Isaiah 24:4

Context

24:4 The earth¹ dries up² and withers,

the world shrivels up and withers;

the prominent people of the earth³ fade away.

Isaiah 9:17

Context

9:17 So the sovereign master was not pleased⁴ with their young men,

he took no pity⁵ on their orphans and widows;

for the whole nation was godless⁶ and did wicked things,⁷

every mouth was speaking disgraceful words.⁸

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again.⁹

Isaiah 32:6

Context

32:6 For a fool speaks disgraceful things;¹⁰

his mind plans out sinful deeds.¹¹

He commits godless deeds¹²

and says misleading things about the Lord;

he gives the hungry nothing to satisfy their appetite¹³

and gives the thirsty nothing to drink.¹⁴

[24:4] ¹tn Some prefer to read “land” here, but the word pair אֶרֶץ/תֵּבֵל (erets/tevel [see the corresponding term in the parallel line]) elsewhere clearly designates the earth/world (see 1 Sam 2:8; 1 Chr 16:30; Job 37;12; Pss 19:4; 24:1; 33:8; 89:11; 90:2; 96:13; 98:9; Prov 8:26, 31; Isa 14:16-17; 34:1; Jer 10:12; 51:15; Lam 4:12). According to L. Stadelmann, תבל designates “the habitable part of the world” (The Hebrew Conception of the World [AnBib], 130).

[24:4] ²tn Or “mourns” (BDB 5 s.v. אָבַל). HALOT 6-7 lists the homonyms I אבל (“mourn”) and II אבל (“dry up”). They propose the second here on the basis of parallelism.

[24:4] ³tn Heb “the height of the people of the earth.” The translation assumes an emendation of the singular form מְרוֹם (mÿrom, “height of”) to the plural construct מְרֹמֵי (mÿrome, “high ones of”; note the plural verb at the beginning of the line), and understands the latter as referring to the prominent people of human society.

[9:17] ⁴tn The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has לא יחמול (“he did not spare”) which is an obvious attempt to tighten the parallelism (note “he took no pity” in the next line). Instead of taking שָׂמַח (samakh) in one of its well attested senses (“rejoice over, be pleased with”), some propose, with support from Arabic, a rare homonymic root meaning “be merciful.”

[9:17] ⁵tn The translation understands the prefixed verbs יִשְׂמַח (yismakh) and יְרַחֵם (yÿrakhem) as preterites without vav (ו) consecutive. (See v. 11 and the note on “he stirred up.”)

[9:17] ⁶tn Or “defiled”; cf. ASV “profane”; NAB “profaned”; NIV “ungodly.”

[9:17] ⁷tn מֵרַע (mera’) is a Hiphil participle from רָעַע (ra’a’, “be evil”). The intransitive Hiphil has an exhibitive force here, indicating that they exhibited outwardly the evidence of an inward condition by committing evil deeds.

[9:17] ⁸tn Or “foolishness” (NASB), here in a moral-ethical sense.

[9:17] ⁹tn Heb “in all this his anger is not turned, and still his hand is outstretched.”

[32:6] ⁷tn Or “foolishness,” in a moral-ethical sense. See 9:17.

[32:6] ⁸tn Heb “and his heart commits sin”; KJV, ASV “his heart will work iniquity”; NASB “inclines toward wickedness.”

[32:6] ⁹tn Heb “in order to do [or “so that he does”] what is godless [or “defiled”].”

[32:6] ¹⁰tn Heb “so that he leaves empty the appetite [or “desire”] of the hungry.”

[32:6] ¹¹tn Heb “and the drink of the thirsty he causes to fail.”