted a treaty to share in Abraham’s good fortune, Abraham used the treaty to secure ownership of and protection for the well he dug. It would be useless to make a treaty to live in this territory if he had no rights to the water. Abraham consented to the treaty, but added his rider to it.

[21:31]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “that is why he called that place.” Some translations render this as an impersonal passive, “that is why that place was called.”

[21:31]  ⁵⁷ sn The name Beer Sheba (בְּאֵר שָׁבַע, bÿ’er shava’) means “well of the oath” or “well of the seven.” Both the verb “to swear” and the number “seven” have been used throughout the account. Now they are drawn in as part of the explanation of the significance of the name.

[21:31]  ⁵⁸ sn The verb forms a wordplay with the name Beer Sheba.

[21:32]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “cut a covenant.”

[21:32]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “arose and returned.”

[21:32]  ⁶¹ sn The Philistines mentioned here may not be ethnically related to those who lived in Palestine in the time of the judges and the united monarchy. See D. M. Howard, “Philistines,” Peoples of the Old Testament World, 238.

[21:33]  ⁶² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:33]  ⁶³ sn The planting of the tamarisk tree is a sign of Abraham’s intent to stay there for a long time, not a religious act. A growing tree in the Negev would be a lasting witness to God’s provision of water.

[21:33]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “he called there in the name of the Lord.” The expression refers to worshiping the Lord through prayer and sacrifice (see Gen 4:26; 12:8; 13:4; 26:25). See G. J. Wenham, Genesis (WBC), 1:116, 281.

[21:34]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “many days.”

[1:6]  ⁶⁶ tn The Hebrew word refers to an expanse of air pressure between the surface of the sea and the clouds, separating water below from water above. In v. 8 it is called “sky.”

[1:6]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “the waters from the waters.”

[72:6]  ⁶⁸ tn That is, the king (see vv. 2, 4).

[72:6]  ⁶⁹ tn The rare term zg refers to a sheep’s fleece in Deut 18:4 and Job 31:20, but to “mown” grass or crops here and in Amos 7:1.

[72:6]  ⁷⁰ tc The form in the Hebrew text appears to be an otherwise unattested noun. Many prefer to emend the form to a verb from the root זָרַף (zaraf). BHS in textual note b on this verse suggests a Hiphil imperfect, third masculine plural יַזְרִיפוּ (yazrifu), while HALOT 283 s.v. *זרף prefers a Pilpel perfect, third masculine plural זִרְזְפוּ (zirzÿfu). The translation assumes the latter.

[72:6]  ⁷¹ sn The imagery of this verse compares the blessings produced by the king’s reign to fructifying rains that cause the crops to grow.

[72:7]  ⁷² tn Heb “sprout up,” like crops. This verse continues the metaphor of rain utilized in v. 6.

[72:7]  ⁷³ tn Heb “and [there will be an] abundance of peace until there is no more moon.”

[72:8]  ⁷⁴ tn The prefixed verbal form is a (shortened) jussive form, indicating this is a prayer of blessing.

[72:8]  ⁷⁵ sn From sea to sea. This may mean from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the Dead Sea in the east. See Amos 8:12. The language of this and the following line also appears in Zech 9:10.

[72:8]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “the river,” a reference to the Euphrates.

[72:9]  ⁷⁷ tn Or “islands.” The term here refers metonymically to those people who dwell in these regions.

[72:9]  ⁷⁸ sn As they bow down before him, it will appear that his enemies are licking the dust.

[72:10]  ⁷⁹ sn Tarshish was a distant western port, the precise location of which is uncertain.

[72:10]  ⁸⁰ sn Sheba was located in Arabia.

[72:10]  ⁸¹ sn Seba was located in Africa.

[72:12]  ⁸² tn The singular is representative. The typical needy individual here represents the entire group.

[72:12]  ⁸³ tn The singular is representative. The typical oppressed individual here represents the entire group.

[72:13]  ⁸⁴ tn The prefixed verb form is best understood as a defectively written imperfect (see Deut 7:16).

[72:14]  ⁸⁵ tn Or “redeem their lives.” The verb “redeem” casts the Lord in the role of a leader who protects members of his extended family in times of need and crisis (see Pss 19:14; 69:18).

[72:14]  ⁸⁶ tn Heb “their blood will be precious in his eyes.”

[72:15]  ⁸⁷ tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect. Because the form has the prefixed vav (ו), some subordinate it to what precedes as a purpose/result clause. In this case the representative poor individual might be the subject of this and the following verb, “so that he may live and give to him gold of Sheba.” But the idea of the poor offering gold is incongruous. It is better to take the jussive as a prayer with the king as subject of the verb. (Perhaps the initial vav is dittographic; note the vav at the end of the last form in v. 14.) The statement is probably an abbreviated version of the formula יְחִי הַמֶּלֶךְ (yÿkhiy hammelekh, “may the king live”; see 1 Sam 10:24; 2 Sam 16:16; 1 Kgs 1:25, 34, 39; 2 Kgs 11:12).

[72:15]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “and he will give to him some gold of Sheba.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive with a grammatically indefinite subject (“and may one give”). Of course, the king’s subjects, mentioned in the preceding context, are the tribute bearers in view here.

[72:15]  ⁸⁹ tn As in the preceding line, the prefixed verbal forms are understood as jussives with a grammatically indefinite subject (“and may one pray…and may one bless”). Of course, the king’s subjects, mentioned in the preceding context, are in view here.

[72:16]  ⁹⁰ tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect. The translation assumes the subject is impersonal (rather than the king).

[72:16]  ⁹¹ tn The Hebrew noun פִסַּה (pissah; which appears here in the construct form) occurs only here in the OT. Perhaps the noun is related to the verbal root פָּשָׂה (pasah, “to spread,” see BDB 832 s.v.; the root appears as פָּסָה [pasah] in postbiblical Hebrew), which is used in postbiblical Hebrew of the rising sun’s rays spreading over the horizon and a tree’s branches spreading out (see Jastrow 1194 s.v. פסי, פָּסָה, פָּשָׂה). In Ps 72:16 a “spreading of grain” would refer to grain fields extending out over the land. C. A. Briggs and E. G. Briggs (Psalms [ICC], 2:139) emend the form to סְפִיחַ (sÿfiakh, “second growth”).

[72:16]  ⁹² tn Heb “top” (singular).

[72:16]  ⁹³ tn That is, the grain.

[72:16]  ⁹⁴ tn According to the traditional accentuation of the MT, this verb belongs with what follows. See the translator’s note at the end of the verse for a discussion of the poetic parallelism and interpretation of the verse.

[72:16]  ⁹⁵ tn The antecedent of the third masculine singular pronominal suffix is unclear. It is unlikely that the antecedent is אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”) because this noun is normally grammatically feminine. Perhaps רֹאשׁ (ro’sh, “top [of the mountains]”) is the antecedent. Another option is to understand the pronoun as referring to the king, who would then be viewed as an instrument of divine agricultural blessing (see v. 6).

[72:16]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “fruit.”

[72:16]  ⁹⁷ tc According to the traditional accentuation of the MT, this verb belongs with what follows. See the note on the word “earth” at the end of the verse for a discussion of the poetic parallelism and interpretation of the verse. The present translation takes it with the preceding words, “like Lebanon its fruit” and emends the verb form from וְיָצִיצוּ (vÿyatsitsu; Qal imperfect third masculine plural with prefixed vav, [ו]) to יָצִיץ (yatsits; Qal imperfect third masculine singular). The initial vav is eliminated as dittographic (note the vav on the ending of the preceding form פִּרְיוֹ, piryo, “its/his fruit”) and the vav at the end of the form is placed on the following emended form (see the note on the word “crops”), yielding וַעֲמִיר (va’amir, “and [its] crops”).

[72:16]  ⁹⁸ tn Heb “like Lebanon.”

[72:16]  ⁹⁹ tc The MT has “from the city.” The translation assumes an emendation to עֲמִיר (’amir, “crops”).

[72:16]  ¹⁰⁰ tn The translation assumes that the verb צוץ (“flourish”) goes with the preceding line. The words “be as abundant” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[72:16]  ¹⁰¹ tc The traditional accentuation and vocalization of the MT differ from the text assumed by the present translation. The MT reads as follows: “May there be an abundance of grain in the earth, / and on the tops of the mountains! / May its [or “his”?] fruit [trees?] rustle like [the trees of] Lebanon! / May they flourish from the city, like the grass of the earth!” If one follows the MT, then it would appear that the “fruit” of the third line is a metaphorical reference to the king’s people, who flow out from the cities to populate the land (see line 4). Elsewhere in the OT people are sometimes compared to grass that sprouts up from the land (see v. 7, as well as Isa 27:6; Pss 92:7; 103:15). The translation understands a different poetic structural arrangement and, assuming the emendations mentioned in earlier notes, interprets each line of the verse to be a prayer for agricultural abundance.

