Isaiah 2:19

2:19 They ¹  will go into caves in the rocky cliffs

and into holes in the ground, ² 

trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord ³ 

and his royal splendor,

when he rises up to terrify the earth. ⁴ 

Isaiah 14:16-17

14:16 Those who see you stare at you,

they look at you carefully, thinking: ⁵ 

“Is this the man who shook the earth,

the one who made kingdoms tremble?

14:17 Is this the one who made the world like a desert,

who ruined its ⁶  cities,

and refused to free his prisoners so they could return home?”’ ⁷ 

Exodus 15:8-10

15:8 By the blast of your nostrils ⁸  the waters were piled up,

the flowing water stood upright like a heap, ⁹ 

and the deep waters were solidified in the heart of the sea.

15:9 The enemy said, ‘I will chase, ¹⁰  I will overtake,

I will divide the spoil;

my desire ¹¹  will be satisfied on them.

I will draw ¹²  my sword, my hand will destroy them.’ ¹³ 

15:10 But ¹⁴  you blew with your breath, and ¹⁵  the sea covered them.

They sank ¹⁶  like lead in the mighty waters.

Psalms 46:6

46:6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms are overthrown. ¹⁷ 

God ¹⁸  gives a shout, ¹⁹  the earth dissolves. ²⁰ 

Ezekiel 26:10

26:10 He will cover you with the dust kicked up by his many horses. ²¹  Your walls will shake from the noise of the horsemen, wheels, and chariots when he enters your gates like those who invade through a city’s broken walls. ²² 

Ezekiel 26:15-19

26:15 “This is what the sovereign Lord says to Tyre: Oh, how the coastlands will shake at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan, at the massive slaughter in your midst! 26:16 All the princes of the sea will vacate ²³  their thrones. They will remove their robes and strip off their embroidered clothes; they will clothe themselves with trembling. They will sit on the ground; they will tremble continually and be shocked at what has happened to you. ²⁴  26:17 They will sing this lament over you: ²⁵ 

“‘How you have perished – you have vanished ²⁶  from the seas,

O renowned city, once mighty in the sea,

she and her inhabitants, who spread their terror! ²⁷ 

26:18 Now the coastlands will tremble on the day of your fall;

the coastlands by the sea will be terrified by your passing.’ ²⁸ 

26:19 “For this is what the sovereign Lord says: When I make you desolate like the uninhabited cities, when I bring up the deep over you and the surging ²⁹  waters overwhelm you,

Ezekiel 27:34-35

27:34 Now you are wrecked by the seas, in the depths of the waters;

your merchandise and all your company have sunk ³⁰  along with you. ³¹ 

27:35 All the inhabitants of the coastlands are shocked at you,

and their kings are horribly afraid – their faces are troubled.

Ezekiel 31:16

31:16 I made the nations shake at the sound of its fall, when I threw it down to Sheol, along with those who descend to the pit. ³²  Then all the trees of Eden, the choicest and the best of Lebanon, all that were well-watered, were comforted in the earth below.

Haggai 2:7

2:7 I will also shake up all the nations, and they ³³  will offer their treasures; ³⁴  then I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord who rules over all.

[2:19]  ¹ tn The identity of the grammatical subject is unclear. The “idols” could be the subject; they will “go” into the caves and holes when the idolaters throw them there in their haste to escape God’s judgment (see vv. 20-21). The picture of the idols, which represent the foreign deities worshiped by the people, fleeing from the Lord would be highly polemical and fit the overall mood of the chapter. However it seems more likely that the idolaters themselves are the subject, for v. 10 uses similar language in sarcastically urging them to run from judgment.

[2:19]  ² tn Heb “dust”; ASV “into the holes of the earth.”

[2:19]  ³ tn Heb “from the dread of the Lord,” that is, from the dread that he produces in the objects of his judgment.” The words “trying to escape” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[2:19]  ⁴ tn Or “land.” It is not certain if these verses are describing the judgment of Judah (see vv. 6-9) or a more universal judgment on all proud men.

[14:16]  ⁵ tn The word “thinking” is supplied in the translation in order to make it clear that the next line records their thoughts as they gaze at him.

[14:17]  ⁶ tc The pronominal suffix is masculine, even though its antecedent appears to be the grammatically feminine noun “world.” Some have suggested that the form עָרָיו (’arayv, plural noun with third masculine singular suffix) should be emended to עָרֶיהָ (’areha, plural noun with third feminine singular suffix). This emendation may be unnecessary in light of other examples of lack of agreement a suffix and its antecedent noun.

[14:17]  ⁷ tn Heb “and his prisoners did not let loose to [their] homes.” This really means, “he did not let loose his prisoners and send them back to their homes.’ On the elliptical style, see GKC 366 §117.o.

[15:8]  ⁸ sn The phrase “the blast of your nostrils” is a bold anthropomorphic expression for the wind that came in and dried up the water.

