Discovery Box2 Samuel 16:21-22
Context16:21 Ahithophel replied to Absalom, “Have sex with 1 your father’s concubines whom he left to care for the palace. All Israel will hear that you have made yourself repulsive to your father. Then your followers will be motivated to support you.” 2 16:22 So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, 3 and Absalom had sex with 4 his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.
Isaiah 59:6-15
Context59:6 Their webs cannot be used for clothing;
they cannot cover themselves with what they make.
Their deeds are sinful;
they commit violent crimes. 5
59:7 They are eager to do evil, 6
quick to shed innocent blood. 7
Their thoughts are sinful;
they crush and destroy. 8
59:8 They are unfamiliar with peace;
their deeds are unjust. 9
They use deceitful methods,
and whoever deals with them is unfamiliar with peace. 10
59:9 For this reason deliverance 11 is far from us 12
and salvation does not reach us.
We wait for light, 13 but see only darkness; 14
we wait for 15 a bright light, 16 but live 17 in deep darkness. 18
59:10 We grope along the wall like the blind,
we grope like those who cannot see; 19
we stumble at noontime as if it were evening.
Though others are strong, we are like dead men. 20
59:11 We all growl like bears,
we coo mournfully like doves;
we wait for deliverance, 21 but there is none,
for salvation, but it is far from us.
59:12 For you are aware of our many rebellious deeds, 22
and our sins testify against us;
indeed, we are aware of our rebellious deeds;
we know our sins all too well. 23
59:13 We have rebelled and tried to deceive the Lord;
we turned back from following our God.
We stir up 24 oppression and rebellion;
we tell lies we concocted in our minds. 25
59:14 Justice is driven back;
godliness 26 stands far off.
Indeed, 27 honesty stumbles in the city square
and morality is not even able to enter.
59:15 Honesty has disappeared;
the one who tries to avoid evil is robbed.
The Lord watches and is displeased, 28
for there is no justice.
Ezekiel 9:4
Context9:4 The Lord said to him, “Go through the city of Jerusalem 29 and put a mark 30 on the foreheads of the people who moan and groan over all the abominations practiced in it.”
Zephaniah 3:1-3
Context3:1 The filthy, 31 stained city is as good as dead;
the city filled with oppressors is finished! 32
she refuses correction. 34
She does not trust the Lord;
she does not seek the advice of 35 her God.
3:3 Her princes 36 are as fierce as roaring lions; 37
her rulers 38 are as hungry as wolves in the desert, 39
who completely devour their prey by morning. 40
[16:21] 1 tn Heb “go to”; NAB “have (+ sexual NCV) relations with”; TEV “have intercourse with”; NLT “Go and sleep with.”
[16:21] 2 tn Heb “and the hands of all who are with you will be strengthened.”
[16:22] 3 sn That is, on top of the flat roof of the palace, so it would be visible to the public.
[16:22] 4 tn Heb “went to”; NAB “he visited his father’s concubines”; NIV “lay with his father’s concubines”; TEV “went in and had intercourse with.”
[59:6] 5 tn Heb “their deeds are deeds of sin, and the work of violence [is] in their hands.”
[59:7] 6 tn Heb “their feet run to evil.”
[59:7] 7 tn Heb “they quickly pour out innocent blood.”
[59:7] 8 tn Heb “their thoughts are thoughts of sin, destruction and crushing [are] in their roadways.”
[59:8] 9 tn Heb “a way of peace they do not know, and there is no justice in their pathways.”
[59:8] 10 tn Heb “their paths they make crooked, everyone who walks in it does not know peace.”
[59:9] 11 tn מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat), which refers to “justice” in the earlier verses, here refers to “justice from God,” or “vindication.” Because the people are unjust, God refuses to vindicate them before their enemies. See v. 11.
[59:9] 12 sn The prophet speaks on behalf of the sinful nation and confesses its sins.
[59:9] 13 sn Light here symbolizes prosperity and blessing.
[59:9] 14 tn Heb “but, look, darkness”; NIV “but all is darkness.”
[59:9] 15 tn The words “we wait for” are supplied in the translation; the verb is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).
[59:9] 16 tn The plural noun form may indicate degree here.
[59:9] 17 tn Or “walk about”; NCV “all we have is darkness.”
[59:9] 18 tn The plural noun form may indicate degree here.
[59:10] 19 tn Heb “like there are no eyes.”
[59:10] 20 tn Heb among the strong, like dead men.”
[59:11] 21 tn See the note at v. 9.
[59:12] 22 tn Heb “for many are our rebellious deeds before you.”
[59:12] 23 tn Heb “indeed [or “for”] our rebellious deeds (are) with us, and our sins, we know them.”
[59:13] 24 tn Heb “speaking.” A new sentence was started here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[59:13] 25 tn Heb “conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.”
[59:14] 26 tn Or “righteousness” (ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); KJV, NAB “justice.”
[59:14] 27 tn Or “for” (KJV, NRSV).
[59:15] 28 tn Heb “and it is displeasing in his eyes.”
[9:4] 29 tn Heb “through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem.”
[9:4] 30 tn The word translated “mark” is in Hebrew the letter ת (tav). Outside this context the only other occurrence of the word is in Job 31:35. In ancient Hebrew script this letter was written like the letter X.
[3:1] 31 tn The present translation assumes מֹרְאָה (mor’ah) is derived from רֹאִי (ro’i,“excrement”; see Jastrow 1436 s.v. רֳאִי). The following participle, “stained,” supports this interpretation (cf. NEB “filthy and foul”; NRSV “soiled, defiled”). Another option is to derive the form from מָרָה (marah, “to rebel”); in this case the term should be translated “rebellious” (cf. NASB, NIV “rebellious and defiled”). This idea is supported by v. 2. For discussion of the two options, see HALOT 630 s.v. I מרא and J. J. M. Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (OTL), 206.
[3:1] 32 tn Heb “Woe, soiled and stained one, oppressive city.” The verb “is finished” is supplied in the second line. On the Hebrew word הוֹי (hoy, “ah, woe”), see the note on the word “dead” in 2:5.
[3:2] 33 tn Heb “she does not hear a voice” Refusing to listen is equated with disobedience.
[3:2] 34 tn Heb “she does not receive correction.” The Hebrew phrase, when negated, refers elsewhere to rejecting verbal advice (Jer 17:23; 32:33; 35:13) and refusing to learn from experience (Jer 2:30; 5:3).
[3:2] 35 tn Heb “draw near to.” The present translation assumes that the expression “draw near to” refers to seeking God’s will (see 1 Sam 14:36).
[3:3] 37 tn Heb “her princes in her midst are roaring lions.” The metaphor has been translated as a simile (“as fierce as”) for clarity.
[3:3] 38 tn Traditionally “judges.”
[3:3] 39 tn Heb “her judges [are] wolves of the evening,” that is, wolves that prowl at night. The translation assumes an emendation to עֲרָבָה (’aravah, “desert”). For a discussion of this and other options, see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 128. The metaphor has been translated as a simile (“as hungry as”) for clarity.
[3:3] 40 tn Heb “they do not gnaw [a bone] at morning.” The precise meaning of the line is unclear. The statement may mean these wolves devour their prey so completely that not even a bone is left to gnaw by the time morning arrives. For a discussion of this and other options, see Adele Berlin, Zephaniah (AB 25A), 129.
