Discovery BoxIsaiah 2:2-4
Contextthe mountain of the Lord’s temple will endure 2
as the most important of mountains,
and will be the most prominent of hills. 3
All the nations will stream to it,
2:3 many peoples will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mountain,
to the temple of the God of Jacob,
so 4 he can teach us his requirements, 5
and 6 we can follow his standards.” 7
For Zion will be the center for moral instruction; 8
the Lord will issue edicts from Jerusalem. 9
2:4 He will judge disputes between nations;
he will settle cases for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares, 10
and their spears into pruning hooks. 11
Nations will not take up the sword against other nations,
and they will no longer train for war.
Isaiah 49:18-23
ContextAll of them gather to you.
As surely as I live,” says the Lord,
“you will certainly wear all of them like jewelry;
you will put them on as if you were a bride.
49:19 Yes, your land lies in ruins;
it is desolate and devastated. 13
But now you will be too small to hold your residents,
and those who devoured you will be far away.
49:20 Yet the children born during your time of bereavement
will say within your hearing,
‘This place is too cramped for us, 14
make room for us so we can live here.’ 15
49:21 Then you will think to yourself, 16
‘Who bore these children for me?
I was bereaved and barren,
dismissed and divorced. 17
Who raised these children?
Look, I was left all alone;
where did these children come from?’”
49:22 This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“Look I will raise my hand to the nations;
I will raise my signal flag to the peoples.
They will bring your sons in their arms
and carry your daughters on their shoulders.
49:23 Kings will be your children’s 18 guardians;
their princesses will nurse your children. 19
With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you
and they will lick the dirt on 20 your feet.
Then you will recognize that I am the Lord;
those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.
Isaiah 60:3-9
Context60:3 Nations come to your light,
kings to your bright light.
They all gather and come to you –
your sons come from far away
and your daughters are escorted by guardians.
60:5 Then you will look and smile, 22
you will be excited and your heart will swell with pride. 23
For the riches of distant lands 24 will belong to you
and the wealth of nations will come to you.
60:6 Camel caravans will cover your roads, 25
young camels from Midian and Ephah.
All the merchants of Sheba 26 will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing praises to the Lord. 27
60:7 All the sheep of Kedar will be gathered to you;
the rams of Nebaioth will be available to you as sacrifices. 28
They will go up on my altar acceptably, 29
and I will bestow honor on my majestic temple.
60:8 Who are these who float along 30 like a cloud,
who fly like doves to their shelters? 31
60:9 Indeed, the coastlands 32 look eagerly for me,
the large ships 33 are in the lead,
bringing your sons from far away,
along with their silver and gold,
to honor the Lord your God, 34
the Holy One of Israel, 35 for he has bestowed honor on you.
Isaiah 66:20
Context66:20 They will bring back all your countrymen 36 from all the nations as an offering to the Lord. They will bring them 37 on horses, in chariots, in wagons, on mules, and on camels 38 to my holy hill Jerusalem,” says the Lord, “just as the Israelites bring offerings to the Lord’s temple in ritually pure containers.
Micah 4:1-5
Context4:1 In the future 39 the Lord’s Temple Mount will be the most important mountain of all; 40
it will be more prominent than other hills. 41
People will stream to it.
4:2 Many nations will come, saying,
“Come on! Let’s go up to the Lord’s mountain,
to the temple 42 of Jacob’s God,
so he can teach us his commands 43
and we can live by his laws.” 44
For Zion will be the source of instruction;
the Lord’s teachings will proceed from Jerusalem. 45
4:3 He will arbitrate 46 between many peoples
and settle disputes between many 47 distant nations. 48
They will beat their swords into plowshares, 49
and their spears into pruning hooks. 50
Nations will not use weapons 51 against other nations,
and they will no longer train for war.
4:4 Each will sit under his own grapevine
or under his own fig tree without any fear. 52
The Lord who commands armies has decreed it. 53
4:5 Though all the nations follow their respective gods, 54
we will follow 55 the Lord our God forever.
Zechariah 2:11
Context2:11 “Many nations will join themselves to the Lord on the day of salvation, 56 and they will also be my 57 people. Indeed, I will settle in the midst of you all.” Then you will know that the Lord who rules over all has sent me to you.
Zechariah 8:20-23
Context8:20 The Lord who rules over all says, ‘It will someday come to pass that people – residents of many cities – will come. 8:21 The inhabitants of one will go to another and say, “Let’s go up at once to ask the favor of the Lord, to seek the Lord who rules over all. Indeed, I’ll go with you.”’ 8:22 Many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the Lord who rules over all and to ask his favor. 8:23 The Lord who rules over all says, ‘In those days ten people from all languages and nations will grasp hold of – indeed, grab – the robe of one Jew and say, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’” 58
[2:2] 1 tn Heb “in the end of the days.” This phrase may refer generally to the future, or more technically to the final period of history. See BDB 31 s.v. ַאחֲרִית. The verse begins with a verb that functions as a “discourse particle” and is not translated. In numerous places throughout the OT, the “to be” verb with a prefixed conjunction (וְהָיָה [vÿhayah] and וַיְהִי [vayÿhi]) occurs in this fashion to introduce a circumstantial clause and does not require translation.
[2:2] 2 tn Or “be established” (KJV, NIV, NRSV).
[2:2] 3 tn Heb “as the chief of the mountains, and will be lifted up above the hills.” The image of Mount Zion being elevated above other mountains and hills pictures the prominence it will attain in the future.
[2:3] 4 tn The prefixed verb form with simple vav (ו) introduces a purpose/result clause after the preceding prefixed verb form (probably to be taken as a cohortative; see IBHS 650 §39.2.2a).
