Isaiah 4:5

4:5 Then the Lord will create

over all of Mount Zion ¹ 

and over its convocations

a cloud and smoke by day

and a bright flame of fire by night; ² 

indeed a canopy will accompany the Lord’s glorious presence. ³ 

Isaiah 26:11

26:11 O Lord, you are ready to act, ⁴ 

but they don’t even notice.

They will see and be put to shame by your angry judgment against humankind, ⁵ 

yes, fire will consume your enemies. ⁶ 

Isaiah 30:27

30:27 Look, the name ⁷  of the Lord comes from a distant place

in raging anger and awesome splendor. ⁸ 

He speaks angrily

and his word is like destructive fire. ⁹ 

Isaiah 43:2

43:2 When you pass through the waters, I am with you;

when you pass ¹⁰  through the streams, they will not overwhelm you.

When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned;

the flames will not harm ¹¹  you.

Isaiah 66:24

66:24 “They will go out and observe the corpses of those who rebelled against me, for the maggots that eat them will not die, ¹²  and the fire that consumes them will not die out. ¹³  All people will find the sight abhorrent.” ¹⁴ 

[4:5]  ¹ tn Heb “over all the place, Mount Zion.” Cf. NLT “Jerusalem”; CEV “the whole city.”

[4:5]  ² tn Heb “a cloud by day, and smoke, and brightness of fire, a flame by night.” Though the accents in the Hebrew text suggest otherwise, it might be preferable to take “smoke” with what follows, since one would expect smoke to accompany fire.

[4:5]  ³ tn Heb “indeed (or “for”) over all the glory, a canopy.” This may allude to Exod 40:34-35, where a cloud overshadows the meeting tent as it is filled with God’s glory.

[26:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “O Lord, your hand is lifted up.”

[26:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “They will see and be ashamed of zeal of people.” Some take the prefixed verbs as jussives and translate the statement as a prayer, “Let them see and be put to shame.” The meaning of the phrase קִנְאַת־עָם (qin’at-’am, “zeal of people”) is unclear. The translation assumes that this refers to God’s angry judgment upon people. Another option is to understand the phrase as referring to God’s zealous, protective love of his covenant people. In this case one might translate, “by your zealous devotion to your people.”

[26:11]  ⁶ tn Heb “yes, fire, your enemies, will consume them.” Many understand the prefixed verb form to be jussive and translate, “let [fire] consume” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV). The mem suffixed to the verb may be enclitic; if a pronominal suffix, it refers back to “your enemies.”

[30:27]  ⁷ sn The “name” of the Lord sometimes stands by metonymy for the Lord himself, see Exod 23:21; Lev 24:11; Pss 54:1 (54:3 HT); 124:8. In Isa 30:27 the point is that he reveals that aspect of his character which his name suggests – he comes as Yahweh (“he is present”), the ever present helper of his people who annihilates their enemies and delivers them. The name “Yahweh” originated in a context where God assured a fearful Moses that he would be with him as he confronted Pharaoh and delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt. See Exod 3.

[30:27]  ⁸ tn Heb “his anger burns, and heaviness of elevation.” The meaning of the phrase “heaviness of elevation” is unclear, for מַשָּׂאָה (masa’ah, “elevation”) occurs only here. Some understand the term as referring to a cloud (elevated above the earth’s surface), in which case one might translate, “and in heavy clouds” (cf. NAB “with lowering clouds”). Others relate the noun to מָשָׂא (masa’, “burden”) and interpret it as a reference to judgment. In this case one might translate, “and with severe judgment.” The present translation assumes that the noun refers to his glory and that “heaviness” emphasizes its degree.

[30:27]  ⁹ tn Heb “his lips are full of anger, and his tongue is like consuming fire.” The Lord’s lips and tongue are used metonymically for his word (or perhaps his battle cry; see v. 31).

[43:2]  ¹⁰ tn The verb is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[43:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “burn” (so NASB); NAB, NRSV, NLT “consume”; NIV “set you ablaze.”

[66:24]  ¹³ tn Heb “for their worm will not die.”

[66:24]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and their fire will not be extinguished.”

[66:24]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and they will be an abhorrence to all flesh.”