[72:17]  ¹⁰² tn Heb “may his name [be] permanent.” The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect.

[72:17]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “before the sun may his name increase.” The Kethib (consonantal text) assumes יָנִין (yanin; a Hiphil of the verbal root נִין, nin) or יְנַיֵן (yÿnayen; a Piel form), while the Qere (marginal reading) assumes יִנּוֹן (yinnon; a Niphal form). The verb נִין occurs only here, though a derived noun, meaning “offspring,” appears elsewhere (see Isa 14:22). The verb appears to mean “propagate, increase” (BDB 630 s.v. נוּן, נִין) or “produce shoots, get descendants” (HALOT 696 s.v. נין). In this context this appears to be a prayer for a lasting dynasty that will keep the king’s name and memory alive.

[72:17]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “may they bless one another by him,” that is, use the king’s name in their blessing formulae because he is a prime example of one blessed by God (for examples of such blessing formulae, see Gen 48:20 and Ruth 4:11). There is some debate on whether the Hitpael form of בָּרַךְ (barakh, “bless”) is reflexive-reciprocal (as assumed in the present translation) or passive. The Hitpael of בָּרַךְ occurs in five other passages, including the hotly debated Gen 22:18 and 26:4. In these two texts one could understand the verb form as passive and translate, “all the nations of the earth will be blessed through your offspring,” or one could take the Hitpael as reflexive or reciprocal and translate, “all the nations of the earth will pronounce blessings [i.e., on themselves or one another] by your offspring.” In the first instance Abraham’s (or Isaac’s) offspring are viewed as a channel of divine blessing. In the second instance they are viewed as a prime example of blessing that will appear as part of the nations’ blessing formulae, but not necessarily as a channel of blessing to the nations. In Deut 29:18 one reads: “When one hears the words of this covenant [or “oath”] and invokes a blessing on himself (Hitpael of בָּרַךְ) in his heart, saying: ‘I will have peace, even though I walk with a rebellious heart.’” In this case the Hitpael is clearly reflexive, as the phrases “in his heart” and “I will have peace” indicate. The Hitpael of בָּרַךְ appears twice in Isaiah 65:16: “The one who invokes a blessing on himself (see Deut 9:18) in the land will invoke that blessing by the God of truth; and the one who makes an oath in the land will make that oath by the God of truth.” A passive nuance does not fit here. The parallel line, which mentions making an oath, suggests that the Hitpael of בָּרַךְ refers here to invoking a blessing. Both pronouncements of blessing and oaths will appeal to God as the one who rewards and judges, respectively. Jer 4:2 states: “If you swear, ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’ with truth, integrity, and honesty, then the nations will pronounce blessings by him and boast in him.” A passive nuance might work (“the nations will be blessed”), but the context refers to verbal pronouncements (swearing an oath, boasting), suggesting that the Hitpael of בָּרַךְ refers here to invoking a blessing. The logic of the verse seems to be as follows: If Israel conducts its affairs with integrity, the nation will be favored by the Lord, which will in turn attract the surrounding nations to Israel’s God. To summarize, while the evidence might leave the door open for a passive interpretation, there is no clear cut passive use. Usage favors a reflexive or reciprocal understanding of the Hitpael of בָּרַךְ. In Ps 72:17 the Hitpael of בָּרַךְ is followed by the prepositional phrase בוֹ (vo, “by him”). The verb could theoretically be taken as passive, “may all the nations be blessed through him” (cf. NIV, NRSV), because the preceding context describes the positive effects of this king’s rule on the inhabitants of the earth. But the parallel line, which employs the Piel of אָשַׁר (’ashar) in a factitive/declarative sense, “regard as happy, fortunate,” suggests a reflexive or reciprocal nuance for the Hitpael of בָּרַךְ here. If the nations regard the ideal king as a prime example of one who is fortunate or blessed, it is understandable that they would use his name in their pronouncements of blessing.

[72:17]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Heb “all the nations, may they regard him as happy.” The Piel is used here in a delocutive sense (“regard as”).

[72:18]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “[be] blessed.” See Pss 18:46; 28:6; 31:21; 41:13.

[72:18]  ¹⁰⁷ tn Heb “[the] one who does amazing things by himself.”

[72:19]  ¹⁰⁸ tn Heb “[be] blessed.”

[72:19]  ¹⁰⁹ tn Or “glory.”

[72:19]  ¹¹⁰ tn Heb “surely and surely” (אָמֵן וְאָמֵן [’amen vÿ’amen], i.e., “Amen and amen”). This is probably a congregational response of agreement to the immediately preceding statement about the propriety of praising God.

[98:1]  ¹¹¹ sn Psalm 98. The psalmist summons the whole earth to praise God because he reveals his justice and delivers Israel.

[98:1]  ¹¹² sn A new song is appropriate because the Lord is constantly intervening in the world as its just king. See Ps 96:1.

[98:1]  ¹¹³ tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 1-3 are understood here as describing characteristic divine activities. Another option is to translate them as present perfects, “has performed…has accomplished deliverance, etc.” referring to completed actions that have continuing results.

[98:1]  ¹¹⁴ tn Heb “his right hand delivers for him and his holy arm.” The right hand and arm symbolize his power as a warrior-king (see Isa 52:10). His arm is “holy” in the sense that it is in a category of its own; God’s power is incomparable.

[98:2]  ¹¹⁵ tn Heb “makes known his deliverance.”

[98:3]  ¹¹⁶ tn Heb “he remembers his loyal love and his faithfulness to the house of Israel.”

[98:3]  ¹¹⁷ tn Heb “the deliverance of our God,” with “God” being a subjective genitive (= God delivers).

[98:9]  ¹¹⁸ tn The verbal forms in v. 9 probably describe God’s typical, characteristic behavior, though they may depict in dramatic fashion the outworking of divine judgment or anticipate a future judgment of worldwide proportions (“will judge…”).

[2:1]  ¹¹⁹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[2:1]  ¹²⁰ tn Heb “the word which Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.”

[2:2]  ¹²¹ 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.

[2:2]  ¹²² tn Or “be established” (KJV, NIV, NRSV).

[2:2]  ¹²³ 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.

[2:3]  ¹²⁴ tn The prefixed verb form with simple vav (ו) introduces a purpose/result clause after the preceding prefixed verb form (probably to be taken as a cohortative; see IBHS 650 §39.2.2a).

[2:3]  ¹²⁵ tn Heb “his ways.” In this context God’s “ways” are the standards of moral conduct he decrees that people should live by.

[2:3]  ¹²⁶ tn The cohortative with vav (ו) after the prefixed verb form indicates the ultimate purpose/goal of their action.

[2:3]  ¹²⁷ tn Heb “walk in his ways.”

[2:3]  ¹²⁸ tn Heb “for out of Zion will go instruction.”

[2:3]  ¹²⁹ tn Heb “the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

[49:10]  ¹³⁰ tn Heb “and the heat and the sun will not strike them.” In Isa 35:7, its only other occurrence in the OT, שָׁרָב (sharav) stands parallel to “parched ground” and in contrast to “pool.” In later Hebrew and Aramaic it refers to “dry heat, heat of the sun” (Jastrow 1627 s.v.). Here it likely has this nuance and forms a hendiadys with “sun.”

[49:12]  ¹³¹ tc The MT reads “Sinim” here; the Dead Sea Scrolls read “Syene,” a location in Egypt associated with modern Aswan. A number of recent translations adopt this reading: “Syene” (NAB, NRSV); “Aswan” (NIV); “Egypt” (NLT).

[49:13]  ¹³² tn Or “O heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.

[49:13]  ¹³³ tn Heb “his” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[49:14]  ¹³⁴ tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).

[49:15]  ¹³⁵ tn Heb “her suckling”; NASB “her nursing child.”

[49:15]  ¹³⁶ tn Heb “so as not to have compassion on the son of her womb?”

[49:15]  ¹³⁷ tn Heb “these” (so ASV, NASB).