[2:3] 5 tn Heb “his ways.” In this context God’s “ways” are the standards of moral conduct he decrees that people should live by.
[2:3] 6 tn The cohortative with vav (ו) after the prefixed verb form indicates the ultimate purpose/goal of their action.
[2:3] 7 tn Heb “walk in his ways.”
[2:3] 8 tn Heb “for out of Zion will go instruction.”
[2:3] 9 tn Heb “the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”
[2:4] 10 sn Instead of referring to the large plow as a whole, the plowshare is simply the metal tip which actually breaks the earth and cuts the furrow.
[2:4] 11 sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (H. Wildberger, Isaiah, 1:93; M. Klingbeil, NIDOTTE 1:1117-18). It was a short knife with a curved hook at the end sharpened on the inside like a sickle. Breaking weapons and fashioning agricultural implements indicates a transition from fear and stress to peace and security.
[49:18] 12 tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see.”
[49:19] 13 tn Heb “Indeed your ruins and your desolate places, and the land of your destruction.” This statement is abruptly terminated in the Hebrew text and left incomplete.
[49:20] 14 tn Heb “me.” The singular is collective.
[49:20] 15 tn Heb “draw near to me so I can dwell.”
[49:21] 16 tn Heb “and you will say in your heart.”
[49:21] 17 tn Or “exiled and thrust away”; NIV “exiled and rejected.”
[49:23] 18 tn Heb “your,” but Zion here stands by metonymy for her children (see v. 22b).
[49:23] 19 tn Heb “you.” See the preceding note.
[49:23] 20 tn Or “at your feet” (NAB, NIV); NLT “from your feet.”
[60:4] 21 tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see!”
[60:5] 22 tn Or “shine,” or “be radiant” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[60:5] 23 tn Heb “and it will tremble and be wide, your heart.”
[60:5] 24 tn Heb “the wealth of the sea,” i.e., wealth that is transported from distant lands via the sea.
[60:6] 25 tn Heb “an abundance of camels will cover you.”
[60:6] 26 tn Heb “all of them, from Sheba.”
[60:6] 27 tn Heb “and they will announce the praises of the Lord.”
[60:7] 28 tn Heb “will serve you,” i.e., be available as sacrifices (see the next line). Another option is to understood these “rams” as symbolic of leaders who will be subject to the people of Zion. See v. 10.
[60:7] 29 tc Heb “they will go up on acceptance [on] my altar.” Some have suggested that the preposition עַל (’al) is dittographic (note the preceding יַעֲלוּ [ya’alu]). Consequently, the form should be emended to לְרָצוֹן (lÿratson, “acceptably”; see BDB 953 s.v. רָצוֹן). However, the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has both לרצון followed by the preposition על, which would argue against deleted the preposition. As the above translation seeks to demonstrate, the preposition עַל (’al) indicates a norm (“in accordance with acceptance” or “acceptably”; IBHS 218 §11.2.13e, n. 111) and the “altar” functions as an objective accusative with a verb of motion (cf. Gen 49:4; Lev 2:2; Num 13:17; J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:534, n. 14).
[60:8] 30 tn Heb “fly” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NAB, NIV “fly along.”
[60:8] 31 tn Heb “to their windows,” i.e., to the openings in their coops. See HALOT 83 s.v. אֲרֻבָּה.
[60:9] 32 tn Or “islands” (NIV); CEV “distant islands”; TEV “distant lands.”
[60:9] 33 tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” See the note at 2:16.
[60:9] 34 tn Heb “to the name of the Lord your God.”
[60:9] 35 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
[66:20] 36 tn Heb “brothers” (so NIV); NCV “fellow Israelites.”
[66:20] 37 tn The words “they will bring them” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[66:20] 38 tn The precise meaning of this word is uncertain. Some suggest it refers to “chariots.” See HALOT 498 s.v. *כִּרְכָּרָה.
[4:1] 39 tn Heb “at the end of days.”
[4:1] 40 tn Heb “will be established as the head of the mountains.”
[4:1] 41 tn Heb “it will be lifted up above the hills.”
[4:2] 44 tn Heb “and we can walk in his paths.”
[4:2] 45 tn Heb “instruction [or, “law”] will go out from Zion, and the word of the
[4:3] 47 tn Or “mighty” (NASB); KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV “strong”; TEV “among the great powers.”
[4:3] 48 tn Heb “[for many nations] to a distance.”
[4:3] 49 sn Instead of referring to the large plow as a whole, the plowshare is simply the metal tip which actually breaks the earth and cuts the furrow.
[4:3] 50 sn This implement was used to prune the vines, i.e., to cut off extra leaves and young shoots (M. Klingbeil, NIDOTTE 1:1117-18). It was a short knife with a curved hook at the end sharpened on the inside like a sickle.
[4:3] 51 tn Heb “take up the sword.”
[4:4] 52 tn Heb “and there will be no one making [him] afraid.”
[4:4] 53 tn Heb “for the mouth of the
[4:5] 54 tn Heb “walk each in the name of his god.” The term “name” here has the idea of “authority.” To “walk in the name” of a god is to recognize the god’s authority as binding over one’s life.
[4:5] 55 tn Heb “walk in the name of.”
[2:11] 56 tn Heb “on that day.” The descriptive phrase “of salvation” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[2:11] 57 tc The LXX and Syriac have the 3rd person masculine singular suffix in both places (“his people” and “he will settle”; cf. NAB, TEV) in order to avoid the
[8:23] 58 sn This scene of universal and overwhelming attraction of the nations to Israel’s God finds initial fulfillment in the establishment of the church (Acts 2:5-11) but ultimate completion in the messianic age (Isa 45:14, 24; 60:14; Zech 14:16-21).
