Isaiah 5:18

5:18 Those who pull evil along using cords of emptiness are as good as dead, ¹ 

who pull sin as with cart ropes. ² 

Isaiah 5:22

5:22 Those who are champions ³  at drinking wine are as good as dead, ⁴ 

who display great courage when mixing strong drinks.

Isaiah 10:1

10:1 Those who enact unjust policies are as good as dead, ⁵ 

those who are always instituting unfair regulations, ⁶ 

Isaiah 10:5

The Lord Turns on Arrogant Assyria

10:5 Assyria, the club I use to vent my anger, is as good as dead, ⁷ 

a cudgel with which I angrily punish. ⁸ 

Isaiah 18:1

The Lord Will Judge a Distant Land in the South

18:1 The land of buzzing wings is as good as dead, ⁹ 

the one beyond the rivers of Cush,

Isaiah 45:10

45:10 Danger awaits one who says ¹⁰  to his father,

“What in the world ¹¹  are you fathering?”

and to his mother,

“What in the world are you bringing forth?” ¹² 

[5:18]  ¹ sn See the note at v. 8.

[5:18]  ² tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “Woe to those who pull evil with the ropes of emptiness, and, as [with] ropes of a cart, sin.” Though several textual details are unclear, the basic idea is apparent. The sinners are so attached to their sinful ways (compared here to a heavy load) that they strain to drag them along behind them. If שָׁוְא (shavÿ’, “emptiness”) is retained, it makes a further comment on their lifestyle, denouncing it as one that is devoid of what is right and destined to lead to nothing but destruction. Because “emptiness” does not form a very tight parallel with “cart” in the next line, some emend שָׁוְא to שֶׂה (she, “sheep”) and עֲגָלָה (’agalah, “cart”) to עֵגֶל (’egel, “calf”): “Those who pull evil along with a sheep halter are as good as dead who pull sin with a calf rope” (following the lead of the LXX and improving the internal parallelism of the verse). In this case, the verse pictures the sinners pulling sin along behind them as one pulls an animal with a halter. For a discussion of this view, see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:163, n. 1. Nevertheless, this emendation is unnecessary. The above translation emphasizes the folly of the Israelites who hold on to their sin (and its punishment) even while they hope for divine intervention.

[5:22]  ³ tn The language used here is quite sarcastic and paves the way for the shocking description of the enemy army in vv. 25-30. The rich leaders of Judah are nothing but “party animals” who are totally incapable of withstanding real warriors.

[5:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “Woe [to]….” See the note at v. 8.

[10:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “Woe [to] those who decree evil decrees.” On הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) see the note on the first phrase of 1:4.

[10:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “[to] the writers who write out harm.” The participle and verb are in the Piel, suggesting repetitive action.

[10:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “Woe [to] Assyria, the club of my anger.” On הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) see the note on the first phrase of 1:4.

[10:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “a cudgel is he, in their hand is my anger.” It seems likely that the final mem (ם) on בְיָדָם (bÿyadam) is not a pronominal suffix (“in their hand”), but an enclitic mem. If so, one can translate literally, “a cudgel is he in the hand of my anger.”

[18:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “Woe [to] the land of buzzing wings.” On הוֹי (hoy, “woe, ah”) see the note on the first phrase of 1:4.

[45:10]  ¹¹ tn Heb “Woe [to] one who says” (NASB and NIV both similar); NCV “How terrible it will be.”

[45:10]  ¹² tn See the note at v. 9. This phrase occurs a second time later in this verse.

[45:10]  ¹³ sn Verses 9-10 may allude to the exiles’ criticism that the Lord does not appear to know what he is doing.