[49:15]  ¹³⁸ sn The argument of v. 15 seems to develop as follows: The Lord has an innate attachment to Zion, just like a mother does for her infant child. But even if mothers were to suddenly abandon their children, the Lord would never forsake Zion. In other words, the Lord’s attachment to Zion is like a mother’s attachment to her infant child, but even stronger.

[49:16]  ¹³⁹ tn Heb “you.” Here the pronoun is put by metonymy for the person’s name.

[49:18]  ¹⁴⁰ tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see.”

[49:19]  ¹⁴¹ tn Heb “Indeed your ruins and your desolate places, and the land of your destruction.” This statement is abruptly terminated in the Hebrew text and left incomplete.

[49:20]  ¹⁴² tn Heb “me.” The singular is collective.

[49:20]  ¹⁴³ tn Heb “draw near to me so I can dwell.”

[49:21]  ¹⁴⁴ tn Heb “and you will say in your heart.”

[49:21]  ¹⁴⁵ tn Or “exiled and thrust away”; NIV “exiled and rejected.”

[51:11]  ¹⁴⁶ tn Heb “[will be] on their head[s].” “Joy” may be likened here to a crown (cf. 2 Sam 1:10). The statement may also be an ironic twist on the idiom “earth/dust on the head” (cf. 2 Sam 1:2; 13:19; 15:32; Job 2:12), referring to a mourning practice.

[51:11]  ¹⁴⁷ tn Heb “overtake” (so NIV); NASB “they will obtain.”

[51:11]  ¹⁴⁸ tn Heb “grief and groaning will flee.”

[52:1]  ¹⁴⁹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[52:2]  ¹⁵⁰ tn Heb “Shake yourself free from the dirt.”

[52:2]  ¹⁵¹ tc The Hebrew text has שְּׂבִי (shÿvi), which some understand as a feminine singular imperative from יָשַׁב (yashav, “sit”). The LXX, Vulgate, Syriac, and the Targum support the MT reading (the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a does indirectly). Some interpret this to mean “take your throne”: The Lord exhorts Jerusalem to get up from the dirt and sit, probably with the idea of sitting in a place of honor (J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:361). However, the form is likely a corruption of שְׁבִיָּה (shÿviyyah, “captive”), which appears in the parallel line.

[52:5]  ¹⁵² tn Heb “and now what [following the marginal reading (Qere)] to me here?”

[52:5]  ¹⁵³ tn The verb appears to be a Hiphil form from the root יָלַל (yalal, “howl”), perhaps here in the sense of “mock.” Some emend the form to יְהוֹלָּלוֹ (yÿhollalo) and understand a Polel form of the root הָלַל meaning here “mock, taunt.”

[52:5]  ¹⁵⁴ tn The verb is apparently a Hitpolal form (with assimilated tav, ת) from the root נָאַץ (na’ats), but GKC 151-52 §55.b explains it as a mixed form, combining Pual and Hitpolel readings.

[52:6]  ¹⁵⁵ tn The verb is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[52:6]  ¹⁵⁶ tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[52:7]  ¹⁵⁷ tn Heb “How delightful on the mountains.”

[52:7]  ¹⁵⁸ tn Or “has become king.” When a new king was enthroned, his followers would give this shout. For other examples of this enthronement formula (Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular מָלַךְ [malakh], followed by the name of the king), see 2 Sam 15:10; 1 Kgs 1:11, 13, 18; 2 Kgs 9:13. The Lord is an eternal king, but here he is pictured as a victorious warrior who establishes his rule from Zion.

[52:8]  ¹⁵⁹ tn קוֹל (qol, “voice”) is used at the beginning of the verse as an interjection.

[52:8]  ¹⁶⁰ tn Heb “eye in eye”; KJV, ASV “eye to eye”; NAB “directly, before their eyes.”

[52:9]  ¹⁶¹ tn Or “redeems.” See the note at 41:14.

[52:10]  ¹⁶² tn Heb “lays bare”; NLT “will demonstrate.”

[52:10]  ¹⁶³ tn Heb “his holy arm.” This is a metonymy for his power.

[52:10]  ¹⁶⁴ tn Heb “the remote regions,” which here stand for the extremities and everything in between.

[52:10]  ¹⁶⁵ tn Heb “the deliverance of our God.” “God” is a subjective genitive here.

[54:2]  ¹⁶⁶ tn Heb “the curtains of our dwelling places let them stretch out.”

[54:2]  ¹⁶⁷ tn Heb “your stakes strengthen.”

[54:3]  ¹⁶⁸ tn Or “take possession of”; NAB “shall dispossess.”

[54:4]  ¹⁶⁹ tn Or “embarrassed”; NASB “humiliated…disgraced.”

[54:4]  ¹⁷⁰ tn Another option is to translate, “the disgrace of our widowhood” (so NRSV). However, the following context (vv. 6-7) refers to Zion’s husband, the Lord, abandoning her, not dying. This suggests that an אַלְמָנָה (’almanah) was a woman who had lost her husband, whether by death or abandonment.

[54:5]  ¹⁷¹ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[54:5]  ¹⁷² sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[54:6]  ¹⁷³ tn Heb “like a woman abandoned and grieved in spirit.”

[54:7]  ¹⁷⁴ tn Or “forsook” (NASB).

[54:8]  ¹⁷⁵ tn According to BDB 1009 s.v. שֶׁטֶף the noun שֶׁצֶף here is an alternate form of שֶׁטֶף (shetef, “flood”). Some relate the word to an alleged Akkadian cognate meaning “strength.”

[54:8]  ¹⁷⁶ tn Heb “I hid my face from you.”

[54:8]  ¹⁷⁷ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[54:9]  ¹⁷⁸ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “For [or “indeed”] the waters of Noah [is] this to me.” כִּי־מֵי (ki-me, “for the waters of”) should be emended to כְּמֵי (kÿmey, “like the days of”), which is supported by the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a and all the ancient versions except LXX.

[54:9]  ¹⁷⁹ tn Heb “the waters of Noah” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV).

[54:10]  ¹⁸⁰ tn Heb “peace” (so many English versions); NLT “of blessing.”

[54:11]  ¹⁸¹ tn Or, more literally, “windblown, storm tossed.”

[54:12]  ¹⁸² tn Perhaps, “rubies” (so ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[54:12]  ¹⁸³ tn On the meaning of אֶקְדָּח (’eqdakh), which occurs only here, see HALOT 82 s.v.

[54:12]  ¹⁸⁴ tn Heb “border” (so ASV); NASB “your entire wall.”

[54:12]  ¹⁸⁵ tn Heb “delightful”; KJV “pleasant.”

[54:13]  ¹⁸⁶ tn Heb “and great [will be] the peace of your sons.”

[54:14]  ¹⁸⁷ tn Heb “in righteousness [or “vindication”] you will be established.” The precise meaning of צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah) here is uncertain. It could mean “righteousness, justice,” indicating that the city will be a center for justice. But the context focuses on deliverance, suggesting that the term means “deliverance, vindication” here.

[54:14]  ¹⁸⁸ tn Heb “Be far from oppression!” The imperative is used here in a rhetorical manner to express certainty and assurance. See GKC 324 §110.c.

[54:14]  ¹⁸⁹ tn Heb “from terror.” The rhetorical command, “be far” is understood by ellipsis here. Note the preceding context.

[54:14]  ¹⁹⁰ tn Heb “it,” i.e., the “terror” just mentioned.

[60:1]  ¹⁹¹ tn Or “glory” (so most English versions).

[60:2]  ¹⁹² tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[60:2]  ¹⁹³ tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.”

[60:4]  ¹⁹⁴ tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see!”

[60:5]  ¹⁹⁵ tn Or “shine,” or “be radiant” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[60:5]  ¹⁹⁶ tn Heb “and it will tremble and be wide, your heart.”

[60:5]  ¹⁹⁷ tn Heb “the wealth of the sea,” i.e., wealth that is transported from distant lands via the sea.

[60:6]  ¹⁹⁸ tn Heb “an abundance of camels will cover you.”

[60:6]  ¹⁹⁹ tn Heb “all of them, from Sheba.”

[60:6]  ²⁰⁰ tn Heb “and they will announce the praises of the Lord.”

[60:7]  ²⁰¹ tn Heb “will serve you,” i.e., be available as sacrifices (see the next line). Another option is to understood these “rams” as symbolic of leaders who will be subject to the people of Zion. See v. 10.

