Isaiah 24:15

24:15 So in the east ¹  extol the Lord,

along the seacoasts extol ²  the fame ³  of the Lord God of Israel.

Isaiah 31:9

31:9 They will surrender their stronghold ⁴  because of fear; ⁵ 

their officers will be afraid of the Lord’s battle flag.” ⁶ 

This is what the Lord says –

the one whose fire is in Zion,

whose firepot is in Jerusalem. ⁷ 

Isaiah 44:16

44:16 Half of it he burns in the fire –

over that half he cooks ⁸  meat;

he roasts a meal and fills himself.

Yes, he warms himself and says,

‘Ah! I am warm as I look at the fire.’

Isaiah 47:14

47:14 Look, they are like straw,

which the fire burns up;

they cannot rescue themselves

from the heat ⁹  of the flames.

There are no coals to warm them,

no firelight to enjoy. ¹⁰ 

Isaiah 50:11

50:11 Look, all of you who start a fire

and who equip yourselves with ¹¹  flaming arrows, ¹² 

walk ¹³  in the light ¹⁴  of the fire you started

and among the flaming arrows you ignited! ¹⁵ 

This is what you will receive from me: ¹⁶ 

you will lie down in a place of pain. ¹⁷ 

[24:15]  ¹ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “in the lights,” interpreted by some to mean “in the region of light,” referring to the east. Some scholars have suggested the emendation of בָּאֻרִים (ba’urim) to בְּאִיֵּי הַיָּם (bÿ’iyyey hayyam, “along the seacoasts”), a phrase that is repeated in the next line. In this case, the two lines form synonymous parallelism. If one retains the MT reading (as above), “in the east” and “along the seacoasts” depict the two ends of the earth to refer to all the earth (as a merism).

[24:15]  ² tn The word “extol” is supplied in the translation; the verb in the first line does double duty in the parallelism.

[24:15]  ³ tn Heb “name,” which here stands for God’s reputation achieved by his mighty deeds.

[31:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “rocky cliff” (cf. ASV, NASB “rock”), viewed metaphorically as a place of defense and security.

[31:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “His rocky cliff, because of fear, will pass away [i.e., “perish”].”

[31:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “and they will be afraid of the flag, his officers.”

[31:9]  ⁷ sn The “fire” and “firepot” here symbolize divine judgment, which is heating up like a fire in Jerusalem, waiting to be used against the Assyrians when they attack the city.

[44:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “eats” (so NASB); NAB, NRSV “roasts.”

[47:14]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “hand,” here a metaphor for the strength or power of the flames.

[47:14]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “there is no coal [for?] their food, light to sit before it.” Some emend לַחְמָם (lakhmam, “their food”) to לְחֻמָּם (lÿkhummam, “to warm them”; see HALOT 328 s.v. חמם). This statement may allude to Isa 44:16, where idolaters are depicted warming themselves over a fire made from wood, part of which was used to form idols. The fire of divine judgment will be no such campfire; its flames will devour and destroy.

[50:11]  ¹³ tc Several more recent commentators have proposed an emendation of מְאַזְּרֵי (mÿ’azzÿre, “who put on”) to מְאִירִי (mÿ’iri, “who light”). However, both Qumran scrolls of Isaiah and the Vulgate support the MT reading (cf. NIV, ESV).

[50:11]  ¹⁴ tn On the meaning of זִיקוֹת (ziqot, “flaming arrows”), see HALOT 268 s.v. זִיקוֹת.

[50:11]  ¹⁵ tn The imperative is probably rhetorical and has a predictive force.

[50:11]  ¹⁶ tn Or perhaps, “flame” (so ASV).

[50:11]  ¹⁷ sn Perhaps the servant here speaks to his enemies and warns them that they will self-destruct.

[50:11]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “from my hand” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[50:11]  ¹⁹ sn The imagery may be that of a person who becomes ill and is forced to lie down in pain on a sickbed. Some see this as an allusion to a fiery place of damnation because of the imagery employed earlier in the verse.