Discovery BoxIsaiah 28:1--29:24
Context28:1 The splendid crown of Ephraim’s drunkards is doomed, 1
the withering flower, its beautiful splendor, 2
situated 3 at the head of a rich valley,
the crown of those overcome with wine. 4
28:2 Look, the sovereign master 5 sends a strong, powerful one. 6
With the force of a hailstorm or a destructive windstorm, 7
with the might of a driving, torrential rainstorm, 8
he will knock that crown 9 to the ground with his hand. 10
28:3 The splendid crown of Ephraim’s drunkards
will be trampled underfoot.
28:4 The withering flower, its beautiful splendor,
situated at the head of a rich valley,
will be like an early fig before harvest –
as soon as someone notices it,
he grabs it and swallows it. 11
28:5 At that time 12 the Lord who commands armies will become a beautiful crown
and a splendid diadem for the remnant of his people.
28:6 He will give discernment to the one who makes judicial decisions,
and strength to those who defend the city from attackers. 13
28:7 Even these men 14 stagger because of wine,
they stumble around because of beer –
priests and prophets stagger because of beer,
they are confused 15 because of wine,
they stumble around because of beer;
they stagger while seeing prophetic visions, 16
they totter while making legal decisions. 17
28:8 Indeed, all the tables are covered with vomit;
no place is untouched. 18
28:9 Who is the Lord 19 trying to teach?
To whom is he explaining a message? 20
Those just weaned from milk!
Those just taken from their mother’s breast! 21
28:10 Indeed, they will hear meaningless gibberish,
senseless babbling,
a syllable here, a syllable there. 22
28:11 For with mocking lips and a foreign tongue
he will speak to these people. 23
28:12 In the past he said to them, 24
“This is where security can be found.
Provide security for the one who is exhausted!
This is where rest can be found.” 25
But they refused to listen.
28:13 So the Lord’s word to them will sound like
meaningless gibberish,
senseless babbling,
a syllable here, a syllable there. 26
As a result, they will fall on their backsides when they try to walk, 27
and be injured, ensnared, and captured. 28
28:14 Therefore, listen to the Lord’s word,
you who mock,
you rulers of these people
who reside in Jerusalem! 29
28:15 For you say,
“We have made a treaty with death,
with Sheol 30 we have made an agreement. 31
When the overwhelming judgment sweeps by 32
it will not reach us.
For we have made a lie our refuge,
we have hidden ourselves in a deceitful word.” 33
28:16 Therefore, this is what the sovereign master, the Lord, says:
“Look, I am laying 34 a stone in Zion,
an approved 35 stone,
set in place as a precious cornerstone for the foundation. 36
The one who maintains his faith will not panic. 37
28:17 I will make justice the measuring line,
fairness the plumb line;
hail will sweep away the unreliable refuge, 38
the floodwaters will overwhelm the hiding place.
28:18 Your treaty with death will be dissolved; 39
your agreement 40 with Sheol will not last. 41
When the overwhelming judgment sweeps by, 42
you will be overrun by it. 43
28:19 Whenever it sweeps by, it will overtake you;
indeed, 44 every morning it will sweep by,
it will come through during the day and the night.” 45
When this announcement is understood,
it will cause nothing but terror.
28:20 For the bed is too short to stretch out on,
and the blanket is too narrow to wrap around oneself. 46
28:21 For the Lord will rise up, as he did at Mount Perazim, 47
he will rouse himself, as he did in the Valley of Gibeon, 48
to accomplish his work,
his peculiar work,
to perform his task,
his strange task. 49
28:22 So now, do not mock,
or your chains will become heavier!
For I have heard a message about decreed destruction,
from the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, against the entire land. 50
28:23 Pay attention and listen to my message! 51
Be attentive and listen to what I have to say! 52
28:24 Does a farmer just keep on plowing at planting time? 53
Does he keep breaking up and harrowing his ground?
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? 54
28:26 His God instructs him;
he teaches him the principles of agriculture. 55
28:27 Certainly 56 caraway seed is not threshed with a sledge,
nor is the wheel of a cart rolled over cumin seed. 57
Certainly caraway seed is beaten with a stick,
and cumin seed with a flail.
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.
