Isaiah 1:13-14

1:13 Do not bring any more meaningless ¹  offerings;

I consider your incense detestable! ² 

You observe new moon festivals, Sabbaths, and convocations,

but I cannot tolerate sin-stained celebrations! ³ 

1:14 I hate your new moon festivals and assemblies;

they are a burden

that I am tired of carrying.

Isaiah 1:2

Obedience, not Sacrifice

1:2 Listen, O heavens,

pay attention, O earth! ⁴ 

For the Lord speaks:

“I raised children, ⁵  I brought them up, ⁶ 

but ⁷  they have rebelled ⁸  against me!

Isaiah 4:1

4:1 Seven women will grab hold of

one man at that time. ⁹ 

They will say, “We will provide ¹⁰  our own food,

we will provide ¹¹  our own clothes;

but let us belong to you ¹²  –

take away our shame!” ¹³ 

Psalms 81:3-4

81:3 Sound the ram’s horn on the day of the new moon, ¹⁴ 

and on the day of the full moon when our festival begins. ¹⁵ 

81:4 For observing the festival is a requirement for Israel; ¹⁶ 

it is an ordinance given by the God of Jacob.

Ezekiel 46:1

The Prince’s Offerings

46:1 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: The gate of the inner court that faces east ¹⁷  will be closed six working days, but on the Sabbath day it will be opened and on the day of the new moon it will be opened.

Ezekiel 46:6

46:6 On the day of the new moon he will offer ¹⁸  an unblemished young bull, and six lambs and a ram, all without blemish.

Colossians 2:16-17

2:16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you with respect to food or drink, or in the matter of a feast, new moon, or Sabbath days – 2:17 these are only ¹⁹  the shadow of the things to come, but the reality ²⁰  is Christ! ²¹ 

[1:13]  ¹ tn Or “worthless” (NASB, NCV, CEV); KJV, ASV “vain.”

[1:13]  ² sn Notice some of the other practices that Yahweh regards as “detestable”: homosexuality (Lev 18:22-30; 20:13), idolatry (Deut 7:25; 13:15), human sacrifice (Deut 12:31), eating ritually unclean animals (Deut 14:3-8), sacrificing defective animals (Deut 17:1), engaging in occult activities (Deut 18:9-14), and practicing ritual prostitution (1 Kgs 14:23).

[1:13]  ³ tn Heb “sin and assembly” (these two nouns probably represent a hendiadys). The point is that their attempts at worship are unacceptable to God because the people’s everyday actions in the socio-economic realm prove they have no genuine devotion to God (see vv. 16-17).

[1:2]  ⁴ sn The personified heavens and earth are summoned to God’s courtroom as witnesses against God’s covenant people. Long before this Moses warned the people that the heavens and earth would be watching their actions (see Deut 4:26; 30:19; 31:28; 32:1).

[1:2]  ⁵ tn Or “sons” (NAB, NASB).

[1:2]  ⁶ sn The normal word pair for giving birth to and raising children is יָלַד (yalad, “to give birth to”) and גָּדַל (gadal, “to grow, raise”). The pair גָּדַל and רוּם (rum, “to raise up”) probably occur here to highlight the fact that Yahweh made something important of Israel (cf. R. Mosis, TDOT 2:403).

[1:2]  ⁷ sn Against the backdrop of Yahweh’s care for his chosen people, Israel’s rebellion represents abhorrent treachery. The conjunction prefixed to a nonverbal element highlights the sad contrast between Yahweh’s compassionate care for His people and Israel’s thankless rebellion.

[1:2]  ⁸ sn To rebel carries the idea of “covenant treachery.” Although an act of פֶּשַׁע (pesha’, “rebellion”) often signifies a breach of the law, the legal offense also represents a violation of an existing covenantal relationship (E. Carpenter and M. Grisanti, NIDOTTE 3:707).

[4:1]  ⁹ tn Or “in that day” (ASV).

[4:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “eat” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); CEV “buy.”

[4:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “wear” (so NASB, NRSV); NCV “make.”

[4:1]  ¹² tn Heb “only let your name be called over us.” The Hebrew idiom “call the name over” indicates ownership. See 2 Sam 12:28, and BDB 896 s.v. I ָקרָא Niph. 2.d.(4). The language reflects the cultural reality of ancient Israel, where women were legally the property of their husbands.

[4:1]  ¹³ sn This refers to the humiliation of being unmarried and childless. The women’s words reflect the cultural standards of ancient Israel, where a woman’s primary duties were to be a wife and mother.

[81:3]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “at the new moon.”

[81:3]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “at the full moon on the day of our festival.” The Hebrew word כֶּסֶה (keseh) is an alternate spelling of כֶּסֶא (kese’, “full moon”).

[81:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “because a statute for Israel [is] it.”

[46:1]  ¹⁷ sn The east gate of the outer court was permanently closed (Ezek 44:2).

[46:6]  ¹⁸ tn The phrase “he will offer” is not in the Hebrew text but is warranted from the context.

[2:17]  ¹⁹ tn The word “only,” though not in the Greek text, is supplied in the English translation to bring out the force of the Greek phrase.

[2:17]  ²⁰ tn Grk “but the body of Christ.” The term body here, when used in contrast to shadow (σκιά, skia) indicates the opposite meaning, i.e., the reality or substance itself.

[2:17]  ²¹ tn The genitive τοῦ Χριστοῦ (tou Cristou) is appositional and translated as such: “the reality is Christ.”