[60:7]  ²⁰² tc Heb “they will go up on acceptance [on] my altar.” Some have suggested that the preposition עַל (’al) is dittographic (note the preceding יַעֲלוּ [ya’alu]). Consequently, the form should be emended to לְרָצוֹן (lÿratson, “acceptably”; see BDB 953 s.v. רָצוֹן). However, the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has both לרצון followed by the preposition על, which would argue against deleted the preposition. As the above translation seeks to demonstrate, the preposition עַל (’al) indicates a norm (“in accordance with acceptance” or “acceptably”; IBHS 218 §11.2.13e, n. 111) and the “altar” functions as an objective accusative with a verb of motion (cf. Gen 49:4; Lev 2:2; Num 13:17; J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:534, n. 14).

[60:8]  ²⁰³ tn Heb “fly” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NAB, NIV “fly along.”

[60:8]  ²⁰⁴ tn Heb “to their windows,” i.e., to the openings in their coops. See HALOT 83 s.v. אֲרֻבָּה.

[60:9]  ²⁰⁵ tn Or “islands” (NIV); CEV “distant islands”; TEV “distant lands.”

[60:9]  ²⁰⁶ tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” See the note at 2:16.

[60:9]  ²⁰⁷ tn Heb “to the name of the Lord your God.”

[60:9]  ²⁰⁸ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[60:10]  ²⁰⁹ tn Heb “in my favor I will have compassion on you.”

[60:11]  ²¹⁰ tn Or “led in procession.” The participle is passive.

[60:12]  ²¹¹ tn Or “For” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); TEV “But.”

[60:12]  ²¹² tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.

[60:13]  ²¹³ tn Or “holy place, sanctuary.”

[60:13]  ²¹⁴ tn Heb “the place of my feet.” See Ezek 43:7, where the Lord’s throne is called the “place of the soles of my feet.”

[60:14]  ²¹⁵ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[60:15]  ²¹⁶ tn Heb “Instead of your being abandoned and despised, with no one passing through, I will make you.”

[60:16]  ²¹⁷ sn The nations and kings are depicted as a mother nursing her children. Restored Zion will be nourished by them as she receives their wealth as tribute.

[60:16]  ²¹⁸ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[60:16]  ²¹⁹ sn See 1:24 and 49:26.

[60:17]  ²²⁰ tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the preceding lines).

[60:17]  ²²¹ tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the first two lines of the verse).

[60:17]  ²²² tn Or “peace” (KJV and many other English versions).

[60:17]  ²²³ tn The plural indicates degree. The language is ironic; in the past Zion was ruled by oppressive tyrants, but now personified prosperity and vindication will be the only things that will “dominate” the city.

[60:18]  ²²⁴ tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[60:18]  ²²⁵ tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[60:19]  ²²⁶ tn Heb “and your God for your splendor.”

[60:20]  ²²⁷ sn In this verse “sun” and “moon” refer to the Lord’s light, which will replace the sun and moon (see v. 19). Light here symbolizes the restoration of divine blessing and prosperity in conjunction with the Lord’s presence. See 30:26.

[60:20]  ²²⁸ tn Heb “days” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[60:21]  ²²⁹ tn Or “righteous” (NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “just.”

[60:21]  ²³⁰ tn Heb “a shoot of his planting, the work of my hands, to reveal splendor.”

[60:22]  ²³¹ tn Heb “will become” (so NASB, NIV).

[60:22]  ²³² tn Heb “I, the Lord, in its time, I will quickly do it.”

[61:3]  ²³³ tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”

[61:3]  ²³⁴ tn Heb “garment of praise.”

[61:3]  ²³⁵ tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”

[61:3]  ²³⁶ tn Rather than referring to the character of the people, צֶדֶק (tsedeq) may carry the nuance “vindication” here, suggesting that God’s restored people are a testimony to his justice. See v. 2, which alludes to the fact that God will take vengeance against the enemies of his people. Cf. NAB “oaks of justice.”

[61:3]  ²³⁷ tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”

[61:9]  ²³⁸ tn Heb “all who see them will recognize them, that they [are] descendants [whom] the Lord has blessed.”

[61:10]  ²³⁹ sn The speaker in vv. 10-11 is not identified, but it is likely that the personified nation (or perhaps Zion) responds here to the Lord’s promise of restoration.

[61:10]  ²⁴⁰ tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.

[61:10]  ²⁴¹ tn Heb “my being is happy in my God”; NAB “in my God is the joy of my soul.”

[61:10]  ²⁴² tn Heb “robe of vindication”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV “robe of righteousness.”

[61:10]  ²⁴³ tn Heb “like a bridegroom [who] acts like a priest [by wearing] a turban, and like a bride [who] wears her jewelry.” The words “I look” are supplied for stylistic reasons and clarification.

[61:11]  ²⁴⁴ tn Or perhaps, “righteousness,” but the context seems to emphasize deliverance and restoration (see v. 10 and 62:1).

[61:11]  ²⁴⁵ tn Heb “and praise before all the nations.”

[62:1]  ²⁴⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[62:1]  ²⁴⁷ tn Heb “goes forth like brightness.”

[62:2]  ²⁴⁸ tn Heb “which the mouth of the Lord will designate.”

[62:4]  ²⁴⁹ tn Or “for”; KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “but.”

[62:4]  ²⁵⁰ tn Hebrew חֶפְצִי־בָהּ (kheftsi-vah), traditionally transliterated “Hephzibah” (so KJV, ASV, NIV).

[62:4]  ²⁵¹ tn Hebrew בְּעוּלָה (bÿ’ulah), traditionally transliterated “Beulah” (so KJV, ASV, NIV).

[62:4]  ²⁵² tn That is, the land will be restored to the Lord’s favor and once again enjoy his blessing and protection. To indicate the land’s relationship to the Lord, the words “to him” have been supplied at the end of the clause.

[62:5]  ²⁵³ tc The Hebrew text has “your sons,” but this produces an odd metaphor and is somewhat incongruous with the parallelism. In the context (v. 4b, see also 54:5-7) the Lord is the one who “marries” Zion. Therefore several prefer to emend “your sons” to בֹּנָיִךְ (bonayikh, “your builder”; e.g., NRSV). In Ps 147:2 the Lord is called the “builder of Jerusalem.” However, this emendation is not the best option for at least four reasons. First, although the Lord is never called the “builder” of Jerusalem in Isaiah, the idea of Zion’s children possessing the land does occur (Isa 49:20; 54:3; cf. also 14:1; 60:21). Secondly, all the ancient versions support the MT reading. Thirdly, although the verb בָּעַל (ba’al) can mean “to marry,” its basic idea is “to possess.” Consequently, the verb stresses a relationship more than a state. All the ancient versions render this verb “to dwell in” or “to dwell with.” The point is not just that the land will be reinhabited, but that it will be in a relationship of “belonging” to the Israelites. Hence a relational verb like בָּעַל is used (J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:581). Finally, “sons” is a well-known metaphor for “inhabitants” (J. de Waard, Isaiah, 208).

[65:17]  ²⁵⁴ sn This hyperbolic statement likens the coming transformation of Jerusalem (see vv. 18-19) to a new creation of the cosmos.

[65:17]  ²⁵⁵ tn Or perhaps, “the former things” (so ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); TEV “The events of the past.”

[65:17]  ²⁵⁶ tn Heb “and they will not come up on the mind.”

[65:18]  ²⁵⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[65:18]  ²⁵⁸ tn Heb “Jerusalem, joy.” The next verse suggests the meaning: The Lord will create Jerusalem to be a source of joy to himself.

[65:18]  ²⁵⁹ tn Heb “her people, happiness.” See the preceding note.

[65:19]  ²⁶⁰ tn Heb “and I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and be happy in my people.”

[65:20]  ²⁶¹ tn Heb “and there will not be from there again a nursing infant of days,” i.e., one that lives just a few days.

[65:20]  ²⁶² tn Heb “or an old [man] who does not fill out his days.”

[65:20]  ²⁶³ tn Heb “for the child as a son of one hundred years will die.” The point seems to be that those who die at the age of a hundred will be considered children, for the average life span will be much longer than that. The category “child” will be redefined in light of the expanded life spans that will characterize this new era.

[65:20]  ²⁶⁴ tn Heb “the one who misses.” חָטָא (khata’) is used here in its basic sense of “miss the mark.” See HALOT 305 s.v. חטא. Another option is to translate, “and the sinner who reaches the age of a hundred will be cursed.”

[65:22]  ²⁶⁵ tn Heb “they will not build, and another live [in it].”

[65:22]  ²⁶⁶ tn Heb “they will not plant, and another eat.”

