Isaiah 54:11-17

54:11 “O afflicted one, driven away, ¹  and unconsoled!

Look, I am about to set your stones in antimony

and I lay your foundation with lapis-lazuli.

54:12 I will make your pinnacles out of gems, ² 

your gates out of beryl, ³ 

and your outer wall ⁴  out of beautiful ⁵  stones.

54:13 All your children will be followers of the Lord,

and your children will enjoy great prosperity. ⁶ 

54:14 You will be reestablished when I vindicate you. ⁷ 

You will not experience oppression; ⁸ 

indeed, you will not be afraid.

You will not be terrified, ⁹ 

for nothing frightening ¹⁰  will come near you.

54:15 If anyone dares to ¹¹  challenge you, it will not be my doing!

Whoever tries to challenge you will be defeated. ¹² 

54:16 Look, I create the craftsman,

who fans the coals into a fire

and forges a weapon. ¹³ 

I create the destroyer so he might devastate.

54:17 No weapon forged to be used against you will succeed;

you will refute everyone who tries to accuse you. ¹⁴ 

This is what the Lord will do for his servants –

I will vindicate them,” ¹⁵ 

says the Lord.

[54:11]  ¹ tn Or, more literally, “windblown, storm tossed.”

[54:12]  ² tn Perhaps, “rubies” (so ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[54:12]  ³ tn On the meaning of אֶקְדָּח (’eqdakh), which occurs only here, see HALOT 82 s.v.

[54:12]  ⁴ tn Heb “border” (so ASV); NASB “your entire wall.”

[54:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “delightful”; KJV “pleasant.”

[54:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “and great [will be] the peace of your sons.”

[54:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “in righteousness [or “vindication”] you will be established.” The precise meaning of צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah) here is uncertain. It could mean “righteousness, justice,” indicating that the city will be a center for justice. But the context focuses on deliverance, suggesting that the term means “deliverance, vindication” here.

[54:14]  ⁸ tn Heb “Be far from oppression!” The imperative is used here in a rhetorical manner to express certainty and assurance. See GKC 324 §110.c.

[54:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “from terror.” The rhetorical command, “be far” is understood by ellipsis here. Note the preceding context.

[54:14]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “it,” i.e., the “terror” just mentioned.

[54:15]  ¹¹ tn The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb here for emphasis.

[54:15]  ¹² tn Heb “will fall over you.” The expression נָפַל עַל (nafal ’al) can mean “attack,” but here it means “fall over to,” i.e., “surrender to.”

[54:16]  ¹³ tn Heb “who brings out an implement for his work.”

[54:17]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and every tongue that rises up for judgment with you will prove to be guilty.”

[54:17]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “this is the inheritance of the servants of the Lord, and their vindication from me.”