Isaiah 16:7

16:7 So Moab wails over its demise ¹  –

they all wail!

Completely devastated, they moan

about what has happened to the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth. ² 

Isaiah 59:10

59:10 We grope along the wall like the blind,

we grope like those who cannot see; ³ 

we stumble at noontime as if it were evening.

Though others are strong, we are like dead men. ⁴ 

[16:7]  ¹ tn Heb “So Moab wails for Moab.”

[16:7]  ² tn The Hebrew text has, “for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth you [masculine plural] moan, surely destroyed.” The “raisin cakes” could have cultic significance (see Hos 3:1), but the next verse focuses on agricultural disaster, so here the raisin cakes are mentioned as an example of the fine foods that are no longer available (see 2 Sam 6:19; Song 2:5) because the vines have been destroyed by the invader (see v. 8). Some prefer to take אֲשִׁישֵׁי (’ashishe, “raisin cakes of”) as “men of” (see HALOT 95 s.v. *אָשִׁישׁ; cf. NIV). The verb form תֶהְגּוּ (tehgu, “you moan”) is probably the result of dittography (note that the preceding word ends in tav [ת]) and should be emended to הגו (a perfect, third plural form), “they moan.”

[59:10]  ³ tn Heb “like there are no eyes.”

[59:10]  ⁴ tn Heb among the strong, like dead men.”