[65:22]  ²⁶⁷ tn Heb “for like the days of the tree [will be] the days of my people.”

[65:22]  ²⁶⁸ tn Heb “the work of their hands” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “their hard-won gains.”

[65:23]  ²⁶⁹ tn Heb “and they will not give birth to horror.”

[65:23]  ²⁷⁰ tn Heb “for offspring blessed by the Lord they [will be], and their descendants along with them.”

[65:24]  ²⁷¹ tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[65:25]  ²⁷² sn A similar statement appears in 11:6.

[65:25]  ²⁷³ sn These words also appear in 11:7.

[65:25]  ²⁷⁴ sn Some see an allusion to Gen 3:14 (note “you will eat dirt”). The point would be that even in this new era the snake (often taken as a symbol of Satan) remains under God’s curse. However, it is unlikely that such an allusion exists. Even if there is an echo of Gen 3:14, the primary allusion is to 11:8, where snakes are pictured as no longer dangerous. They will no longer attack other living creatures, but will be content to crawl along the ground. (The statement “you will eat dirt” in Gen 3:14 means “you will crawl on the ground.” In the same way the statement “dirt will be its food” in Isa 65:25 means “it will crawl on the ground.”)

[65:25]  ²⁷⁵ tn Heb “in all my holy mountain.” These same words appear in 11:9. See the note there.

[66:11]  ²⁷⁶ tn Or “in order that”; ASV, NRSV “that.”

[66:11]  ²⁷⁷ tn Heb “you will suck and be satisfied, from her comforting breast.”

[66:11]  ²⁷⁸ tn Heb “you will slurp and refresh yourselves from her heavy breast.”

[66:12]  ²⁷⁹ tn Heb “Look, I am ready to extend to her like a river prosperity [or “peace”], and like an overflowing stream, the riches of nations.”

[66:12]  ²⁸⁰ tn The words “from her breast” are supplied in the translation for clarification (see v. 11).

[66:13]  ²⁸¹ tn Heb “like a man whose mother comforts him.”

[66:14]  ²⁸² tn “and you will see and your heart will be happy.”

[66:14]  ²⁸³ tn Heb “and your bones like grass will sprout.”

[66:14]  ²⁸⁴ tn Heb “and the hand of the Lord will be made known to his servants, and anger to his enemies.”

[66:18]  ²⁸⁵ tc The Hebrew text reads literally “and I, their deeds and their thoughts, am coming.” The syntax here is very problematic, suggesting that the text may have suffered corruption. Some suggest that the words “their deeds and their thoughts” have been displaced from v. 17. This line presents two primary challenges. In the first place, the personal pronoun “I” has no verb after it. Most translations insert “know” for the sake of clarity (NASB, NRSV, NLT, ESV). The NIV has “I, because of their actions and their imaginations…” Since God’s “knowledge” of Israel’s sin occasions judgment, the verb “hate” is an option as well (see above translation). The feminine form of the next verb (בָּאָה, ba’ah) could be understood in one of two ways. One could provide an implied noun “time” (עֵת, ’et) and render the next line “the time is coming/has come” (NASB, ESV). One could also emend the feminine verb to the masculine בָּא (ba’) and have the “I” at the beginning of the line govern this verb as well (for the Lord is speaking here): “I am coming” (cf. NIV, NCV, NRSV, TEV, NLT).

[66:18]  ²⁸⁶ tn Heb “and the tongues”; KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV “and tongues.”

[66:19]  ²⁸⁷ tn Heb “and I will set a sign among them.” The precise meaning of this statement is unclear. Elsewhere “to set a sign” means “perform a mighty act” (Ps 78:43; Jer 32:20), “make [someone] an object lesson” (Ezek 14:8), and “erect a [literal] standard” (Ps 74:4).

[66:19]  ²⁸⁸ tn Some prefer to read “Put” (i.e., Libya).

[66:19]  ²⁸⁹ sn That is, Lydia (in Asia Minor).

[66:19]  ²⁹⁰ tn Heb “drawers of the bow” (KJV and ASV both similar).

[66:19]  ²⁹¹ sn Javan is generally identified today as Greece (so NIV, NCV, NLT).

[66:19]  ²⁹² tn Or “islands” (NIV).

[66:20]  ²⁹³ tn Heb “brothers” (so NIV); NCV “fellow Israelites.”

[66:20]  ²⁹⁴ tn The words “they will bring them” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[66:20]  ²⁹⁵ tn The precise meaning of this word is uncertain. Some suggest it refers to “chariots.” See HALOT 498 s.v. *כִּרְכָּרָה.

[31:22]  ²⁹⁶ tn The translation “dilly-dally” is suggested by J. Bright, Jeremiah (AB), 276. The verb occurs only here in this stem (the Hitpael) and only one other time in any other stem (the Qal in Song 5:6). The dictionaries define it as “to turn this way and that” (cf., e.g., BDB 330 s.v. חָמַק Hithp.). In the context it refers to turning this way and that looking for the way back.

[31:22]  ²⁹⁷ sn Israel’s backsliding is forgotten and forgiven. They had once been characterized as an apostate people (3:14, 22; the word “apostate” and “unfaithful” are the same in Hebrew) and figuratively depicted as an adulterous wife (3:20). Now they are viewed as having responded to his invitation (compare 31:18-19 with 3:22-25). Hence they are no longer depicted as an unfaithful daughter but as an unsullied virgin (see the literal translation of “my dear children” in vv. 4, 21 and the study note on v. 4.)

[31:22]  ²⁹⁸ tn Heb “For the Lord will create.” The person has been shifted to avoid the possible confusion for some readers of a third person reference to the Lord in what has otherwise been a first person address. The verb “will create” is another one of the many examples of the prophetic perfect that have been seen in the book of Jeremiah. For the significance of the verb “create” here see the study note on “bring about something new.”

[31:22]  ²⁹⁹ sn Heb “create.” This word is always used with God as the subject and refers to the production of something new or unique, like the creation of the world and the first man and woman (Gen 1:1; 2:3; 1:27; 5:1) or the creation of a new heavens and a new earth in a new age (Isa 65:17), or the bringing about of new and unique circumstances (Num 16:30). Here reference is made contextually to the new exodus, that marvelous deliverance which will be so great that the old will pale in comparison (see the first note on v. 9).

[31:22]  ³⁰⁰ tn The meaning of this last line is uncertain. The translation has taken it as proverbial for something new and unique. For a fairly complete discussion of most of the options see C. Feinberg, “Jeremiah,” EBC 6:571. For the nuance of “protecting” for the verb here see BDB 686 s.v. סָבַב Po‘ 1 and compare the usage in Deut 32:10.

[31:23]  ³⁰¹ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.” See 7:3 and the study note of 2:19 for the rendering of this title and an explanation of its significance.

[31:23]  ³⁰² tn Heb “They [i.e., people (the indefinite plural, GKC 460 §144.g)] will again say in the land of Judah and in its cities when I restore their fortunes.” For the meaning of the idiom “to restore the fortunes” see the translator’s note on 29:14.

[31:23]  ³⁰³ tn The words “of Jerusalem” are not in the text but it is implicit in the titles that follow. They have been supplied in the translation for clarity to aid in identifying the referent.

[31:23]  ³⁰⁴ sn The blessing pronounced on the city of Zion/Jerusalem by the restored exiles looks at the restoration of its once exalted state as the city known for its sanctity and its just dealing (see Isa 1:21 and Ps 122). This was a reversal of the state of Jerusalem in the time of Isaiah and Jeremiah where wickedness not righteousness characterized the inhabitants of the city (cf. Isa 1:21; Jer 4:14; 5:1; 13:27). The blessing here presupposes the rebuilding of the city of Jerusalem and the temple which gave the city its sanctity.

[31:24]  ³⁰⁵ tn The translation “those who move about with their flocks” is based on an emendation of the Hebrew text which reads a third plural Qal perfect (נָסְעוּ, nos’u) to a masculine plural Qal participle in the construct (נֹסְעֵי, nosÿ’e) as suggested in the BHS fn. For the use of the construct participle before a noun with a preposition see GKC 421 §130.a. It is generally agreed that three classes of people are referred to here, townspeople, farmers, and shepherds. But the syntax of the Hebrew sentence is a little awkward: “And they [i.e., “people” (the indefinite plural, GKC 460 §144.g)] will live in it, Judah and all its cities [an apposition of nearer definition (GKC 425-26 §131.n)], [along with] farmers and those who move about with their flocks.” The first line refers awkwardly to the townspeople and the other two classes are added asyndetically (i.e., without the conjunction “and”).

