Isaiah 24:22

24:22 They will be imprisoned in a pit, ¹ 

locked up in a prison,

and after staying there for a long time, ²  they will be punished. ³ 

Isaiah 27:3

27:3 I, the Lord, protect it; ⁴ 

I water it regularly. ⁵ 

I guard it night and day,

so no one can harm it. ⁶ 

Isaiah 38:10

38:10 “I thought, ⁷ 

‘In the middle of my life ⁸  I must walk through the gates of Sheol,

I am deprived ⁹  of the rest of my years.’

[24:22]  ¹ tn Heb “they will be gathered [in] a gathering [as] a prisoner in a cistern.” It is tempting to eliminate אֲסֵפָה (’asefah, “a gathering”) as dittographic or as a gloss, but sound repetition is one of the main characteristics of the style of this section of the chapter.

[24:22]  ² tn Heb “and after a multitude of days.”

[24:22]  ³ tn Heb “visited” (so KJV, ASV). This verse can mean to visit for good or for evil. The translation assumes the latter, based on v. 21a. However, BDB 823 s.v. פָּקַד B.Niph.2 suggests the meaning “visit graciously” here, in which case one might translate “they will be released.”

[27:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “her.” Apparently “vineyard” is the antecedent, though normally this noun is understood as masculine (see Lev 25:3, however).

[27:3]  ⁵ tn Or perhaps, “constantly.” Heb “by moments.”

[27:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “lest [someone] visit [harm] upon it, night and day I guard it.”

[38:10]  ⁷ tn Or “I said” (KJV, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[38:10]  ⁸ tn The precise meaning of the phrase בִּדְמִי יָמַי (bidmi yamay, “in the [?] of my days”) is uncertain. According to HALOT 226 s.v. דְּמִי this word is a hapax legomenon meaning “half.” Others derive the form from דַּמִי (dami, “quiet, rest, peacefulness”).

[38:10]  ⁹ tn The precise meaning of the verb is uncertain. The Pual of of פָּקַד (paqad) occurs only here and in Exod 38:21, where it appears to mean “passed in review” or “mustered.” Perhaps the idea is, “I have been called away for the remainder of my years.” To bring out the sense more clearly, one can translate, “I am deprived of the rest of my years.”