28:29 This also comes from the Lord who commands armies,
who gives supernatural guidance and imparts great wisdom. 58
29:1 Ariel is as good as dead 59 –
Ariel, the town David besieged! 60
Keep observing your annual rituals,
celebrate your festivals on schedule. 61
29:2 I will threaten Ariel,
and she will mourn intensely
and become like an altar hearth 62 before me.
29:3 I will lay siege to you on all sides; 63
I will besiege you with troops; 64
I will raise siege works against you.
29:4 You will fall;
while lying on the ground 65 you will speak;
from the dust where you lie, your words will be heard. 66
Your voice will sound like a spirit speaking from the underworld; 67
from the dust you will chirp as if muttering an incantation. 68
29:5 But the horde of invaders will be like fine dust,
the horde of tyrants 69 like chaff that is blown away.
It will happen suddenly, in a flash.
29:6 Judgment will come from the Lord who commands armies, 70
accompanied by thunder, earthquake, and a loud noise,
by a strong gale, a windstorm, and a consuming flame of fire.
29:7 It will be like a dream, a night vision.
There will be a horde from all the nations that fight against Ariel,
those who attack her and her stronghold and besiege her.
29:8 It will be like a hungry man dreaming that he is eating,
only to awaken and find that his stomach is empty. 71
It will be like a thirsty man dreaming that he is drinking,
only to awaken and find that he is still weak and his thirst unquenched. 72
So it will be for the horde from all the nations
that fight against Mount Zion.
29:9 You will be shocked and amazed! 73
You are totally blind! 74
They are drunk, 75 but not because of wine;
they stagger, 76 but not because of beer.
29:10 For the Lord has poured out on you
a strong urge to sleep deeply. 77
He has shut your eyes (the prophets),
and covered your heads (the seers).
29:11 To you this entire prophetic revelation 78 is like words in a sealed scroll. When they hand it to one who can read 79 and say, “Read this,” he responds, “I can’t, because it is sealed.” 29:12 Or when they hand the scroll to one who can’t read 80 and say, “Read this,” he says, “I can’t read.” 81
29:13 The sovereign master 82 says,
“These people say they are loyal to me; 83
they say wonderful things about me, 84
but they are not really loyal to me. 85
Their worship consists of
nothing but man-made ritual. 86
29:14 Therefore I will again do an amazing thing for these people –
an absolutely extraordinary deed. 87
Wise men will have nothing to say,
the sages will have no explanations.” 88
29:15 Those who try to hide their plans from the Lord are as good as dead, 89
who do their work in secret and boast, 90
“Who sees us? Who knows what we’re doing?” 91
29:16 Your thinking is perverse! 92
Should the potter be regarded as clay? 93
Should the thing made say 94 about its maker, “He didn’t make me”?
Or should the pottery say about the potter, “He doesn’t understand”?
29:17 In just a very short time 95
Lebanon will turn into an orchard,
and the orchard will be considered a forest. 96
29:18 At that time 97 the deaf will be able to hear words read from a scroll,
and the eyes of the blind will be able to see through deep darkness. 98
29:19 The downtrodden will again rejoice in the Lord;
the poor among humankind will take delight 99 in the Holy One of Israel. 100
29:20 For tyrants will disappear,
those who taunt will vanish,
and all those who love to do wrong will be eliminated 101 –
29:21 those who bear false testimony against a person, 102
who entrap the one who arbitrates at the city gate 103
and deprive the innocent of justice by making false charges. 104
29:22 So this is what the Lord, the one who delivered Abraham, says to the family of Jacob: 105
“Jacob will no longer be ashamed;
their faces will no longer show their embarrassment. 106
29:23 For when they see their children,
whom I will produce among them, 107
they will honor 108 my name.
They will honor the Holy One of Jacob; 109
they will respect 110 the God of Israel.
29:24 Those who stray morally will gain understanding; 111
those who complain will acquire insight. 112
[28:1] 1 tn Heb “Woe [to] the crown [or “wreath”] of the splendor [or “pride”] of the drunkards of Ephraim.” The “crown” is Samaria, the capital city of the northern kingdom (Ephraim). Priests and prophets are included among these drunkards in v. 7.
[28:1] 2 tn Heb “the beauty of his splendor.” In the translation the masculine pronoun (“his”) has been replaced by “its” because the referent (the “crown”) is the city of Samaria.
