Isaiah 41:1

The Lord Challenges the Nations

41:1 “Listen to me in silence, you coastlands! ¹ 

Let the nations find renewed strength!

Let them approach and then speak;

let us come together for debate! ² 

Isaiah 41:21

The Lord Challenges the Pagan Gods

41:21 “Present your argument,” says the Lord.

“Produce your evidence,” ³  says Jacob’s king. ⁴ 

Exodus 22:9

22:9 In all cases of illegal possessions, ⁵  whether for an ox, a donkey, a sheep, a garment, or any kind of lost item, about which someone says ‘This belongs to me,’ ⁶  the matter of the two of them will come before the judges, ⁷  and the one whom ⁸  the judges declare guilty ⁹  must repay double to his neighbor.

Deuteronomy 19:17

19:17 then both parties to the controversy must stand before the Lord, that is, before the priests and judges ¹⁰  who will be in office in those days.

Job 23:3-7

23:3 O that I knew ¹¹  where I might find him, ¹² 

that I could come ¹³  to his place of residence! ¹⁴ 

23:4 I would lay out my case ¹⁵  before him

and fill my mouth with arguments.

23:5 I would know with what words ¹⁶  he would answer me,

and understand what he would say to me.

23:6 Would he contend ¹⁷  with me with great power?

No, he would only pay attention to me. ¹⁸ 

23:7 There ¹⁹  an upright person

could present his case ²⁰  before him,

and I would be delivered forever from my judge.

Matthew 5:25

5:25 Reach agreement ²¹  quickly with your accuser while on the way to court, ²²  or he ²³  may hand you over to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the warden, and you will be thrown into prison.

[41:1]  ¹ tn Or “islands” (KJV, NIV, CEV); TEV “distant lands”; NLT “lands beyond the sea.”

[41:1]  ² tn The Hebrew term מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat) could be translated “judgment,” but here it seems to refer to the dispute or debate between the Lord and the nations.

[41:21]  ³ tn Heb “strong [words],” see HALOT 870 s.v. *עֲצֻמוֹת.

[41:21]  ⁴ sn Apparently this challenge is addressed to the pagan idol gods, see vv. 23-24.

[22:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “concerning every kind [thing] of trespass.”

[22:9]  ⁶ tn The text simply has “this is it” (הוּא זֶה, hu’ zeh).

[22:9]  ⁷ tn Again, or “God.”

[22:9]  ⁸ tn This kind of clause Gesenius calls an independent relative clause – it does not depend on a governing substantive but itself expresses a substantival idea (GKC 445-46 §138.e).

[22:9]  ⁹ tn The verb means “to be guilty” in Qal; in Hiphil it would have a declarative sense, because a causative sense would not possibly fit.

[19:17]  ¹⁰ tn The appositional construction (“before the Lord, that is, before the priests and judges”) indicates that these human agents represented the Lord himself, that is, they stood in his place (cf. Deut 16:18-20; 17:8-9).

[23:3]  ¹¹ tn The optative here is again expressed with the verbal clause, “who will give [that] I knew….”

[23:3]  ¹² tn The form in Hebrew is וְאֶמְצָאֵהוּ (vÿ’emtsa’ehu), simply “and I will find him.” But in the optative clause this verb is subordinated to the preceding verb: “O that I knew where [and] I might find him.” It is not unusual to have the perfect verb followed by the imperfect in such coordinate clauses (see GKC 386 §120.e). This could also be translated making the second verb a complementary infinitive: “knew how to find him.”

[23:3]  ¹³ tn This verb also depends on מִי־יִתֵּן (mi-yitten, “who will give”) of the first part, forming an additional clause in the wish formula.

[23:3]  ¹⁴ tn Or “his place of judgment.” The word is from כּוּן (kun, “to prepare; to arrange”) in the Polel and the Hiphil conjugations. The noun refers to a prepared place, a throne, a seat, or a sanctuary. A. B. Davidson (Job, 169) and others take the word to mean “judgment seat” or “tribunal” in this context.

[23:4]  ¹⁵ tn The word מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat) is normally “judgment; decision.” But in these contexts it refers to the legal case that Job will bring before God. With the verb עָרַךְ (’arakh, “to set in order; to lay out”) the whole image of drawing up a lawsuit is complete.

[23:5]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “the words he would answer me.”

[23:6]  ¹⁷ tn The verb is now רִיב (riv) and not יָכַח (yakhakh, “contend”); רִיב (riv) means “to quarrel; to dispute; to contend,” often in a legal context. Here it is still part of Job’s questioning about this hypothetical meeting – would God contend with all his power?

[23:6]  ¹⁸ tn The verbal clause יָשִׂם בִּי (yasim bi) has been translated “he would pay [attention] to me.” Job is saying that God will not need all his power – he will just have pay attention to Job’s complaint. Job does not need the display of power – he just wants a hearing.

[23:7]  ¹⁹ tn The adverb “there” has the sense of “then” – there in the future.

[23:7]  ²⁰ tn The form of the verb is the Niphal נוֹכָח (nokkakh, “argue, present a case”). E. Dhorme (Job, 346) is troubled by this verbal form and so changes it and other things in the line to say, “he would observe the upright man who argues with him.” The Niphal is used for “engaging discussion,” “arguing a case,” and “settling a dispute.”

[5:25]  ²¹ tn Grk “Make friends.”

[5:25]  ²² tn The words “to court” are not in the Greek text but are implied.

[5:25]  ²³ tn Grk “the accuser.”