[31:25]  ³⁰⁶ tn The verbs here again emphasize that the actions are as good as done (i.e., they are prophetic perfects; cf. GKC 312-13 §106.n).

[31:26]  ³⁰⁷ tn Or “When I, Jeremiah, heard this, I woke up and looked around. My sleep had been very pleasant.” The text is somewhat enigmatic. It has often been explained as an indication that Jeremiah had received this communication (30:3–31:26) while in a prophetic trance (compare Dan 10:9). However, there is no other indication that this is a vision or a vision report. G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, and T. G. Smothers (Jeremiah 26-52 [WBC], 124, 128-29) suggest that this is a speech of the restored (and refreshed) exiles like that which is formally introduced in v. 23. This speech, however, is not formally introduced. This interpretation is also reflected in TEV, CEV and is accepted here as fitting the context better and demanding less presuppositions. The Hebrew text reads literally, “Upon this I awoke and looked and my sleep was sweet to me.” Keown, Scalise, and Smothers have the best discussion of these two options as well as several other options.

[32:37]  ³⁰⁸ tn The verb here should be interpreted as a future perfect; though some of the people have already been exiled (in 605 and 597 b.c.), some have not yet been exiled at the time this prophesy is given (see study note on v. 1 for the date). However, contemporary English style does not regularly use the future perfect, choosing instead to use the simple future or the simple perfect as the present translation has done here.

[32:38]  ³⁰⁹ sn The covenant formula setting forth the basic relationship is reinstituted along with a new covenant (v. 40). See also 24:7; 30:22; 31:1 and the study note on 30:22.

[32:39]  ³¹⁰ tn Heb “I will give to them one heart and one way to [= in order that they may] fear me all the days for good to them.” The phrase “one heart” refers both to unanimity of will and accord (cf. 1 Chr 12:38 [12:39 HT]; 2 Chr 30:12) and to singleness of purpose or intent (cf. Ezek 11:19 and see BDB 525 s.v. ֵלב 4 where reference is made to “inclinations, resolutions, and determinations of the will”). The phrase “one way” refers to one way of life or conduct (cf. BDB 203 s.v. דֶּרֶךְ 6.a where reference is made to moral action and character), a way of life that is further qualified by the goal of showing “fear, reverence, respect” for the Lord. The Hebrew sentence has been broken up to avoid a long complex sentence in English which is contrary to contemporary English style. However, an attempt has been made to preserve all the connections of the original.

[32:40]  ³¹¹ tn Heb “an everlasting covenant.” For the rationale for the rendering “agreement” and the nature of the biblical covenants see the study note on 11:2.

[32:40]  ³¹² tn Or “stop being gracious to them” or “stop blessing them with good”; Heb “turn back from them to do good to them.”

[32:40]  ³¹³ tn Or “I will make them want to fear and respect me so much that”; Heb “I will put the fear of me in their hearts.” However, as has been noted several times, “heart” in Hebrew is more the center of the volition (and intellect) than the center of emotions as it is in English. Both translations are intended to reflect the difference in psychology.

[32:40]  ³¹⁴ tn The words “never again” are not in the text but are implicit from the context and are supplied not only by this translation but by a number of others.

[32:41]  ³¹⁵ tn Heb “will plant them in the land with faithfulness with all my heart and with all my soul.” The latter expressions are, of course, anthropomorphisms (see Deut 6:5).

[33:15]  ³¹⁶ tn Heb “sprig” or “shoot.”

[33:16]  ³¹⁷ tn For the translation of this term in this context see the parallel context in 23:6 and consult the translator’s note there.

[33:16]  ³¹⁸ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[33:16]  ³¹⁹ tn Heb “And this is what will be called to it: ‘The Lord our righteousness.’”

[33:17]  ³²⁰ tn Heb “a man shall not be cut off to David [i.e., belonging to the Davidic line] sitting on the throne of the house of Israel.”

[33:17]  ³²¹ sn It should be noted once again that the reference is to all Israel, not just to Judah (cf. Jer 23:5-6; 30:9).

[33:18]  ³²² tn Heb “And to the Levites, the priests [= the Levitical priests, the apposition in place of the adjective] there shall not be cut off a man from before me who offers up burnt offering, sacrifices a cereal offering, or makes a sacrifice all the days.”

[33:19]  ³²³ tn Heb “And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying.” See v. 1. This is a continuation of “the second time.”

[33:20]  ³²⁴ tn Heb “Thus says the Lord.” However, the Lord is speaking so the first person introduction has again been adopted. The content of the verse shows that it is a promise to David (vv. 21-22) and the Levites based on a contrary to fact condition (v. 20). See further the translator’s note at the end of the next verse for explanation of the English structure adopted here.

[33:20]  ³²⁵ tn The word יוֹמָם (yomam) is normally an adverb meaning “daytime, by day, daily.” However, here and in v. 25 and in Jer 15:9 it means “day, daytime” (cf. BDB 401 s.v. יוֹמָם 1).

[33:20]  ³²⁶ tn Heb “you.” The pronoun is plural as in 32:36, 43; 33:10.

[33:21]  ³²⁷ tn The very complex and elliptical syntax of the original Hebrew of vv. 20-21 has been broken down to better conform with contemporary English style. The text reads somewhat literally (after the addition of a couple of phrases which have been left out by ellipsis): “Thus says the Lord, ‘If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night so that there is not to be daytime and night in their proper time then also my covenant can be broken with my servant David so that there is not to him a son reigning upon his throne [and also my covenant can be broken] with the Levites [so there are not] priests who minister to me.” The two phrases in brackets are elliptical, the first serving double duty for the prepositional phrase “with the Levites” as well as “with David” and the second serving double duty with the noun “priests” which parallels “a son.” The noun “priests” is not serving here as appositional because that phrase is always “the priests, the Levites,” never “the Levites, the priests.”

[33:22]  ³²⁸ tn Heb “Just as the stars in the sky cannot be numbered or the sand on the seashore cannot be measured, so I will greatly increase [or multiply] the seed of my servant David and the Levites who minister before me.” The word “seed of” does not carry over to the “the Levites” as a noun governing two genitives because “the Levites” has the accusative marker in front of it. The sentence has been broken down in conformity with contemporary English style.

[33:23]  ³²⁹ tn Heb “And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying.” See v. 1. This is a continuation of “the second time.”

[33:24]  ³³⁰ tn Heb “Have you not seen what this people have said, saying.” The question is rhetorical and expects a positive answer. The sentence has been broken in two to better conform with contemporary English style.

[33:24]  ³³¹ tn Heb “The two families which the Lord chose, he has rejected them.” This is an example of an object prepositioned before the verb and resumed by a redundant pronoun to throw emphasis of focus on it (called casus pendens in the grammars; cf. GKC 458 §143.d). Some commentators identify the “two families” as those of David and Levi mentioned in the previous verses, and some identify them as the families of the Israelites and of David mentioned in the next verse. However, the next clause in this verse and the emphasis on the restoration and regathering of Israel and Judah in this section (cf. 33:7, 14) show that the reference is to Israel and Judah (see also 30:3, 4; 31:27, 31 and 3:18).

[33:24]  ³³² tn Heb “and my people [i.e., Israel and Judah] they disdain [or look down on] from being again a nation before them.” The phrase “before them” refers to their estimation, their mental view (cf. BDB s.v. פָּנֶה II.4.a[g]). Hence it means they look with disdain on the people being a nation again (cf. BDB s.v. עוֹד 1.a[b] for the usage of עוֹד [’od] here).

[33:25]  ³³³ tn Heb “Thus says the Lord.” See the translator’s note at the beginning of v. 20 for the style adopted here. Here the promise is in v. 26 following the contrary to fact condition in v. 25. The Hebrew text of vv. 25-26 reads: “Thus says the Lord, “If I have not established my covenant with day and night [and] the laws/statutes of heaven and earth, also I could reject the seed of Jacob and David my servant from taking from his seed as rulers over the seed of Abraham…” The syntax of the original is a little awkward because it involves the verbs “establish” and “reject” governing two objects, the first governing two similar objects “my covenant” and “the regulations” and the second governing two dissimilar objects “the seed of Jacob” and “my servant David from taking [so as not to take].” The translation has sought to remove these awkward syntactical constructions and also break down the long complex original sentence in such a way as to retain its original intent, i.e., the guarantee of the continuance of the seed of Jacob and of the rule of a line of David’s descendants over them based on the fixed order of God’s creation decrees.

