Isaiah 5:26

5:26 He lifts a signal flag for a distant nation, ¹ 

he whistles for it to come from the far regions of the earth.

Look, they ²  come quickly and swiftly.

Isaiah 11:12

11:12 He will lift a signal flag for the nations;

he will gather Israel’s dispersed people ³ 

and assemble Judah’s scattered people

from the four corners of the earth.

Isaiah 18:3

18:3 All you who live in the world,

who reside on the earth,

you will see a signal flag raised on the mountains;

you will hear a trumpet being blown.

Isaiah 11:10

Israel is Reclaimed and Reunited

11:10 At that time ⁴  a root from Jesse ⁵  will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance, ⁶  and his residence will be majestic.

Isaiah 13:2

13:2 ⁷ On a bare hill raise a signal flag,

shout to them,

wave your hand,

so they might enter the gates of the princes!

Isaiah 31:9

31:9 They will surrender their stronghold ⁸  because of fear; ⁹ 

their officers will be afraid of the Lord’s battle flag.” ¹⁰ 

This is what the Lord says –

the one whose fire is in Zion,

whose firepot is in Jerusalem. ¹¹ 

Isaiah 33:23

33:23 Though at this time your ropes are slack, ¹² 

the mast is not secured, ¹³ 

and the sail ¹⁴  is not unfurled,

at that time you will divide up a great quantity of loot; ¹⁵ 

even the lame will drag off plunder. ¹⁶ 

Isaiah 62:10

62:10 Come through! Come through the gates!

Prepare the way for the people!

Build it! Build the roadway!

Remove the stones!

Lift a signal flag for the nations!

Isaiah 30:17

30:17 One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier; ¹⁷ 

at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away, ¹⁸ 

until the remaining few are as isolated ¹⁹ 

as a flagpole on a mountaintop

or a signal flag on a hill.”

Isaiah 49:22

49:22 This is what the sovereign Lord says:

“Look I will raise my hand to the nations;

I will raise my signal flag to the peoples.

They will bring your sons in their arms

and carry your daughters on their shoulders.

[5:26]  ¹ tc The Hebrew text has literally, “for nations from a distance.” The following verses use singular forms to describe this nation, so the final mem (ם) on לְגּוֹיִם (lÿgoyim) may be enclitic or dittographic. In the latter case one could read לְגוֹי מֵרָחוֹק (lÿgoy merakhoq, “for a nation from a distance”; see Deut 28:49; Joel 3:8). Another possibility is to emend the text from לַגּוֹיִם מֵרָחוֹק (laggoyim merakhoq) to לְגוֹי מִמֶּרְחָק (lÿgoy mimmerkhaq, “for a nation from a distant place”) a phrase which occurs in Jer 5:15. In this case an error of misdivision has occurred in MT, the mem of the prefixed preposition being accidentally taken as a plural ending on the preceding word.

[5:26]  ² tn Heb “he.” Singular forms are used throughout vv. 26-30 to describe this nation, but for stylistic reasons the translation uses the plural for these collective singulars.

[11:12]  ³ tn Or “the banished of Israel,” i.e., the exiles.

[11:10]  ⁵ tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[11:10]  ⁶ sn See the note at v. 1.

[11:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “ a root from Jesse, which stands for a signal flag of the nations, of him nations will inquire” [or “seek”].

[13:2]  ⁷ sn The Lord is speaking here (see v. 3).

[31:9]  ⁹ tn Heb “rocky cliff” (cf. ASV, NASB “rock”), viewed metaphorically as a place of defense and security.

[31:9]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “His rocky cliff, because of fear, will pass away [i.e., “perish”].”

[31:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and they will be afraid of the flag, his officers.”

[31:9]  ¹² sn The “fire” and “firepot” here symbolize divine judgment, which is heating up like a fire in Jerusalem, waiting to be used against the Assyrians when they attack the city.

[33:23]  ¹¹ tn The words “though at this time” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The first half of the verse is addressed to Judah and contrasts the nation’s present weakness with its future prosperity. Judah is compared to a ship that is incapable of sailing.

[33:23]  ¹² tn Heb “they do not fasten the base of their mast.” On כֵּן (ken, “base”) see BDB 487 s.v. III כֵּן and HALOT 483 s.v. III כֵּן.

[33:23]  ¹³ tn Or perhaps, “flag.”

[33:23]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “then there will be divided up loot of plunder [in] abundance.”

[33:23]  ¹⁵ sn Judah’s victory over its enemies will be so thorough there will be more than enough plunder for everyone, even slow-moving lame men who would normally get left out in the rush to gather the loot.

[30:17]  ¹³ tn Heb “One thousand from before [or “because of”] one battle cry.” גְּעָרָה (gÿ’arah) is often defined as “threat,” but in war contexts it likely refers to a shout or battle cry. See Ps 76:6.

[30:17]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “from before [or “because of”] the battle cry of five you will flee.

[30:17]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “until you are left” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV).