Isaiah 42:7

42:7 to open blind eyes, ¹ 

to release prisoners ²  from dungeons,

those who live in darkness from prisons.

Isaiah 59:10

59:10 We grope along the wall like the blind,

we grope like those who cannot see; ³ 

we stumble at noontime as if it were evening.

Though others are strong, we are like dead men. ⁴ 

Isaiah 3:16

Washing Away Impurity

3:16 The Lord says,

“The women ⁵  of Zion are proud.

They walk with their heads high ⁶ 

and flirt with their eyes.

They skip along ⁷ 

and the jewelry on their ankles jingles. ⁸ 

[42:7]  ¹ sn This does not refer to literal physical healing of the blind. As the next two lines suggest, this refers metonymically to freeing captives from their dark prisons where their eyes have grown unaccustomed to light.

[42:7]  ² sn This does not refer to hardened, dangerous criminals, who would have been executed for their crimes in ancient Near Eastern society. This verse refers to political prisoners or victims of social injustice.

[59:10]  ³ tn Heb “like there are no eyes.”

[59:10]  ⁴ tn Heb among the strong, like dead men.”

[3:16]  ⁵ tn Heb “daughters” (so KJV, NAB, NRSV).

[3:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “with an outstretched neck.” They proudly hold their heads high so that others can see the jewelry around their necks.

[3:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “walking and skipping, they walk.”

[3:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “and with their feet they jingle.”