[33:26]  ³³⁴ tn The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) is probably intensive here as it has been on a number of occasions in the book of Jeremiah (see BDB 472 s.v. כִּי 1.e for the category).

[33:26]  ³³⁵ tn Or “I will make them prosperous once again,” or “I will bring them back from captivity.”

[34:23]  ³³⁶ sn The messianic king is here called “David” (see Jer 30:9 and Hos 3:5, as well as Isa 11:1 and Mic 5:2) because he will fulfill the Davidic royal ideal depicted in the prophets and royal psalms (see Ps 2, 89).

[34:24]  ³³⁷ sn The messianic king (“David”) is called both “king” and “prince” in 37:24-25. The use of the term “prince” for this king facilitates the contrast between this ideal ruler and the Davidic “princes” denounced in earlier prophecies (see 7:27; 12:10, 12; 19:1; 21:25; 22:6, 25).

[34:25]  ³³⁸ tn The phrase “live securely” occurs in Ezek 28:26; 38:8, 11, 14; 39:26 as an expression of freedom from fear. It is a promised blessing resulting from obedience (see Lev 26:5-6).

[34:25]  ³³⁹ sn The woods were typically considered to be places of danger (Ps 104:20-21; Jer 5:6).

[34:26]  ³⁴⁰ tn Heb “showers of blessing.” Abundant rain, which in turn produces fruit and crops (v. 27), is a covenantal blessing for obedience (Lev 26:4).

[34:29]  ³⁴¹ tc The MT reads לְשֵׁם (lÿshem, “for a name”), meaning perhaps a renowned planting (place). The translation takes this to be a metathesis of שָׁלֹם (shalom) as was read by the LXX.

[34:29]  ³⁴² tn Heb “those gathered” for famine.

[34:30]  ³⁴³ sn A promise given to Abraham (Gen 15:7) and his descendants (Gen 15:8; Exod 6:7).

[34:30]  ³⁴⁴ sn The blessings described in vv. 25-30 are those promised for obedience in Lev 26:4-13.

[34:31]  ³⁴⁵ tn Heb, “the sheep of my pasture, you are human.” See 36:37-38 for a similar expression. The possessive pronoun “my” is supplied in the translation to balance “I am your God” in the next clause.

[37:22]  ³⁴⁶ sn Jeremiah also attested to the reuniting of the northern and southern kingdoms (Jer 3:12, 14; 31:2-6).

[37:23]  ³⁴⁷ tc Heb “their dwellings.” The text as it stands does not make sense. Based on the LXX, a slight emendation of two vowels, including a mater, yields the reading “from their turning,” a reference here to their turning from God and deviating from his commandments. See BDB 1000 s.v. מְשׁוּבָה, and D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:407.

[37:24]  ³⁴⁸ tn Heb “walk [in].”

[37:24]  ³⁴⁹ tn Heb “and my statutes they will guard and they will do them.”

[37:26]  ³⁵⁰ sn See Isa 24:5; 55:3; 61:8; Jer 32:40; 50:5; Ezek 16:60, for other references to perpetual covenants.

[37:26]  ³⁵¹ tn Heb “give them.”

[37:28]  ³⁵² sn The sanctuary of Israel becomes the main focus of Ezek 40-48.

[39:25]  ³⁵³ tn Heb “cause to return.”

[39:28]  ³⁵⁴ tn Heb “there,” referring to the foreign nations to which they were exiled. The translation makes the referent clear.

[39:29]  ³⁵⁵ sn See Ezek 11:19; 37:14.

[2:19]  ³⁵⁶ tn Heb “I will betroth you to me” (so NIV) here and in the following lines. Cf. NRSV “I will take you for my wife forever.”

[2:19]  ³⁵⁷ tn The preposition בְּ (bet), which is repeated throughout 2:19-20 [21-22], denotes price paid (BDB 90 s.v. בְּ III.3; e.g., Ezek 3:14). The text contains an allusion to the payment of bridal gifts. The Lord will impute the moral character to Israel that will be necessary for a successful covenant relationship (contra 4:1).

[2:20]  ³⁵⁸ tn The vav consecutive on the suffix conjugation verb וְיָדַעַתְּ (véyada’at, “then you will know”) introduces a result clause (cf. NASB, CEV).

[2:20]  ³⁵⁹ tn Or “know.” The term יָדַע (yada’, “know, acknowledge”) is often used in covenant contexts. It can refer to the suzerain’s acknowledgment of his covenant obligations to his vassal or to the vassal’s acknowledgment of his covenant obligations to his suzerain. When used in reference to a vassal, the verb “know” is metonymical (cause for effect) for “obey.” See H. Huffmann, “The Treaty Background of Hebrew ya„daà,” BASOR 181 (1966): 31-37.

[2:20]  ³⁶⁰ tc The MT reads יְהוָה (yÿhvah, “the Lord”); however, many Hebrew mss read כִּי אָנִי (ki ’ani, “that it is I”), as also reflected in the Latin Vulgate (cf. CEV “know who I am”).

[2:21]  ³⁶¹ tn Heb “And in that day”; NAB, NRSV “On that day.”

[2:21]  ³⁶² tn The verb עָנָה, (’anah) which is used throughout 2:23-24, is related to the root I עָנָה (’anah), “to answer, listen attentively, react willingly” (BDB 772 s.v. 1.b; HALOT 852 s.v. ענה 3.b).

[2:21]  ³⁶³ tn Heb “and they.” In the Hebrew text the plural pronoun is used because it refers back to the term translated “sky,” which is a dual form in Hebrew. Many English versions (e.g., NAB, NASB, NRSV) use the plural term “heavens” here, which agrees with a plural pronoun (cf. also NIV, NCV “skies”).

[2:22]  ³⁶⁴ tn Heb “Jezreel.” The use of the name יִזְרְעֶאל (yizré’e’l, “Jezreel”) creates a powerful three-fold wordplay: (1) The proper name יִזְרְעֶאל (“Jezreel”) is a phonetic wordplay on the similar sounding name יִשְׂרָאֵל (yisra’el, “Israel”): God will answer Israel, that is, Jezreel. (2) The name יִזְרְעֶאל (“Jezreel”) plays on the verb זָרַע (zara’, “to sow, plant”), the immediately following word: וּזְרַעְתִּיהָ (uzéra’tiha, vav + Qal perfect 1st person common singular + 3rd person feminine singular suffix: “I will sow/plant her”). This wordplay creates a popular etymology for יִזְרְעֶאל meaning, “God sows/plants,” which fits well into the agricultural fertility imagery in 2:21-23 [2:23-25]. (3) This positive connotation of יִזְרְעֶאל (“Jezreel”) in 2:21-23[23-25] reverses the negative connotation of יִזְרְעֶאל (“Jezreel”) in 1:4-5 (bloodshed of Jehu in the Jezreel Valley).

[2:23]  ³⁶⁵ tn Heb “for myself.”

[2:23]  ³⁶⁶ tn The Hebrew text, carrying out the reference to the son born in 1:8-9, uses the third person masculine singular pronoun here; some English translations use third person plural (“they,” so KJV, NASB, NIV, CEV) in keeping with the immediate context, which refers to reestablished Israel.

[2:23]  ³⁶⁷ tn The words “You are” do not appear in the Hebrew text, but are implied. It is necessary to supply the phrase in the translation to prevent the reader from understanding the predicate “my God” as an exclamation (cf. NAB).

[3:16]  ³⁶⁸ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:16]  ³⁶⁹ tn Heb “he sounds forth his voice.”

[3:16]  ³⁷⁰ tn Or “the sky.” See the note on “sky” in 2:30.

[3:16]  ³⁷¹ tn Heb “sons.”

[3:17]  ³⁷² tn Heb “know.”

[3:17]  ³⁷³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:17]  ³⁷⁴ tn Heb “strangers” or “foreigners.” In context, this refers to invasions by conquering armies.

[3:18]  ³⁷⁵ tn Heb “and it will come about in that day.”

[3:18]  ³⁷⁶ tn Many English translations read “new wine” or “sweet wine,” meaning unfermented wine, i.e., grape juice.

[3:18]  ³⁷⁷ sn The language used here is a hyperbolic way of describing both a bountiful grape harvest (“the mountains will drip with juice”) and an abundance of cattle (“the hills will flow with milk”). In addition to being hyperbolic, the language is also metonymical (effect for cause).

[3:18]  ³⁷⁸ tn Or “seasonal streams.”

