Isaiah 25:12

25:12 The fortified city (along with the very tops of your ¹  walls) ²  he will knock down,

he will bring it down, he will throw it down to the dusty ground. ³ 

Isaiah 28:25

28:25 Once he has leveled its surface,

does he not scatter the seed of the caraway plant,

sow the seed of the cumin plant,

and plant the wheat, barley, and grain in their designated places? ⁴ 

Isaiah 28:28

28:28 Grain is crushed,

though one certainly does not thresh it forever.

The wheel of one’s wagon rolls over it,

but his horses do not crush it.

Isaiah 36:14

36:14 This is what the king says: ‘Don’t let Hezekiah mislead you, for he is not able to rescue you!

Isaiah 37:1

37:1 When King Hezekiah heard this, ⁵  he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and went to the Lord’s temple.

Isaiah 38:21

38:21 ⁶  Isaiah ordered, “Let them take a fig cake and apply it to the ulcerated sore and he will get well.”

Isaiah 40:23

40:23 He is the one who reduces rulers to nothing;

he makes the earth’s leaders insignificant.

Isaiah 53:2

53:2 He sprouted up like a twig before God, ⁷ 

like a root out of parched soil; ⁸ 

he had no stately form or majesty that might catch our attention, ⁹ 

no special appearance that we should want to follow him. ¹⁰ 

Isaiah 66:3

66:3 The one who slaughters a bull also strikes down a man; ¹¹ 

the one who sacrifices a lamb also breaks a dog’s neck; ¹² 

the one who presents an offering includes pig’s blood with it; ¹³ 

the one who offers incense also praises an idol. ¹⁴ 

They have decided to behave this way; ¹⁵ 

they enjoy these disgusting practices. ¹⁶ 

[25:12]  ¹ sn Moab is addressed.

[25:12]  ² tn Heb “a fortification, the high point of your walls.”

[25:12]  ³ tn Heb “he will bring [it] down, he will make [it] touch the ground, even to the dust.”

[28:25]  ⁴ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “place wheat [?], and barley [?], and grain in its territory.” The term שׂוֹרָה (shorah) is sometimes translated “[in] its place,” but the word is unattested elsewhere. It is probably due to dittography of the immediately following שְׂעֹרָה (sÿo’rah, “barley”). The meaning of נִסְמָן (nisman) is also uncertain. It may be due to dittography of the immediately following כֻסֶּמֶת (kussemet, “grain”).

[37:1]  ⁷ tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[38:21]  ¹⁰ tc If original to Isaiah 38, vv. 21-22 have obviously been misplaced in the course of the text’s transmission, and would most naturally be placed here, between Isa 38:6 and 38:7. See 2 Kgs 20:7-8, where these verses are placed at this point in the narrative, not at the end. Another possibility is that these verses were not in the original account, and a scribe, familiar with the 2 Kgs version of the story, appended vv. 21-22 to the end of the account in Isaiah 38.

[53:2]  ¹³ tn Heb “before him.” Some suggest an emendation to “before us.” If the third singular suffix of the Hebrew text is retained, it probably refers to the Lord (see v. 1b). For a defense of this reading, see R. Whybray, Isaiah 40-66 (NCBC), 173-74.

[53:2]  ¹⁴ sn The metaphor in this verse suggests insignificance.

[53:2]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “that we might see him.” The vav conjunctive prefixed to the imperfect introduces a result clause here. See GKC 504-5 §166.a.

[53:2]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “that we should desire him.” The vav conjunctive prefixed to the imperfect introduces a result clause here. See GKC 504-5 §166.a.

[66:3]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “one who slaughters a bull, one who strikes down a man.” Some understand a comparison here and in the following lines. In God’s sight the one who sacrifices is like (i.e., regarded as) a murderer or one whose worship is ritually defiled or idolatrous. The translation above assumes that the language is not metaphorical, but descriptive of the sinners’ hypocritical behavior. (Note the last two lines of the verse, which suggests they are guilty of abominable practices.) On the one hand, they act pious and offer sacrifices; but at the same time they commit violent crimes against men, defile their sacrifices, and worship other gods.

[66:3]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “one who sacrifices a lamb, one who breaks a dog’s neck.” Some understand a comparison, but see the previous note.

[66:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “one who offers an offering, pig’s blood.” Some understand a comparison, but see the note at the end of the first line.

[66:3]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “one who offers incense as a memorial offering, one who blesses something false.” Some understand a comparison, but see the note at the end of the first line. אָוֶן (’aven), which has a wide variety of attested nuances, here refers metonymically to an idol. See HALOT 22 s.v. and BDB 20 s.v. 2.

[66:3]  ²⁰ tn Heb “also they have chosen their ways.”

[66:3]  ²¹ tn Heb “their being [or “soul”] takes delight in their disgusting [things].”