Isaiah 1:3

1:3 An ox recognizes its owner,

a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food; ¹ 

but Israel does not recognize me, ² 

my people do not understand.”

Isaiah 32:20

32:20 you will be blessed,

you who plant seed by all the banks of the streams, ³ 

you who let your ox and donkey graze. ⁴ 

Isaiah 7:25

7:25 They will stay away from all the hills that were cultivated, for fear of the thorns and briers. ⁵  Cattle will graze there and sheep will trample on them. ⁶ 

Isaiah 66:3

66:3 The one who slaughters a bull also strikes down a man; ⁷ 

the one who sacrifices a lamb also breaks a dog’s neck; ⁸ 

the one who presents an offering includes pig’s blood with it; ⁹ 

the one who offers incense also praises an idol. ¹⁰ 

They have decided to behave this way; ¹¹ 

they enjoy these disgusting practices. ¹² 

[1:3]  ¹ tn Heb “and the donkey the feeding trough of its owner.” The verb in the first line does double duty in the parallelism.

[1:3]  ² tn Although both verbs have no object, the parallelism suggests that Israel fails to recognize the Lord as the one who provides for their needs. In both clauses, the placement of “Israel” and “my people” at the head of the clause focuses the reader’s attention on the rebellious nation (C. van der Merwe, J. Naudé, J. Kroeze, A Biblical Hebrew Reference Grammar, 346-47).

[32:20]  ³ tn Heb “by all the waters.”

[32:20]  ⁴ tn Heb “who set free the foot of the ox and donkey”; NIV “letting your cattle and donkeys range free.”

[7:25]  ⁵ tn Heb “and all the hills which were hoed with a hoe, you will not go there [for] fear of the thorns and briers.”

[7:25]  ⁶ tn Heb “and it will become a pasture for cattle and a trampling place for sheep.”

[66:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “one who slaughters a bull, one who strikes down a man.” Some understand a comparison here and in the following lines. In God’s sight the one who sacrifices is like (i.e., regarded as) a murderer or one whose worship is ritually defiled or idolatrous. The translation above assumes that the language is not metaphorical, but descriptive of the sinners’ hypocritical behavior. (Note the last two lines of the verse, which suggests they are guilty of abominable practices.) On the one hand, they act pious and offer sacrifices; but at the same time they commit violent crimes against men, defile their sacrifices, and worship other gods.

[66:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “one who sacrifices a lamb, one who breaks a dog’s neck.” Some understand a comparison, but see the previous note.

[66:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “one who offers an offering, pig’s blood.” Some understand a comparison, but see the note at the end of the first line.

[66:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “one who offers incense as a memorial offering, one who blesses something false.” Some understand a comparison, but see the note at the end of the first line. אָוֶן (’aven), which has a wide variety of attested nuances, here refers metonymically to an idol. See HALOT 22 s.v. and BDB 20 s.v. 2.

[66:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “also they have chosen their ways.”

[66:3]  ¹² tn Heb “their being [or “soul”] takes delight in their disgusting [things].”