Deuteronomy 32:5

32:5 His people have been unfaithful ¹  to him;

they have not acted like his children ²  – this is their sin. ³ 

They are a perverse ⁴  and deceitful generation.

Psalms 125:5

125:5 As for those who are bent on traveling a sinful path, ⁵ 

may the Lord remove them, ⁶  along with those who behave wickedly! ⁷ 

May Israel experience peace! ⁸ 

Isaiah 30:8-13

30:8 Now go, write it ⁹  down on a tablet in their presence, ¹⁰ 

inscribe it on a scroll,

so that it might be preserved for a future time

as an enduring witness. ¹¹ 

30:9 For these are rebellious people –

they are lying children,

children unwilling to obey the Lord’s law. ¹² 

30:10 They ¹³  say to the visionaries, “See no more visions!”

and to the seers, “Don’t relate messages to us about what is right! ¹⁴ 

Tell us nice things,

relate deceptive messages. ¹⁵ 

30:11 Turn aside from the way,

stray off the path. ¹⁶ 

Remove from our presence the Holy One of Israel.” ¹⁷ 

30:12 For this reason this is what the Holy One of Israel says:

“You have rejected this message; ¹⁸ 

you trust instead in your ability to oppress and trick, ¹⁹ 

and rely on that kind of behavior. ²⁰ 

30:13 So this sin will become your downfall.

You will be like a high wall

that bulges and cracks and is ready to collapse;

it crumbles suddenly, in a flash. ²¹ 

Isaiah 59:8

59:8 They are unfamiliar with peace;

their deeds are unjust. ²² 

They use deceitful methods,

and whoever deals with them is unfamiliar with peace. ²³ 

Philippians 2:15

2:15 so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without blemish though you live in a crooked and perverse society, in which you shine as lights in the world ²⁴ 

[32:5]  ¹ tc The 3rd person masculine singular שָׁחַת (shakhat) is rendered as 3rd person masculine plural by Smr, a reading supported by the plural suffix on מוּם (mum, “defect”) as well as the plural of בֵּן (ben, “sons”).

[32:5]  ² tn Heb “(they are) not his sons.”

[32:5]  ³ tn Heb “defect” (so NASB). This highly elliptical line suggests that Israel’s major fault was its failure to act like God’s people; in fact, they acted quite the contrary.

[32:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “twisted,” “crooked.” See Ps 18:26.

[125:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “and the ones making their paths twisted.” A sinful lifestyle is compared to a twisting, winding road.

[125:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “lead them away.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive of prayer here (note the prayers directly before and after this). Another option is to translate, “the Lord will remove them” (cf. NIV, NRSV).

[125:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “the workers of wickedness.”

[125:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “peace [be] upon Israel.” The statement is understood as a prayer (see Ps 122:8 for a similar prayer for peace).

[30:8]  ⁹ tn The referent of the third feminine singular pronominal suffix is uncertain. Perhaps it refers to the preceding message, which accuses the people of rejecting the Lord’s help in favor of an alliance with Egypt.

[30:8]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “with them.” On the use of the preposition here, see BDB 86 s.v. II אֵת.

[30:8]  ¹¹ sn Recording the message will enable the prophet to use it in the future as evidence that God warned his people of impending judgment and clearly spelled out the nation’s guilt. An official record of the message will also serve as proof of the prophet’s authority as God’s spokesman.

[30:9]  ¹² tn Or perhaps, “instruction” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); NCV, TEV “teachings.”

[30:10]  ¹³ tn Heb “who” (so NASB, NRSV). A new sentence was started here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:10]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Do not see for us right things.”

[30:10]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “Tell us smooth things, see deceptive things.”

[30:11]  ¹⁶ sn The imagery refers to the way or path of truth, as revealed by God to the prophet.

[30:11]  ¹⁷ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[30:12]  ¹⁸ tn The sentence actually begins with the word “because.” In the Hebrew text vv. 12-13 are one long sentence.

[30:12]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and you trust in oppression and cunning.”

[30:12]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and you lean on it”; NAB “and depend on it.”

[30:13]  ²¹ tn The verse reads literally, “So this sin will become for you like a breach ready to fall, bulging on a high wall, the breaking of which comes suddenly, in a flash.” Their sin produces guilt and will result in judgment. Like a wall that collapses their fall will be swift and sudden.

[59:8]  ²² tn Heb “a way of peace they do not know, and there is no justice in their pathways.”

[59:8]  ²³ tn Heb “their paths they make crooked, everyone who walks in it does not know peace.”

[2:15]  ²⁴ tn Or “as stars in the universe.”