[28:1] 4 tn Heb “ones overcome with wine.” The words “the crown of” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The syntactical relationship of the final phrase to what precedes is uncertain. הֲלוּמֵי יָיִן (halume yayin, “ones overcome with wine”) seems to correspond to שִׁכֹּרֵי אֶפְרַיִם (shikkore ’efrayim, “drunkards of Ephraim”) in line 1. The translation assumes that the phrase “the splendid crown” is to be understood in the final line as well.
[28:2] 5 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here and in vv. 16, 22 is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay).
[28:2] 6 tn Heb “Look, a strong and powerful [one] belongs to the Lord.”
[28:2] 7 tn Heb “like a rainstorm of hail, a wind of destruction.”
[28:2] 8 tn Heb “like a rainstorm of mighty, overflowing waters.”
[28:2] 9 tn The words “that crown” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The object of the verb is unexpressed in the Hebrew text.
[28:2] 10 tn Or “by [his] power.”
[28:4] 11 tn Heb “which the one seeing sees, while still it is in his hand he swallows it.”
[28:5] 12 tn Or “in that day” (KJV).
[28:6] 13 tn Heb “and [he will become] a spirit of justice for the one who sits [i.e., presides] over judgment, // and strength [for] the ones who turn back battle at the city gate.” The Lord will provide internal stability and national security.
[28:7] 14 tn Heb “these.” The demonstrative pronoun anticipates “priests and prophets” two lines later.
[28:7] 15 tn According to HALOT 135 s.v. III בלע, the verb form is derived from בָּלַע (bala’, “confuse”), not the more common בָּלַע (“swallow”). See earlier notes at 3:12 and 9:16.
[28:7] 16 tn Heb “in the seeing.”
[28:7] 17 tn Heb “[in] giving a decision.”
[28:8] 18 tn Heb “vomit, without a place.” For the meaning of the phrase בְּלִי מָקוֹם (bÿli maqom, “without a place”), see HALOT 133 s.v. בְּלִי.
[28:9] 19 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[28:9] 20 tn Heb “Who is he teaching knowledge? For whom is he explaining a message?” The translation assumes that the Lord is the subject of the verbs “teaching” and “explaining,” and that the prophet is asking the questions. See v. 12. According to some vv. 9-10 record the people’s sarcastic response to the Lord’s message through Isaiah.
[28:9] 21 tn Heb “from the breasts.” The words “their mother’s” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The translation assumes that this is the prophet’s answer to the questions asked in the first half of the verse. The Lord is trying to instruct people who are “infants” morally and ethically.
[28:10] 22 tn The meaning of this verse has been debated. The text has literally “indeed [or “for”] a little there, a little there” ( כִּי צַו לָצָו צַו לָצָו קַו לָקָו קַו, ki tsav latsav, tsav latsav, qav laqav, qav laqav). The present translation assumes that the repetitive syllables are gibberish that resembles baby talk (cf v. 9b) and mimics what the people will hear when foreign invaders conquer the land (v. 11). In this case זְעֵיר (zÿ’er, “a little”) refers to the short syllabic structure of the babbling (cf. CEV). Some take צַו (tsav) as a derivative of צָוָה (tsavah, “command”) and translate the first part of the statement as “command after command, command after command.” Proponents of this position (followed by many English versions) also take קַו (qav) as a noun meaning “measuring line” (see v. 17), understood here in the abstract sense of “standard” or “rule.”
[28:11] 23 sn This verse alludes to the coming Assyrian invasion, when the people will hear a foreign language that sounds like gibberish to them. The Lord is the subject of the verb “will speak,” as v. 12 makes clear. He once spoke in meaningful terms, but in the coming judgment he will speak to them, as it were, through the mouth of foreign oppressors. The apparent gibberish they hear will be an outward reminder that God has decreed their defeat.
[28:12] 24 tn Heb “who said to them.”
[28:12] 25 sn This message encapsulates the Lord’s invitation to his people to find security in his protection and blessing.
[28:13] 26 tn Heb “And the word of the Lord will be to them, ‘tsahv latsahv,’ etc.” See the note at v. 10. In this case the “Lord’s word” is not the foreigner’s strange sounding words (as in v. 10), but the Lord’s repeated appeals to them (like the one quoted in v. 12). As time goes on, the Lord’s appeals through the prophets will have no impact on the people; they will regard prophetic preaching as gibberish.