[15:8]  ⁹ tn The word “heap” describes the walls of water. The waters, which are naturally fluid, stood up as though they were a heap, a mound of earth. Likewise, the flowing waters deep in the ocean solidified – as though they were turned to ice (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 175).

[15:9]  ¹⁰ sn W. C. Kaiser observes the staccato phrases that almost imitate the heavy, breathless heaving of the Egyptians as, with what reserve of strength they have left, they vow, “I will…, I will…, I will…” (“Exodus,” EBC 2:395).

[15:9]  ¹¹ tn The form is נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”). But this word refers to the whole person, the body and the soul, or better, a bundle of appetites in a body. It therefore can figuratively refer to the desires or appetites (Deut 12:15; 14:26; 23:24). Here, with the verb “to be full” means “to be satisfied”; the whole expression might indicate “I will be sated with them” or “I will gorge myself.” The greedy appetite was to destroy.

[15:9]  ¹² tn The verb רִיק (riq) means “to be empty” in the Qal, and in the Hiphil “to empty.” Here the idea is to unsheathe a sword.

[15:9]  ¹³ tn The verb is יָרַשׁ (yarash), which in the Hiphil means “to dispossess” or “root out.” The meaning “destroy” is a general interpretation.

[15:10]  ¹⁴ tn “But” has been supplied here.

[15:10]  ¹⁵ tn Here “and” has been supplied.

[15:10]  ¹⁶ tn The verb may have the idea of sinking with a gurgling sound, like water going into a whirlpool (R. A. Cole, Exodus [TOTC], 124; S. R. Driver, Exodus, 136). See F. M. Cross and D. N. Freedman, “The Song of Miriam,” JNES 14 (1955): 243-47.

[46:6]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “nations roar, kingdoms shake.” The Hebrew verb הָמָה (hamah, “roar, be in uproar”) is used in v. 3 of the waves crashing, while the verb מוֹט (mot, “overthrown”) is used in v. 2 of mountains tumbling into the sea (see also v. 5, where the psalm affirms that Jerusalem “cannot be moved”). The repetition of the verbs suggests that the language of vv. 2-3 is symbolic and depicts the upheaval that characterizes relationships between the nations of the earth. As some nations (symbolized by the surging, chaotic waters) show hostility, others (symbolized by the mountains) come crashing down to destruction. The surging waters are symbolic of chaotic forces in other poetic texts (see, for example, Isa 17:12; Jer 51:42) and mountains can symbolize strong kingdoms (see, for example, Jer 51:25).

[46:6]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “He.” God is the obvious referent here (see v. 5), and has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[46:6]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “offers his voice.” In theophanic texts the phrase refers to God’s thunderous shout which functions as a battle cry (see Pss 18:13; 68:33).

[46:6]  ²⁰ tn Or “melts.” See Amos 9:5. The image depicts the nation’s helplessness before Jerusalem’s defender, who annihilates their armies (see vv. 8-9). The imperfect verbal form emphasizes the characteristic nature of the action described.

[26:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “From the abundance of his horses he will cover you (with) their dust.”

[26:10]  ²² tn Heb “like those who enter a breached city.”

[26:16]  ²³ tn Heb “descend from.”

[26:16]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and they will be astonished over you.”

[26:17]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and they will lift up over you a lament and they will say to you.”

[26:17]  ²⁶ tn Heb “O inhabitant.” The translation follows the LXX and understands a different Hebrew verb, meaning “cease,” behind the consonantal text. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel [WBC], 2:72, and D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:43.

[26:17]  ²⁷ tn Heb “she and her inhabitants who placed their terror to all her inhabitants.” The relationship of the final prepositional phrase to what precedes is unclear. The preposition probably has a specifying function here, drawing attention to Tyre’s inhabitants as the source of the terror mentioned prior to this. In this case, one might paraphrase verse 17b: “she and her inhabitants, who spread their terror; yes, her inhabitants (were the source of this terror).”

[26:18]  ²⁸ tn Heb “from your going out.”

[26:19]  ²⁹ tn Heb “many.”

[27:34]  ³⁰ tn Heb “fallen.”

[27:34]  ³¹ tn Heb “in the midst of you.”

[31:16]  ³² sn For the expression “going down to the pit,” see Ezek 26:20; 32:18, 24, 29.

[2:7]  ³³ tn Heb “all the nations.”

[2:7]  ³⁴ tn Though the subject here is singular (חֶמְדַּה, khemdah; “desire”), the preceding plural predicate mandates a collective subject, “desired (things)” or, better, an emendation to a plural form, חֲמֻדֹת (khamudot, “desirable [things],” hence “treasures”). Cf. ASV “the precious things”; NASB “the wealth”; NRSV “the treasure.” In the OT context this has no direct reference to the coming of the Messiah.