Isaiah 5:6

5:6 I will make it a wasteland;

no one will prune its vines or hoe its ground, ¹ 

and thorns and briers will grow there.

I will order the clouds

not to drop any rain on it.

Isaiah 5:30

5:30 At that time ²  they will growl over their prey, ³ 

it will sound like sea waves crashing against rocks. ⁴ 

One will look out over the land and see the darkness of disaster,

clouds will turn the light into darkness. ⁵ 

Isaiah 8:1

A Sign-Child is Born

8:1 The Lord told me, “Take a large tablet ⁶  and inscribe these words ⁷  on it with an ordinary stylus: ⁸  ‘Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.’ ⁹ 

Isaiah 10:26

10:26 The Lord who commands armies is about to beat them ¹⁰  with a whip, similar to the way he struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb. ¹¹  He will use his staff against the sea, lifting it up as he did in Egypt. ¹² 

Isaiah 11:2

11:2 The Lord’s spirit will rest on him ¹³  –

a spirit that gives extraordinary wisdom, ¹⁴ 

a spirit that provides the ability to execute plans, ¹⁵ 

a spirit that produces absolute loyalty to the Lord. ¹⁶ 

Isaiah 16:5

16:5 Then a trustworthy king will be established;

he will rule in a reliable manner,

this one from David’s family. ¹⁷ 

He will be sure to make just decisions

and will be experienced in executing justice. ¹⁸ 

Isaiah 19:16

19:16 At that time ¹⁹  the Egyptians ²⁰  will be like women. ²¹  They will tremble and fear because the Lord who commands armies brandishes his fist against them. ²² 

Isaiah 22:24

22:24 His father’s family will gain increasing prominence because of him, ²³  including the offspring and the offshoots. ²⁴  All the small containers, including the bowls and all the jars will hang from this peg.’ ²⁵ 

Isaiah 30:12

30:12 For this reason this is what the Holy One of Israel says:

“You have rejected this message; ²⁶ 

you trust instead in your ability to oppress and trick, ²⁷ 

and rely on that kind of behavior. ²⁸ 

Isaiah 30:32

30:32 Every blow from his punishing cudgel, ²⁹ 

with which the Lord will beat them, ³⁰ 

will be accompanied by music from the ³¹  tambourine and harp,

and he will attack them with his weapons. ³² 

Isaiah 37:22

37:22 this is what the Lord says about him: ³³ 

“The virgin daughter Zion ³⁴ 

despises you – she makes fun of you;

daughter Jerusalem

shakes her head after you. ³⁵ 

Isaiah 42:1

The Lord Commissions His Special Servant

42:1 ³⁶ “Here is my servant whom I support,

my chosen one in whom I take pleasure.

I have placed my spirit on him;

he will make just decrees ³⁷  for the nations. ³⁸ 

Isaiah 42:25

42:25 So he poured out his fierce anger on them,

along with the devastation ³⁹  of war.

Its flames encircled them, but they did not realize it; ⁴⁰ 

it burned against them, but they did notice. ⁴¹ 

Isaiah 52:15

52:15 his form was so marred he no longer looked human ⁴²  –

so now ⁴³  he will startle ⁴⁴  many nations.

Kings will be shocked by his exaltation, ⁴⁵ 

for they will witness something unannounced to them,

and they will understand something they had not heard about.

[5:6]  ¹ tn Heb “it will not be pruned or hoed” (so NASB); ASV and NRSV both similar.

[5:30]  ² tn Or “in that day” (KJV).

[5:30]  ³ tn Heb “over it”; the referent (the prey) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:30]  ⁴ tn Heb “like the growling of the sea.”

[5:30]  ⁵ tn Heb “and one will gaze toward the land, and look, darkness of distress, and light will grow dark by its [the land’s?] clouds.”

[8:1]  ³ sn Probably made of metal, wood, or leather. See HALOT 193 s.v. גִּלָּיוֹן.

[8:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “write” (so KJV, ASV, NIV, NRSV).

[8:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “with the stylus of a man.” The significance of the qualifying genitive “a man” is uncertain. For various interpretations see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:219, n. 1.