[28:13] 27 tn Heb “as a result they will go and stumble backward.” Perhaps an infant falling as it attempts to learn to walk is the background image here (cf. v. 9b). The Hebrew term לְמַעַן (lÿma’an) could be taken as indicating purpose (“in order that”), rather than simple result. In this case the people’s insensitivity to the message is caused by the Lord as a means of expediting their downfall.
[28:13] 28 sn When divine warnings and appeals become gibberish to the spiritually insensitive, they have no guidance and are doomed to destruction.
[28:14] 29 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[28:15] 30 sn Sheol is the underworld, land of the dead, according to the OT world view.
[28:15] 31 tn Elsewhere the noun חֹזֶה (khozeh) refers to a prophet who sees visions. In v. 18 the related term חָזוּת (khazut, “vision”) is used. The parallelism in both verses (note “treaty”) seems to demand a meaning “agreement” for both nouns. Perhaps חֹזֶה and חזוּת are used in a metonymic sense in vv. 15 and 18. Another option is to propose a homonymic root. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:514, and HALOT 301 s.v. II חֹזֶה.
[28:15] 32 tn Heb “the overwhelming scourge, when it passes by” (NRSV similar).
[28:15] 33 sn “Lie” and “deceitful word” would not be the terms used by the people. They would likely use the words “promise” and “reliable word,” but the prophet substitutes “lie” and “deceitful word” to emphasize that this treaty with death will really prove to be disappointing.
[28:16] 34 tc The Hebrew text has a third person verb form, which does not agree with the first person suffix that precedes. The form should be emended to יֹסֵד (yosed), a Qal active participle used in a present progressive or imminent future sense.
[28:16] 35 tn Traditionally “tested,” but the implication is that it has passed the test and stands approved.
[28:16] 36 sn The reality behind the metaphor is not entirely clear from the context. The stone appears to represent someone or something that gives Zion stability. Perhaps the ideal Davidic ruler is in view (see 32:1). Another option is that the image of beginning a building project by laying a precious cornerstone suggests that God is about to transform Zion through judgment and begin a new covenant community that will experience his protection (see 4:3-6; 31:5; 33:20-24; 35:10).
[28:16] 37 tn Heb “will not hurry,” i.e., act in panic.
[28:17] 38 tn Heb “[the] refuge, [the] lie.” See v. 15.
[28:18] 39 tn On the meaning of כָּפַר (kafar) in this context, see HALOT 494 s.v. I כפר and J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:515, n. 9.
[28:18] 40 tn Normally the noun חָזוּת (khazut) means “vision.” See the note at v. 15.
[28:18] 41 tn Or “will not stand” (NIV, NRSV).
[28:18] 42 tn See the note at v. 15.
[28:18] 43 tn Heb “you will become a trampling place for it.”
[28:19] 44 tn Or “for” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV).
[28:19] 45 tn The words “it will come through” are supplied in the translation. The verb “will sweep by” does double duty in the parallel structure.
[28:20] 46 sn The bed and blanket probably symbolize their false sense of security. A bed that is too short and a blanket that is too narrow may promise rest and protection from the cold, but in the end they are useless and disappointing. In the same way, their supposed treaty with death will prove useless and disappointing.
[28:21] 47 sn This probably alludes to David’s victory over the Philistines at Baal Perazim. See 2 Sam 5:20.
[28:21] 48 sn This probably alludes to the Lord’s victory over the Canaanites at Gibeon, during the days of Joshua. See Josh 10:10-11.
[28:21] 49 sn God’s judgment of his own people is called “his peculiar work” and “his strange task,” because he must deal with them the way he treated their enemies in the past.
[28:22] 50 tn Or “the whole earth” (KJV, ASV, NAB, NCV).
[28:23] 51 tn Heb “to my voice.”
[28:23] 52 tn Heb “to my word”; cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV “hear my speech.”
[28:24] 53 tn Heb “All the day does the plowman plow in order to plant?” The phrase “all the day” here has the sense of “continually, always.” See BDB 400 s.v. יוֹם.
[28:25] 54 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”).
[28:26] 55 tn Heb “he teaches him the proper way, his God instructs him.”
[28:27] 56 tn Or “For” (KJV, ASV, NASB).
[28:27] 57 sn Both of these seeds are too small to use the ordinary threshing techniques.
