Ezekiel 40:5

40:5 I saw ¹  a wall all around the outside of the temple. ²  In the man’s hand was a measuring stick 10½ feet ³  long. He measured the thickness of the wall ⁴  as 10½ feet, ⁵  and its height as 10½ feet.

The Song of Songs 2:9

2:9 My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. ⁶ 

Look! There he stands behind our wall,

gazing through the window,

peering through the lattice.

Isaiah 25:1

25:1 O Lord, you are my God! ⁷ 

I will exalt you in praise, I will extol your fame. ⁸ 

For you have done extraordinary things,

and executed plans made long ago exactly as you decreed. ⁹ 

Isaiah 26:1

Judah Will Celebrate

26:1 At that time ¹⁰  this song will be sung in the land of Judah:

“We have a strong city!

The Lord’s ¹¹  deliverance, like walls and a rampart, makes it secure. ¹² 

Isaiah 60:18

60:18 Sounds of violence ¹³  will no longer be heard in your land,

or the sounds of ¹⁴  destruction and devastation within your borders.

You will name your walls, ‘Deliverance,’

and your gates, ‘Praise.’

Micah 7:11

7:11 It will be a day for rebuilding your walls;

in that day your boundary will be extended. ¹⁵ 

Zechariah 2:5

2:5 But I (the Lord says) will be a wall of fire surrounding Jerusalem ¹⁶  and the source of glory in her midst.’”

[40:5]  ¹ tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) indicates becoming aware of something and has been translated here as a verb.

[40:5]  ² tn Heb “house.”

[40:5]  ³ tn Heb “a measuring stick of six cubits, [each] a cubit and a handbreadth.” The measuring units here and in the remainder of this section are the Hebrew “long” cubit, consisting of a cubit (about 18 inches or 45 cm) and a handbreadth (about 3 inches or 7.5 cm), for a total of 21 inches (52.5 cm). Therefore the measuring stick in the man’s hand was 10.5 feet (3.15 meters) long. Because modern readers are not familiar with the cubit as a unit of measurement, and due to the additional complication of the “long” cubit as opposed to the regular cubit, all measurements have been converted to American standard feet and inches, with the Hebrew measurements and the metric equivalents given in the notes.

[40:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “building.”

[40:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “one rod [or “reed”]” (also a second time in this verse, twice in v. 6, three times in v. 7, and once in v. 8).

[2:9]  ⁶ sn Gazelles are often associated with sensuality and masculine virility in ancient Near Eastern love literature. Gazelles were often figures in Hebrew, Akkadian, and Ugaritic literature for mighty warriors or virile young men (e.g., 2 Sam 1:19; 2:18; Isa 14:9; Zech 10:3). In ancient Near Eastern love literature gazelles often symbolize the excitement and swiftness of the lover coming to see his beloved, as in an ancient Egyptian love song: “O that you came to your sister swiftly like a bounding gazelle! Its feet reel, its limbs are weary, terror has entered its body. A hunter pursues it with his hounds, they do not see it in its dust; It sees a resting place as a trap, it takes the river as its road. May you find her hiding-place before your hand is kissed four times. Pursue your sister’s love, the Golden gives her to you, my friend!” (“Three Poems” in the Papyrus Chester Beatty 1 collection).

[25:1]  ⁷ sn The prophet speaks here as one who has observed the coming judgment of the proud.

[25:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “name.” See the note at 24:15.

[25:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “plans from long ago [in] faithfulness, trustworthiness.” The feminine noun אֱמוּנָה (’emunah, “faithfulness”) and masculine noun אֹמֶן (’omen, “trustworthiness”), both of which are derived from the root אָמַן (’aman), are juxtaposed to emphasize the basic idea conveyed by the synonyms. Here they describe the absolute reliability of the divine plans.

[26:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “In that day” (so KJV).

[26:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “his”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[26:1]  ¹² tn Heb “deliverance he makes walls and a rampart.”

[60:18]  ¹³ tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[60:18]  ¹⁴ tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[7:11]  ¹⁵ sn Personified Jerusalem declares her confidence in vv. 8-10; in this verse she is assured that she will indeed be vindicated.

[2:5]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “her”; the referent (Jerusalem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.