[8:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “quickly, [the] plunder; it hurries, [the] loot.” The first word (מַהֵר, maher) is either a Piel imperative (“hurry [to]”) or infinitive (“hurrying,” or “quickly”). The third word (חָשׁ, khash) is either a third masculine singular perfect or a masculine singular participle, in either case from the root חוּשׁ (khush, “hurry”). Perhaps it is best to translate, “One hastens to the plunder, one hurries to the loot.” In this case מַהֵר is understood as an infinitive functioning as a verb, the subject of חוּשׁ is taken as indefinite, and the two nouns are understood as adverbial accusatives. As we discover in v. 3, this is the name of the son to be born to Isaiah through the prophetess.

[10:26]  ⁴ tn Heb “him” (so KJV, ASV, NASB); the singular refers to the leader or king who stands for the entire nation. This is specified by NCV, CEV as “the Assyrians.”

[10:26]  ⁵ sn According to Judg 7:25, the Ephraimites executed the Midianite general Oreb at a rock which was subsequently named after the executed enemy.

[10:26]  ⁶ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and his staff [will be] against the sea, and he will lift it in the way [or “manner”] of Egypt.” If the text is retained, “the sea” symbolizes Assyria’s hostility, the metaphor being introduced because of the reference to Egypt. The translation above assumes an emendation of עַל הַיָּם (’al hayyam, “against the sea”) to עַלֵיהֶם (’alehem, “against them”). The proposed shift from the third singular pronoun (note “beat him” earlier in the verse) to the plural is not problematic, for the singular is collective. Note that a third plural pronoun is used at the end of v. 25 (“their destruction”). The final phrase, “in the way/manner of Egypt,” probably refers to the way in which God used the staff of Moses to bring judgment down on Egypt.

[11:2]  ⁵ sn Like David (1 Sam 16:13), this king will be energized by the Lord’s spirit.

[11:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “a spirit of wisdom and understanding.” The synonyms are joined here to emphasize the degree of wisdom he will possess. His wisdom will enable him to make just legal decisions (v. 3). A very similar phrase occurs in Eph 1:17.

[11:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “a spirit of counsel [or “strategy”] and strength.” The construction is a hendiadys; the point is that he will have the strength/ability to execute the plans/strategies he devises. This ability will enable him to suppress oppressors and implement just policies (v. 4).

[11:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord.” “Knowledge” is used here in its covenantal sense and refers to a recognition of God’s authority and a willingness to submit to it. See Jer 22:16. “Fear” here refers to a healthy respect for God’s authority which produces obedience. Taken together the two terms emphasize the single quality of loyalty to the Lord. This loyalty guarantees that he will make just legal decisions and implement just policies (vv. 4-5).

[16:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “and a throne will be established in faithfulness, and he will sit on it in reliability, in the tent of David.”

[16:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “one who judges and seeks justice, and one experienced in fairness.” Many understand מְהִר (mÿhir) to mean “quick, prompt” (see BDB 555 s.v. מָהִיר), but HALOT 552 s.v. מָהִיר offers the meaning “skillful, experienced,” and translates the phrase in v. 5 “zealous for what is right.”

[19:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV), likewise at the beginning of vv. 18 and 19.

[19:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “Egypt,” which stands by metonymy for the country’s inhabitants.

[19:16]  ⁹ sn As the rest of the verse indicates, the point of the simile is that the Egyptians will be relatively weak physically and will wilt in fear before the Lord’s onslaught.

[19:16]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he will tremble and be afraid because of the brandishing of the hand of the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts], which he brandishes against him.” Since according to the imagery here the Lord’s “hand” is raised as a weapon against the Egyptians, the term “fist” has been used in the translation.

[22:24]  ⁸ tn Heb “and all the glory of the house of his father they will hang on him.” The Lord returns to the peg metaphor of v. 23a. Eliakim’s secure position of honor will bring benefits and jobs to many others in the family.

[22:24]  ⁹ tn The precise meaning and derivation of this word are uncertain. Cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV “the issue”; CEV “relatives.”