[28:29] 58 sn Verses 23-29 emphasize that God possesses great wisdom and has established a natural order. Evidence of this can be seen in the way farmers utilize divinely imparted wisdom to grow and harvest crops. God’s dealings with his people will exhibit this same kind of wisdom and order. Judgment will be accomplished according to a divinely ordered timetable and, while severe enough, will not be excessive. Judgment must come, just as planting inevitably follows plowing. God will, as it were, thresh his people, but he will not crush them to the point where they will be of no use to him.
[29:1] 59 tn Heb “Woe [to] Ariel.” The meaning of the name “Ariel” is uncertain. The name may mean “altar hearth” (see v. 2) or, if compound, “lion of God.” The name is used here as a title for Mount Zion/Jerusalem (see v. 8).
[29:1] 60 tn Heb “the town where David camped.” The verb חָנָה (khanah, “camp”) probably has the nuance “lay siege to” here. See v. 3. Another option is to take the verb in the sense of “lived, settled.”
[29:1] 61 tn Heb “Add year to year, let your festivals occur in cycles.” This is probably a sarcastic exhortation to the people to keep up their religious rituals, which will not prevent the coming judgment. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:527.
[29:2] 62 tn The term אֲרִיאֵל (’ari’el, “Ariel”) is the word translated “altar hearth” here. The point of the simile is not entirely clear. Perhaps the image likens Jerusalem’s coming crisis to a sacrificial fire.
[29:3] 63 tc The Hebrew text has כַדּוּר (khadur, “like a circle”), i.e., “like an encircling wall.” Some emend this phrase to כְּדָוִד (kÿdavid, “like David”), which is supported by the LXX (see v. 1). However, the rendering in the LXX could have arisen from a confusion of the dalet (ד) and resh (ר).
[29:3] 64 tn The meaning of מֻצָּב (mutsav) is not certain. Because of the parallelism (note “siege works”), some translate “towers.” The noun is derived from נָצַב (natsav, “take one’s stand”) and may refer to the troops stationed outside the city to prevent entrance or departure.
[29:4] 65 tn Heb “from the ground” (so NIV, NCV).
[29:4] 66 tn Heb “and from the dust your word will be low.”
[29:4] 67 tn Heb “and your voice will be like a ritual pit from the earth.” The Hebrew אוֹב (’ov, “ritual pit”) refers to a pit used by a magician to conjure up underworld spirits. See the note on “incantations” in 8:19. Here the word is used metonymically for the voice that emerges from such a pit.
[29:4] 68 tn Heb “and from the dust your word will chirp.” The words “as if muttering an incantation” are supplied in the translation for clarification. See the parallelism and 8:19.
[29:5] 69 tn Or “violent men”; cf. NASB “the ruthless ones.”
[29:6] 70 tn Heb “from the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] there will be visitation.” The third feminine singular passive verb form תִּפָּקֵד (tippaqed, “she/it will be visited”) is used here in an impersonal sense. See GKC 459 §144.b.
[29:8] 71 tn Or “that he [or “his appetite”] is unsatisfied.”
[29:8] 72 tn Or “that he is faint and that he [or “his appetite”] longs [for water].”
[29:9] 73 tn The form הִתְמַהְמְהוּ (hitmahmÿhu) is a Hitpalpel imperative from מָהַהּ (mahah, “hesitate”). If it is retained, one might translate “halt and be amazed.” The translation assumes an emendation to הִתַּמְּהוּ (hittammÿhu), a Hitpael imperative from תָּמַה (tamah, “be amazed”). In this case, the text, like Hab 1:5, combines the Hitpael and Qal imperatival forms of תָּמַה (tamah). A literal translation might be “Shock yourselves and be shocked!” The repetition of sound draws attention to the statement. The imperatives here have the force of an emphatic assertion. On this use of the imperative in Hebrew, see GKC 324 §110.c and IBHS 572 §34.4c.
[29:9] 74 tn Heb “Blind yourselves and be blind!” The Hitpalpel and Qal imperatival forms of שָׁעַע (sha’a’, “be blind”) are combined to draw attention to the statement. The imperatives have the force of an emphatic assertion.
[29:9] 75 tc Some prefer to emend the perfect form of the verb to an imperative (e.g., NAB, NCV, NRSV), since the people are addressed in the immediately preceding and following contexts.
[29:9] 76 tc Some prefer to emend the perfect form of the verb to an imperative (e.g., NAB, NCV, NRSV), since the people are addressed in the immediately preceding and following contexts.