[3:18]  ³⁷⁹ tn Heb “house.”

[3:18]  ³⁸⁰ tn Heb “valley of Shittim.” The exact location of the Valley of Acacia Trees is uncertain. The Hebrew word שִׁטִּים (shittim) refers to a place where the acacia trees grow, which would be a very arid and dry place. The acacia tree can survive in such locations, whereas most other trees require more advantageous conditions. Joel’s point is that the stream that has been mentioned will proceed to the most dry and barren of locations in the vicinity of Jerusalem.

[3:19]  ³⁸¹ tn Heb “violence of the sons of Judah.” The phrase “of the sons of Judah” is an objective genitive (cf. KJV “the violence against the children of Judah”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “violence done to the people of Judah”). It refers to injustices committed against the Judeans, not violence that the Judeans themselves had committed against others.

[3:20]  ³⁸² tn The phrase “will be secure” does not appear in the Hebrew, but are supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.

[3:21]  ³⁸³ tc The present translation follows the reading וְנִקַּמְתִּי (vÿniqqamti, “I will avenge”) rather than וְנִקֵּתִי (vÿniqqeti, “I will acquit”) of the MT.

[9:13]  ³⁸⁴ tn Heb “behold” or “look.”

[9:13]  ³⁸⁵ tn Heb “the days are.”

[9:13]  ³⁸⁶ sn The plowman will catch up to the reaper. Plowing occurred in October-November, and harvesting in April-May (see P. King, Amos, Hosea, Micah, 109.) But in the future age of restored divine blessing, there will be so many crops the reapers will take all summer to harvest them, and it will be time for plowing again before the harvest is finished.

[9:13]  ³⁸⁷ sn When the grapes had been harvested, they were placed in a press where workers would stomp on them with their feet and squeeze out the juice. For a discussion of grape harvesting technique, see O. Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, 110-12.

[9:13]  ³⁸⁸ tn The verb is omitted here in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation from the parallel line.

[9:13]  ³⁸⁹ sn The grape harvest occurred in August-September, planting in November-December (see P. King, Amos, Hosea, Micah, 109). But in the future age described here there will be so many grapes the workers who stomp them will still be working when the next planting season arrives.

[9:13]  ³⁹⁰ tn Or “hills,” where the vineyards were planted.

[9:13]  ³⁹¹ tn Heb “and all the hills will melt.”

[9:14]  ³⁹² tn This line can also be translated “I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel” and is a common idiom (e.g., Deut 30:3; Jer 30:3; Hos 6:11; Zeph 3:20). This rendering is followed by several modern English versions (e.g., NEB, NRSV, NJPS).

[9:14]  ³⁹³ tn Or “the ruined [or “desolate”] cities.”

[9:14]  ³⁹⁴ tn Or “and live [in them].”

[9:14]  ³⁹⁵ tn Heb “drink their wine.”

[9:14]  ³⁹⁶ tn Or “gardens.”

[9:14]  ³⁹⁷ tn Heb “eat their fruit.”

[9:15]  ³⁹⁸ tn Heb “their.” The pronoun was replaced by the English definite article in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[7:14]  ³⁹⁹ tn Or “with your scepter” (the Hebrew term can mean either “rod” or “scepter”).

[7:14]  ⁴⁰⁰ tn Heb “the flock of your inheritance.”

[7:14]  ⁴⁰¹ tn Or “in the midst of Carmel.” The Hebrew term translated “pastureland” may be a place name.

[7:14]  ⁴⁰² sn The regions of Bashan and Gilead, located in Transjordan, were noted for their rich grazing lands.

[7:14]  ⁴⁰³ tn Heb “as in the days of antiquity.”

[7:15]  ⁴⁰⁴ tn Heb “him.” This probably refers to Israel in a collective sense. Because the switch from direct address to the third person is awkward, some prefer to emend the suffix to a second person form. In any case, it is necessary to employ a second person pronoun in the translation to maintain the connection for the English reader.

[7:15]  ⁴⁰⁵ sn I will show you miraculous deeds. In this verse the Lord responds to the petition of v. 14 with a brief promise of deliverance.

[3:14]  ⁴⁰⁶ sn This phrase is used as an epithet for the city and the nation. “Daughter” may seem extraneous in English but consciously joins the various epithets and metaphors of Israel and Jerusalem as a woman, a device used to evoke sympathy from the reader.

[3:15]  ⁴⁰⁷ tn Heb “your judgments,” that is, “the judgments directed against you.” The translation reflects the implications of the parallelism.

[3:16]  ⁴⁰⁸ tn Heb “it will be said.” The passive construction has been translated as active for stylistic reasons.

[3:16]  ⁴⁰⁹ tn Heb “your hands must not go limp.”

[3:17]  ⁴¹⁰ tn Heb “he rejoices over you with joy.”

[3:17]  ⁴¹¹ tc The MT reads, “he is silent in his love,” but this makes no sense in light of the immediately preceding and following lines. Some take the Hiphil verb form as causative (see Job 11:3) rather than intransitive and translate, “he causes [you] to be silent by his love,” that is, “he soothes [you] by his love.” The present translation follows the LXX and assumes an original reading יְחַדֵּשׁ (yÿkhaddesh, “he renews”) with ellipsis of the object (“you”).

[3:17]  ⁴¹² tn Heb “he rejoices over you with a shout of joy.”

[3:18]  ⁴¹³ tn Heb “The ones grieving from an assembly I gathered from you they were, tribute upon her, a reproach.” Any translation of this difficult verse must be provisional at best. The present translation assumes three things: (1) The preposition מִן (min) prefixed to “assembly” is causal (the individuals are sorrowing because of the assemblies or festivals they are no longer able to hold). (2) מַשְׂאֵת (mas’et) means “tribute” and refers to the exiled people being treated as the spoils of warfare (see R. D. Patterson, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah [WEC], 385-86). (3) The third feminine singular suffix refers to personified Jerusalem, which is addressed earlier in the verse (the pronominal suffix in “from you” is second feminine singular). For other interpretive options see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 146.

[3:19]  ⁴¹⁴ tn The word “sheep” is supplied for clarification. As in Mic 4:6-7, the exiles are here pictured as injured and scattered sheep whom the divine shepherd rescues from danger.

[3:19]  ⁴¹⁵ tn Heb “I will make them into praise and a name, in all the earth, their shame.” The present translation assumes that “their shame” specifies “them” and that “name” stands here for a good reputation.

[3:20]  ⁴¹⁶ tn In this line the second person pronoun is masculine plural, indicating that the exiles are addressed.

[3:20]  ⁴¹⁷ tn Or “for.”

[3:20]  ⁴¹⁸ tn Heb “I will make you into a name and praise among all the peoples of the earth.” Here the word “name” carries the nuance of “good reputation.”

[3:20]  ⁴¹⁹ tn Heb “when I restore your fortunes to your eyes.” See the note on the phrase “restore them” in 2:7.

[8:23]  ⁴²⁰ sn This scene of universal and overwhelming attraction of the nations to Israel’s God finds initial fulfillment in the establishment of the church (Acts 2:5-11) but ultimate completion in the messianic age (Isa 45:14, 24; 60:14; Zech 14:16-21).

[11:25]  ⁴²¹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.

[11:25]  ⁴²² tn Or “Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.”

[11:25]  ⁴²³ tn Grk “fullness.”

[1:7]  ⁴²⁴ map For location see JP4 A1.

[1:7]  ⁴²⁵ tn Although the first part of v. 7 is not a complete English sentence, it maintains the “From…to” pattern used in all the Pauline letters to indicate the sender and the recipients. Here, however, there are several intervening verses (vv. 2-6), which makes the first half of v. 7 appear as an isolated sentence fragment.

[1:7]  ⁴²⁶ tn Grk “Grace to you and peace.”

[1:10]  ⁴²⁷ tn Grk “remember you, always asking.”

[1:10]  ⁴²⁸ tn Grk “succeed in coming to you in the will of God.”

[1:2]  ⁴²⁹ tn Grk “the gospel of God, which he promised.” Because of the length and complexity of this sentence in Greek, it was divided into shorter English sentences in keeping with contemporary English style. To indicate the referent of the relative pronoun (“which”), the word “gospel” was repeated at the beginning of v. 2.

[3:8]  ⁴³⁰ tn Grk “(as we are slandered and some affirm that we say…).”

[3:8]  ⁴³¹ tn Grk “whose.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, this relative clause was rendered as a new sentence in the translation.