[22:24]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “all the small vessels, from the vessels that are bowls to all the vessels that are jars.” The picture is that of a single peg holding the weight of all kinds of containers hung from it.

[30:12]  ⁹ tn The sentence actually begins with the word “because.” In the Hebrew text vv. 12-13 are one long sentence.

[30:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and you trust in oppression and cunning.”

[30:12]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and you lean on it”; NAB “and depend on it.”

[30:32]  ¹⁰ tc The Hebrew text has “every blow from a founded [i.e., “appointed”?] cudgel.” The translation above, with support from a few medieval Hebrew mss, assumes an emendation of מוּסָדָה (musadah, “founded”) to מוּסָרֹה (musaroh, “his discipline”).

[30:32]  ¹¹ tn Heb “which the Lord lays on him.”

[30:32]  ¹² tn Heb “will be with” (KJV similar).

[30:32]  ¹³ tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “and with battles of brandishing [weapons?] he will fight against him.” Some prefer to emend וּבְמִלְחֲמוֹת (uvÿmilkhamot, “and with battles of”) to וּבִמְחֹלוֹת (uvimkholot, “and with dancing”). Note the immediately preceding references to musical instruments.

[37:22]  ¹¹ tn Heb “this is the word which the Lord has spoken about him.”

[37:22]  ¹² sn Zion (Jerusalem) is pictured here as a young, vulnerable daughter whose purity is being threatened by the would-be Assyrian rapist. The personification hints at the reality which the young girls of the city would face if the Assyrians conquer it.

[37:22]  ¹³ sn Shaking the head was a mocking gesture of derision.

[42:1]  ¹² sn Verses 1-7 contain the first of Isaiah’s “servant songs,” which describe the ministry of a special, ideal servant who accomplishes God’s purposes for Israel and the nations. This song depicts the servant as a just king who brings justice to the earth and relief for the oppressed. The other songs appear in 49:1-13; 50:4-11; and 52:13-53:12.

[42:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “he will bring out justice” (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[42:1]  ¹⁴ sn Like the ideal king portrayed in Isa 11:1-9, the servant is energized by the divine spirit and establishes justice on the earth.

[42:25]  ¹³ tn Heb “strength” (so KJV, NASB); NAB “fury”; NASB “fierceness”; NIV “violence.”

[42:25]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and it blazed against him all around, but he did not know.” The subject of the third feminine singular verb “blazed” is the divine חֵמָה (khemah, “anger”) mentioned in the previous line.

[42:25]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and it burned against him, but he did not set [it] upon [the] heart.”

[52:15]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and his form from the sons of men.” The preposition מִן (min) here carries the sense “away from,” i.e., “so as not to be.”

[52:15]  ¹⁵ tn This statement completes the sentence begun in v. 14a. The introductory כֵּן (ken) answers to the introductory כַּאֲשֶׁר (ka’asher) of v. 14a. Verses 14b-15a are parenthetical, explaining why many were horrified.

[52:15]  ¹⁶ tn Traditionally the verb יַזֶּה (yazzeh, a Hiphil stem) has been understood as a causative of נָזָה (nazah, “spurt, spatter”) and translated “sprinkle.” In this case the passage pictures the servant as a priest who “sprinkles” (or spiritually cleanses) the nations. Though the verb נָזָה does occur in the Hiphil with the meaning “sprinkle,” the usual interpretation is problematic. In all other instances where the object or person sprinkled is indicated, the verb is combined with a preposition. This is not the case in Isaiah 52:15, unless one takes the following עָלָיו (’alayv, “on him”) with the preceding line. But then one would have to emend the verb to a plural, make the nations the subject of the verb “sprinkle,” and take the servant as the object. Consequently some interpreters doubt the cultic idea of “sprinkling” is present here. Some emend the text; others propose a homonymic root meaning “spring, leap,” which in the Hiphil could mean “cause to leap, startle” and would fit the parallelism of the verse nicely.

[52:15]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “Because of him kings will shut their mouths,” i.e., be speechless.