[29:10] 77 tn Heb “a disposition [or “spirit”] of deep sleep.” Through this mixed metaphor (sleep is likened to a liquid which one pours and in turn symbolizes spiritual dullness) the prophet emphasizes that God himself has given the people over to their spiritual insensitivity as a form of judgment.
[29:11] 78 tn Heb “vision” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[29:11] 79 tn Heb “one who knows a/the scroll.”
[29:12] 80 tn Heb “and if the scroll is handed to one who does not know a scroll.”
[29:12] 81 tn Heb “I do not know a scroll.”
[29:13] 82 tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonai).
[29:13] 83 tn Heb “Because these people draw near to me with their mouth.”
[29:13] 84 tn Heb “and with their lips they honor me.”
[29:13] 85 tn Heb “but their heart is far from me.” The heart is viewed here as the seat of the will, from which genuine loyalty derives.
[29:13] 86 tn Heb “their fear of me is a commandment of men that has been taught.”
[29:14] 87 tn Heb “Therefore I will again do something amazing with these people, an amazing deed, an amazing thing.” This probably refers to the amazing transformation predicted in vv. 17-24, which will follow the purifying judgment implied in vv. 15-16.
[29:14] 88 tn Heb “the wisdom of their wise ones will perish, the discernment of their discerning ones will keep hidden.”
[29:15] 89 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who deeply hide counsel from the Lord.” This probably alludes to political alliances made without seeking the Lord’s guidance. See 30:1-2 and 31:1.
[29:15] 90 tn Heb “and their works are in darkness and they say.”
[29:15] 91 tn The rhetorical questions suggest the answer, “no one.” They are confident that their deeds are hidden from others, including God.
[29:16] 92 tn Heb “your overturning.” The predicate is suppressed in this exclamation. The idea is, “O your perversity! How great it is!” See GKC 470 §147.c. The people “overturn” all logic by thinking their authority supersedes God’s.
[29:16] 93 tn The expected answer to this rhetorical question is “of course not.” On the interrogative use of אִם (’im), see BDB 50 s.v.
[29:16] 94 tn Heb “that the thing made should say.”
[29:17] 95 tn The Hebrew text phrases this as a rhetorical question, “Is it not yet a little, a short [time]?”
[29:17] 96 sn The meaning of this verse is debated, but it seems to depict a reversal in fortunes. The mighty forest of Lebanon (symbolic of the proud and powerful, see 2:13; 10:34) will be changed into a common orchard, while the common orchard (symbolic of the oppressed and lowly) will grow into a great forest. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:538.
[29:18] 97 tn Or “In that day” (KJV).
[29:18] 98 tn Heb “and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.”
[29:19] 99 tn Or “will rejoice” (NIV, NCV, NLT).
[29:19] 100 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
[29:20] 101 tn Heb “and all the watchers of wrong will be cut off.”
[29:21] 102 tn Heb “the ones who make a man a sinner with a word.” The Hiphil of חָטָא (khata’) here has a delocutive sense: “declare a man sinful/guilty.”
[29:21] 103 sn Legal disputes were resolved at the city gate, where the town elders met. See Amos 5:10.
[29:21] 104 tn Heb “and deprive by emptiness the innocent.”
[29:22] 105 tn Heb “So this is what the Lord says to the house of Jacob, the one who ransomed Abraham.” The relative pronoun must refer back to “the Lord,” not to the immediately preceding “Jacob.” It is uncertain to what event in Abraham’s experience this refers. Perhaps the name “Abraham” stands here by metonymy for his descendants through Jacob. If so, the Exodus is in view.
[29:22] 106 tn Heb “and his face will no longer be pale.”
[29:23] 107 tn Heb “for when he sees his children, the work of my hands in his midst.”
[29:23] 108 tn Or “treat as holy” (also in the following line); NASB, NRSV “will sanctify.”
[29:23] 109 sn Holy One of Jacob is similar to the phrase “Holy One of Israel” common throughout Isaiah; see the sn at Isa 1:4.
[29:23] 110 tn Or “fear,” in the sense of “stand in awe of.”
[29:24] 111 tn Heb “and the ones who stray in spirit will know understanding.”
[29:24] 112 tn Heb “will learn instruction”; cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “will accept instruction.”
