Isaiah 32:16

32:16 Justice will settle down in the desert

and fairness will live in the orchard. ¹ 

Isaiah 35:1

The Land and Its People Are Transformed

35:1 Let the desert and dry region be happy; ² 

let the wilderness ³  rejoice and bloom like a lily!

Isaiah 35:6

35:6 Then the lame will leap like a deer,

the mute tongue will shout for joy;

for water will flow ⁴  in the desert,

streams in the wilderness. ⁵ 

Isaiah 40:3

40:3 A voice cries out,

“In the wilderness clear a way for the Lord;

construct in the desert a road for our God.

Isaiah 41:18-19

41:18 I will make streams flow down the slopes

and produce springs in the middle of the valleys.

I will turn the desert into a pool of water

and the arid land into springs.

41:19 I will make cedars, acacias, myrtles, and olive trees grow in the wilderness;

I will make evergreens, firs, and cypresses grow together in the desert.

Isaiah 43:19

43:19 “Look, I am about to do something new.

Now it begins to happen! ⁶  Do you not recognize ⁷  it?

Yes, I will make a road in the desert

and paths ⁸  in the wilderness.

Psalms 72:8-10

72:8 May he rule ⁹  from sea to sea, ¹⁰ 

and from the Euphrates River ¹¹  to the ends of the earth!

72:9 Before him the coastlands ¹²  will bow down,

and his enemies will lick the dust. ¹³ 

72:10 The kings of Tarshish ¹⁴  and the coastlands will offer gifts;

the kings of Sheba ¹⁵  and Seba ¹⁶  will bring tribute.

[32:16]  ¹ sn This new era of divine blessing will also include a moral/ethical transformation, as justice and fairness fill the land and replace the social injustice so prevalent in Isaiah’s time.

[35:1]  ² tn The final mem (ם) on the verb יְשֻׂשׂוּם (yÿsusum) is dittographic (note the initial mem on the following noun מִדְבָּר [midbar]). The ambiguous verbal form is translated as a jussive because it is parallel to the jussive form תָגֵל (tagel). The jussive is used rhetorically here, not as a literal command or prayer.

[35:1]  ³ tn Or “Arabah” (NASB); NAB, NIV, TEV “desert.”

[35:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “burst forth” (so NAB); KJV “break out.”

[35:6]  ⁵ tn Or “Arabah” (NASB); KJV, NIV, NRSV, NLT “desert.”

[43:19]  ⁶ tn Heb “sprouts up”; NASB “will spring forth.”

[43:19]  ⁷ tn Or “know” (KJV, ASV); NASB “be aware of”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “perceive.”

[43:19]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew texts has “streams,” probably under the influence of v. 20. The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has נתיבות (“paths”).

[72:8]  ⁹ tn The prefixed verbal form is a (shortened) jussive form, indicating this is a prayer of blessing.

[72:8]  ¹⁰ sn From sea to sea. This may mean from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the Dead Sea in the east. See Amos 8:12. The language of this and the following line also appears in Zech 9:10.

[72:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the river,” a reference to the Euphrates.

[72:9]  ¹² tn Or “islands.” The term here refers metonymically to those people who dwell in these regions.

[72:9]  ¹³ sn As they bow down before him, it will appear that his enemies are licking the dust.

[72:10]  ¹⁴ sn Tarshish was a distant western port, the precise location of which is uncertain.

[72:10]  ¹⁵ sn Sheba was located in Arabia.

[72:10]  ¹⁶ sn Seba was located in Africa.